A festival of reunion of all Karbis

Described as a festival of reunion of all Karbis of the North-East converged at the ‘Fong Ari Kshetra” – the venue of the fest.

Dipak J Baruah

The North East Karbi Youth Festival was held  recently at Sonapur near Guwahati. The festival was organized by Karbi Cultural Society in association with Karbi Students’ Association.

Described as a festival of reunion of all Karbis of the North-East by its organisers, participants representating various habitats of the ethnic group including the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and the districts of Karbi Anlong, NC Hills, Sonitpur, Kamrup and Nagaon converged at the ‘Fong Ari Kshetra” – the venue of the fest which got off to a colourful start, with hoisting of the society’s flag by Dr. Sarsing Terang, president of the organisation.

An exhibition cum sale pertaining to ethnic items like handloom costumes, handicrafts, ornaments, day to day househole articles and cultural paraphernalias, performaces of traditional dance items like Domahi Kokan, Akrol Kisan, Lakman, Kachtakachital Alum, Osokipadak, Owe Alun, chorus, modern songs, traditional games, traditional fashions, staging of plays in Karbi language were some of the highlights of the fest. Competitions on a number of items too were held beside release of a number of books.

Rabijita Gogoi, an upcoming theatre activist and a graduate from the National School of Drama presented two dramas on the occasion. Thong Nokbe and Kongpharpi Rongbe drew enough applause from the audience. Cultural nites were held every day upon an open-air stage made in inimitable style by renowned artist Biren Singha.

Overall, the festival was a kaleidoscopic presentation of the rich wealth of ethnicity of the Karbi people, one of the earliest settlers in the North-East. The objective of the festival was to contribute in to the harmony of all Karbis of the North-East by bringing about a cultural bond, said Roland Kelling, president Karbi Students’ Association.

Sale of heritage items in the exhibition ground was at its peak. The stalls selling costumes with designs typical of the tribe’s heritage drew a large crowd. Pecharpi, Aripchak, Wamcok, Jarong, Chayhangthar, pekok, Pini were in particular in great demand. Kadam Teranpi, for instance, was one of those entrepreneurs in handloom costumes found greatly encouraged and enthused by the sale. She came to the fest with five artisans of her. “Our ancestors have left to us a legacy. I am extremely encouraged to see the rush. I have attended the fest for the first time and would like to continue participating.”

Event 

Pakistan a draw at IGTF

The foreign participants were moved by the warmth and affection of the people of this region.

Sandeep Banerjee

The International Guwahati Trade Fair (IGTF) completed a full decade with its 10th edition held recently. The IGTF has come a long way. It is now comparable to any big trade fair in its stature and in organization as well as crowd participation.

It all began a decade back with the Industries and Trade Fair Association of Assam (ITFAA) targeting participation from all over the country. Having achieved success, the process of inviting foreign countries started. Recognition for fair was granted by the Indian Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO) in 1999; and in 2000 Bangladesh was invited. Last year Iran was the added attraction and this year Pakistan, Myanmar and Nepal had put up pavilions apart from Bangladesh and Iran. The participation of the foreign countries is also being seen as an improvement in the law and order situation. China, Malaysia and Thailand are some of the Asian countries who are also expected to participate in the IGTF, 2004.

The crowd response was fantastic all through the fortnight. The participants were all happy as they did whopping business. The holding of trade fair has helped in improving the image of the State tremendously. Initially, participants from within the country were hesitant to come to Assam. Now this perception has changed. It has also helped local entrepreneurs in exchanging ideas with national and international entrepreneurs. Small Scale Industries (SSI) were given extra fillip in this fair. Their stalls were subsidized. Altogether 44 SSI’s participated in the fair and recorded very encouraging response. Some of the SISs have also tied up with big industries.

All the foreign participants recorded very good sales of their products. But what moved them more was the warmth and affection of the people of this region.  Bangaladesh deputy high commissioner to India T. Hussain was the guest of honour at the inaugural function. He categorically made it clear that dispite whatever differences, that might exist between India and Bangladesh, it should not undermine the friendship and trading ties between the two countries. He reiterated that cooperation between the North-East and Bangladesh can help in development of both the regions. He also affirmed Bangladeshis participation in the IGTF in the years to follow.

Like the previous years, Jamdani sarees were the biggest crowd pullers at the Bangladesh pavilion. Their new item packed dry fish also became an instant hit with the fish-loving people.

However, the spotlight of the fair was on the Pakistani stall. Karachi-based businessman Mohammed Iqbal, whose business is spread across the world, expressed his gratitude to the people of Assam and the North-East for their overwhelming response. “People have come not only to buy our products but shower their love and support to us. The pyaar and izzat we all received here is simply moving. This time we are coming from Delhi and Kolkata where we participated in the IITF and Kolkata International Trade Fair. Being the first time we could not bring all our array of products. But the response we have got is so great, next year I promise to arrange the participation of Pakistan in a grand scale”, said Iqbal who was the main coordinator of the Pakistan Pavilion.

The visitors book at the Pavilion recorded the comments and reactions of the people from different walks of life. One message reads: “Coming to your stall, we feel so united. Hope to meet you again brother.” Most messages record similar sentiments.

Observes Iqbal, “We have heard a lot about this region being unsafe and volatile but coming here we have found it almost same like other big Indian cities. And the crowd is fantastic. Unlike Delhi or Kolkata, people here take quick decisions and instantly buy what they like. Despite the World Cup fever, the crowd in the fair has stunned all of us. We think this fantastic response has a lot to do with the participation of Pakistan,” adds Iqbal.

The IGTF 2003 will surely go down as another feather in the cap for the ITFAA and also a big success for the region and its people as a whole

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