Made from materials like wood, clay, metal and polychrome, fagli masks are used in Himachal Pradesh, especially the Kullu valley, as accompaniments for dances during the Fagli festival. The festival takes place towards the end of winter during the month of Phalgun (February/March), from which the name ‘fagli’ derives. The performance narrates legends of the dwellers of the region, who believe that their ancestors struggled against evil forest spirits. Stories of more recent settlers are also depicted.

Fagli masks are generally made of wood and polychrome, with serrated teeth and a dark face patterned with white pigment. Feathers and flowers are used as decoration on the top and around the face. They are worn along with a straw costume. The masks are provided with holes through which ropes or threads can be passed, in order to secure them to frames (when they are being used in processions) or to dancers’ heads (when they are worn). Vegetal fibre padding is also used to make them easier to wear. Carvings on wooden masks suggest facial features as well as wrinkles on the forehead; black vertical marks are used to represent hair. Male masks usually include carved moustaches, while female masks earrings, carved tiaras and pendants. Masks from the Banjar Valley (in Kullu) tend to be more colourful than most Fagli masks: though their bases are usually black, stylized patterns are drawn on the cheeks and around the eyes. Orange, white and red pigments are applied to vertical carved strips on the forehead.