The villagers of Malana consider themselves to be descendants of Alexander the Great and their local court system even today reflects the ancient Greek system.

   The village administration is democratic and is believed, by locals, to be the oldest republic of the world.

   Despite being a part of the Kullu valley, there is a myth that the Malanis have very distinct physical features, and a dialect which is different from the rest of the valley. However, in the valleys of Himachal, there are a significant number of distinct Pahadi dialects, some of them totally different from each other. Hence the physical/lingual uniqueness cannot be proven, given the inaccessibility of the Malana people.

   Malana is situated in the remotest area of the Rupi valley which can be approached both from Naggar and Jari. From Jari it is 12 km., 9 km. on vehicle and rest of the journey is on foot. The last lap is a difficult climb. It is 60 km. from Kullu through Naggar. In between Naggar and Malana, there is Chander Khani Pass with a height of about 12000 ft. Malana is known for traditional democratic setup. The life of the people revolves round the village god Jamloo. All things are done in his name. The local self Government of the people runs the administration of the village. The village has 125 houses divided into 4 wards. These wards elect eight representatives for the upper house. Three other members of the house are permanent by virtue of their positions. No person can resign without completing his three years term. All the heads of the families comprise the lower house. The meeting of the lower house is called when the upper house fails to decide any matter. “Harcha” is the seat of justice where the members of the upper house sit to decide all the cases brought before them. These people generally do not go to government courts and all disputes are settled by them and decision so given is binding on all the residents of the village. The altitude of the village is 2770 meters.