The Hindu : Other States / Assam News : Fun and frolic to welcome the spring

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Apr 15, 2005

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Other States - Assam

Fun and frolic to welcome the spring

Special Correspondent

WELCOME SPRING: Assamese girls performing the Bihu dance on the occasion of Rongali Bihu festival in Guwahati on Thursday. — Photo: Ritu Raj Konwar

GUWAHATI: The weeklong Rongali Bihu festival of fun and frolic, joy and merriment to welcome the arrival of spring began in Assam on Thursday, with choral parties of young boys moving from house to house singing Bihu songs and dancing and giving ceremonial bath to cattle.

Young damsels clad in traditional attire of golden yellow coloured mekhela-chador made of unique Muga silk and dancing to the rhythms of beatings of the traditional drums in the open yards of rural Assam and on stages in the city and town areas also marked the beginning of the festival.

The festivities began this morning with the agrarian community giving their cattle a ceremonial bath to mark the celebration of the Goru (cattle) Bihu. The village folk took their cattle to rivers and ponds and threw bottle gourd, brinjal and turmeric on the cattle while bathing them to wish them a long life as they prepare for a new agricultural year. Keeping with the traditional belief the villagers also struck the cattle with some shrubs with the expectation that it would heal their diseases.

In rural areas the first Bihu night came alive with the beatings of the traditional Assamese drum known as "Dhol" by Huchori teams (choral parties) of young boys clad in traditional attire and wrapping Gamocha (the traditional Assamese towel) who went round the villages singing and dancing in the courtyards of the villagers. The family members of the houses that are visited by the Huchori team offer donations to the choral parties and get blessings from them.

In the city and other town areas the festivities on the first day were marked by rush in the market places, hoisting of the Bihu flags of various Bihu celebration committees.

The markets were flooded with cheap machine-made Gamochas imported from other States.

In contrast to the celebration of Bihu in traditional styles by the village folk in rural areas, the Bihu dances are presented on stage in the city by professional Bihu choral and dance troupes. In the city crowds folk to the various Bihu pandals to enjoy the presentations by popular stage artistes while some could be seen picking up the audio and video cassettes of Bihu songs.

The cultural evenings that would continue for the next three days .

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Fun and frolic to welcome the spring