Spirits were high as the first day of the Te Matatini festival kicked off in Auckland today.
The week-long kapa haka spectacle made its grand return after four years and multiple delays due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
"It was beautiful. Probably the main thing was seeing our whānau, our babies, our kaumātua, our kuia, our kura so we're pretty happy," Muriwhenua's Rawiri Pihama said.
The first day of the competition was full of stunning solos and East Coast flair, but many of the groups weren't afraid to tackle challenging, political and sometimes controversial topics.
Te Rangiura o Wairarapa's haka took aim at Christianity, encouraging Māori to revert back to their traditional beliefs.
"This is what I've been born to do, bred into the roopu to do," Whāngārā Mai Tawhiti's Mikaia Leach said.
Forty-five groups from across the country are competing for just 12 spots in Saturday's final.
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