41st Karbi Youth Festival Closed Splendidly
The five day imposing festivity of the 41st Karbi Youth Festival came to a splendid end last Friday, with a marvelous firework display and campfire. There was a thunderous crescendo of cheers from about seventy thousand spectators marking the closing ceremony of the festival.
A competition of Karbi folk song and dances was held on the concluding day, Karbi social dignitary Chandra Sing Ingti unveiled the competition. The folk dances are choreographed to illustrate various junctures of Karbi socio cultural life. Banjar Kekan, Ru Nongchingdi and Hacha Kekan are various Karbi group dance forms on which competitions was held.
Dance groups of all men, all women and mixed troops representing various zones of Karbi Cultural Society competed well to seize dignity for their zone. Contests for performing traditional wind instruments such as Krongchui and Mori Tongpo (type of horn), recitation of Karbi epic limericks Musera Kehir recounting the historical exodus of the Karbis to the Indian peninsular, and other chronological events, such as the Karbi duet and solo songs took place in several open air stages and in one massive open arcade theatre.
Other thrilling contests which everyone enjoyed were Karbi traditional sports such as Hembi Kepathu, Bapthali (shooting pebble with bow), and Keng Dong Dal Kethang (walking by means of bamboo stick).
Tuliram Ronghang Chief Executive Member of Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council, the chief patron of the gala event and his Executive Committee colleagues arrived in Karbi Peoples Hall, the main festival venue. After visiting the competition arenas, Ronghang went to the model ethnic village, where tastefully crafted replicas of dwelling houses of Karbi, Tiwa, Dimasa, Rengma, Kuki, Bodo, Man Tai and other tribes prepared with bamboo, thatch, mud and cane were displayed.
Together with the model huts, there was an exhibition of conventional food and drinks of each of these tribes, which were on sale to participants. The ethnic food was reported to be one of the best attractions of the KYF. Tuliram Ronghang visited almost all the model tribal huts and interacted with artists and craftsman.
Apple cheeked young girls dressed in dazzling time-honoured tribal apparel of their community next to each model hut appeared like blooming gardens. This spot impressed most of the European visitors such as Vandenbulcke Patrick and his spouse Callems Lucrece of Belgium, who heard about KYF from the Australian publication News Blaze.
Shankar Sonowal, Executive Member of Sonowal Kachari Autonomous Council of Assam also visited Taralangso, the village where the mega fiesta took place.
Various Karbi celebrities proficient in the field of art, culture, sports and education were felicitated along with the ceremonial crowning of Miss and Mister of the 41st Karbi Youth Festival.
