Mujra

Mujra is a sexual dance famous in red light districts in Pakistan including in Lahore, Multan, Hyderabad and Karachi.

Origins

When the Mughals took control of India, they had many of the original Hindu storytellers of the region of [Rajasthan, India], brought into the courts as entertainers. In the courts, because stories from Hindu mythology were not of interest to the Mughal rulers, what was once the dance Kathak became infused with fast spinnings, swift movements, and graceful hand gestures of Persian influence - the birth of mujra.

After the mainstay of Mughal emporers died away, the mujra dance was performed in separate kothas (buildings) by dancers called tawaifs for audiences made up of mostly upper class young men.

These dancers were labeled "whores" after the British colonial Anti-Nautch (anti-dance) movement left many from these dancing families at the feet of prostitution, and this is the pervasive sentiment attached to the mujra even today.