Assamese Cuisine

Assamese food is mainly based on rice and fish. For dessert, or for those with a sweet tooth,

there is a wide range in "pithas" (cakes). Rice is the staple diet in Assam and is eaten in

various forms throughout the day. The Assamese eat a huge variety of rice-based breakfast

cereals with milk, yoghurt or thick creamakhoi (puffed rice), chira (chura), muri, komal chaul

(a specially processed rice which doesn’t require cooking but just an hour’s soak in cold

water) and hurum to name but a few. Normally jaggery or sugar is added but for those who

prefer savoury items, salt can be added. Also there are the various kinds of pitha that are

prepared from rice powder. Authentic Assamese cuisine is bland and yet very delicious. Very

little oil is used and practically no spices. All Assamese people are non-vegetarian. Chicken

is taboo in orthodox families and there are some, who may not eat meat. But it’s difficult to

find anyone who does not eat fish and duck’s eggs. Some of their most favourite food are :

Assam Laksa and Koat Pitha. Assam Laksa is a rich spicy broth made with a stock of flaked

ikan kembong and Daun kesom (polygonum). Assam Laksa is also known as Penang laksa.

Koat Pitha, also known as Banana Pitha, is a delicious cake prepared with banana, rice and

jaggery. In Indonesia, we called it fried banana.

Arunachali Cuisine

Poeple here generally take non-vegetarian diets. Most of their cuisines include non-vegetarian

meals. Apong (local drinks made from rice or millet) is also take by the people here.

Manipuri Cuisine

Cuisines of the North East India include the delicious delectable dishes of Manipur. The

traditional dining in banana leaves is an elaborate affair. Rice, meat and fishes make most of

their dishes. Kabok, a traditional cuisine, made of rice and vegetables is more like the fried

rice popular through out India. The Iromba, combination of fish, vegetables and bamboo

shoots is served fermented.

Meghalayan Cuisine

The Meghalayan cuisine is is rich in meat and rice, particularly pork. Jadoh - a spicy dish of

rice and pork is eaten almost any time. Besides, the local pork delicacies cooked Khasi-style,

Shillong is also the Mecca of authentic Chinese food. Kyat, the local brew made from rice,

adds zing to all the local celebrations. You can taste it at any of the bars spread all over

Shillong Meghalaya.

Mizoram Cuisine

The people of Mizoram are basically non-vegetarian and love meat. The food is not spicy and

is cooked in such a way that the nutritive value is actually retained. The locally made wine is

a great favourite. "Zu" (tea) is a popular drink. Both men and women are fond of smoking.

Sikkimese Cuisine

Sikkim has its own unique dietary culture with specific cuisine and food recipes. You can get

a variety of food in Sikkim, but specialities like the Tibetan Thupka and Momos are very

popular here. A beverage to be sampled is the local 'Tchang', a beer made of millet and

served in a bamboo mug. You can find this at small restaurants serving Sikkimese cuisine.

Sikkimese are essentially rice-eaters. Alcoholic drinks are popular both amongst men and

women. Various traditional fermented foods and beverages is very common. Beef eating is

common amongst the Bhutias. Some of the common traditional cuisine with their food

recipes are - Momos, Gya Thuk or Thukpa, Ningro with Churpi, Gundruk, Phagshapa, Sael

Roti.

Tripuri Cuisine

The large Bengali community in Tripura makes for a non-vegetarian favoured cuisine, with

fish being an integral part of the menu. Various cuisines of fish are prepared for any

celebrations in Tripuri household.

Discussing language and ethnicity in South and Southeast Asia, Harold Schiffman draws a

useful distinction between what are historically presented as the ‘overt manifestations of

“high” linguistic culture’, the codified, written and official forms, and the covert or ‘folk-

cultural’ aspects which are more likely to be implicit, unstated and unofficial (1999: 431).

The same conceptual distinction may be extended to Tibetan and Himalayan studies, in which

Tibetan, Dzongkha and Newar comprise the former category, and ethnic groups speaking

unwritten Tibeto-Burman languages make up the latter. Now that activists in many minority

ethnic groups across the Himalayan region are engaged in the highly political process of re-

creating or ‘inventing’ written traditions and developing scripts for their previously oral

languages, and while countless rural Tibetans remain illiterate, it is apparent that we need to

move towards a more nuanced understanding of what, if anything, constitutes ‘high’ and

‘low’ linguistic culture.

A further hazard in using the term ‘Tibeto-Burman speaking’ as a convenient ethnic label is

that it appears to locate the peoples and groups it describes in a geographical space

specifically related to Tibet or Burma. What of the minority groups in Yúnnán, Baltistan,

Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan and Spiti, who speak Tibeto-Burman languages but who may have no

dealings with Tibet or Burma? It serves us well to remember that the Tibeto-Burman

language family draws its name from the status of two dominant ancient literary languages,

Burmese and Tibetan, and not from a field-based appraisal of contemporary linguistic

distribution and diversity.

While the linguistic classification of languages as Tibeto-Burman (versus Austro-Asiatic or

Indo-Aryan) is precise, the use of linguistic terminologies and models of classification to

label ethnic groups is much more problematic. The construction of any group’s ethnicity

cannot simply be reduced to a one-to-one correlation with their spoken language. As Joshua

Fishman notes:… the language and ethnicity link itself has also been subjected to a good deal

of scrutiny and speculation, some of it going back (and still ongoing) across millennia of

philosophical and scientific inquiry. Although language has rarely been equated with the

totality of ethnicity, it has, in certain historical, regional and disciplinary contexts, been

accorded priority within that totality. (1999: 4) The linguistic classification of a spoken

language is clearly not diagnostic for the cultural habits or ethnic worldviews of its speakers.

For most ethnic groups across the Himalayas, a spoken mother tongue is but one of several

important elements in the constellation of interlinked factors making up their ethnic self-

image, which also include descent structures, residence patterns and religious practice.

Many publications in Nepal, in both English and Nepali, nevertheless continue to use the

phrase ‘Tibeto-Burman speaking’ or even ‘Mongolian’, to attribute putative ethno-racial

characteristics to communities speaking related languages. The political scientist Selma

Sonntag, writing on language planning in Nepal, favours the term ‘Tibeto-Nepalese’ instead

(2001: 165). While not in widespread use, this term conveys the sense that the languages

spoken by the groups in question are both less than the totality of the Tibeto-Burman

language family and firmly rooted within the national borders of modern Nepal.

An interesting issue emerges when organisations struggling for the upliftment of specific

ethno-linguistic groupings take on, proliferate or even actively conscript the same essentialist

terminology which social scientists have sought so hard to reject. Such stereotypes then

insinuate themselves into ethnic communities’ own descriptions and representations of

themselves as indigenous and homogenous. It becomes clear, that as linguists, social

scientists and area studies scholars, we still lack an effective metalanguage for describing and

categorising lived ethnolinguistic reality. As Nancy Dorian put it, we require ‘a language for

talking about language’ (1999: 33).

Lessons from the Indosphere .

As a relatively young discipline, Tibetology may benefit from a critical appraisal of the

theories which have been formative for other area studies, specifically Indology. In India, as

many have noted, language has long been intimately interwoven with the religious complexes

of the subcontinent. Schiffman suggests that the most salient feature of ancient Indic

linguistic culture may have been a ‘concern for the preservation of sacred texts and the purity

of the language in which they were composed’ (1999: 433). This, in turn, has shaped modern

Indian views towards spoken tongues, linguistic change and lexical borrowings, and has

helped scholars better understand such attitudes. Prejudice towards variant linguistic forms is

also attested in the Tibetan context, as noted by Nicholas Tournadre and Sangda Dorje in

their introduction to the Manual of Standard Tibetan:

Many Tibetans, as well as some non-Tibetans consider that only Literary Tibetan has a true

grammar. Educated Tibetans are mildly disparaging of their spoken language, which they

consider “vulgar” or “ordinary” (Tib. phal-skad). Only classical Literary Tibetan is well

regarded enough to be “blessed” with grammar. (2003: 26)

The sense of wonder at the elegance and sophistication of classical or literary languages is

one which is shared by many observers. Sir William Jones, the great Orientalist, was alleged

to have praised Sanskrit for its ‘wonderful structure; more perfect than the Greek, more

copious than the Latin, and more exquisitely refined than either’ (de Bary 1958: 590), a

sentiment echoed to this day by some textual scholars of Tibetan and Sanskrit. A result of

such an approach, as so clearly noted by András Höfer, can be that scholars approach the

unwritten and endangered languages spoken by Himalayan ethnic groups as deviant or

‘broken’ forms of a poorly-remembered classical language, rather than as viable linguistic

varieties in their own right (2000: 234-235).

Moving on from Tibeto-Burman: the Thakali exercise in forgetting

In the remainder of this paper, I turn my focus to two ethnic communities in Nepal, the

Thakali and Thangmi, who offer compelling, contrastive examples of the shifting nature of

ethnolinguistic awareness and self-identification.

According to the contested Population Census of Nepal 2001, less than half of the total

Thakali population of 13,000 speak Thakali, a Tibeto-Burman language, as their mother

tongue (see Turin 2000 for a critique of the census). While the Thak Khola valley of lower

Mustang district, Nepal, was their traditional homeland, new business and trading

opportunities have resulted in mass Thakali out-migrations to urban centres and the lowlands

bordering India. The declining use of the Thakali language, however, predates the shift in

residence patterns and is more closely linked to the negative values associated with rural

speakers of Tibeto-Burman languages and their cultural habits which emanate from the

Nepali nation-state at the centre.

While the Thakalis’ growing alliance with Hinduism and their concomitant turning away

from shamanism and village Buddhism are well documented by anthropologists working in

the Himalayas, their changing speech patterns have been rather overlooked. As early as 1958,

Iijima reported that Thakalis generally did not converse in Thakali (Hutt 1986: 16), and the

trend continues to the present day. Despite pleas by the Thakali Central Cultural Committee,

few Thakali are making an effort to learn their language and practically no children from the

community speak Thakali as a mother tongue. Nevertheless, most Thakali adults continue to

believe that the existence of the Thakali language is central to their sense of a collective

Thakali identity, even if they themselves do not speak the language.

While the traditional portrayal of ethnic Thakali as willing converts to the social ideology of

Hinduism (Tucci 1952; Fürer-Haimendorf 1966) continues to be challenged (Fisher 1987,

2001), the fact remains that Thakali society has undergone dramatic transformation in the

space of two generations. The concomitant decline of the Thakali language is generally

presented by members of the Thakali community as an unfortunate by-product of the

necessary urbanisation and internationalisation of the Thakali community and its growing

alliance with the norms of Hindu Nepal. Critics from within the community suggest that the

previous generation inadvertently threw the baby out with the bath water in that the Thakali

language was jettisoned along with the cultural, dietary, religious and marital practices which

were thought to be unfashionable and undesirable within the context of a rapidly modernising

nation. In its present endangered state, the Thakali language has become the focus of a

campaign for preservation and documentation, led in part by members of the Thakali

Research Centre.

http://www.ancient-asia-journal.com/index.php/aa/article/viewArticle/4/7

Concluding Remarks

Due to the strategic geographical location of Northeast India which connects the East and the

South Asian regions, cultural affinities can be observed in the material cultural objects since

prehistoric times. These cultural affinities during the Neolithic period in Northeast India are

basically based on the celt making tradition, Cord-impressed pottery, and rice cultivation.

These are the characteristic features of the Neolithic culture which connects Northeast India

with Chinese Neolithic and Southeast Asian Neolithic cultures.

Also, we find some similarities of these features with the Neolithic cultures of Eastern and

Central India to some extent. The strong influence of the Neolithic culture of China and

Southeast Asia is one of the prominent factors in the origin and development of the Neolithic

culture of Northeast India, especially for the origin of pottery and agriculture. Though we are

in want of absolute dates for the origin of pottery and agriculture in this region, we can

presume that the cultural elements possibly entered Northeast India from the Neolithic

cultures of China and Southeast Asia. This presumption is based on three aspects; the

migration of people, linguistic relationships, and archaeological affinity. The time period of

the migration of the Tibeto-Burman and Austro-Asiatic language families of Northeast India

is not known, but on the basis of the archaeological affinity, it can be correlated to the

expansion of the culture and migration of the people of China and Southeast Asia during the

Neolithic period.

The Cord-impressed pottery predominantly found in Northeast India has the earliest antiquity

in East Asia and Southeast Asia. So, it is quite likely that the pottery tradition comes from

these areas in the form of acculturation, assimilation or diffusion. Without the presence of

absolute dates on the pottery of Northeast India, it will merely be a conjecture to provide a

date of origin. However, we can definitely cite the influence of the Neolithic cultures of East

Asia and Southeast Asia as to the origin of pottery in Northeast India. The shouldered celts of

all varieties, miniature quadrangular celts, and perforated celts of Northeast India again relate

its antiquity with the East Asian and Southeast Asian countries. The lesser known Neolithic

culture of Northeast India was probably influenced by prominent Neolithic cultures of

surrounding regions.

Rice cultivation is one of the main characteristic features of East Asian and Southeast Asian

Neolithic cultures. The most recent theories on the origins of rice cultivation based on

archaeological data, indicate that it originated in East Asia particularly in the Yangtze basin

of China. around 10,000 years B.P. In the Ganga valley of India, the earliest date for rice

cultivation has been cited at around 8,000 years B.P. Hence if we presume that origin of rice

cultivation in Ganga valley was due to the cultural influence of Yangtze basin, we can predict

a date for the origin of rice in Northeast India as it lies between China and the Ganga valley.

Another possibility is the indigenous origin of rice cultivation in the Ganga valley which is a

zone of greater Eastern India including Northeast India. We can not ignore the possibility that

rice cultivation may have originated in this particular region only because of the lack of

evidence of rice in northeast India, as most parts of the river valleys have thick alluvium

deposits which thereby prevent archaeological exploration at great depths.

The Neolithic sites discovered so far are mainly located near areas of high elevation where

shifting cultivation is practiced even today by present day inhabitants and it is likely that the

Neolithic people preferred to locate their settlements near land that was away from the natural

flood calamity of the big rivers like the Brahmaputra and its tributaries and where agriculture

was possible. The distribution pattern of the sites show a preference for the hilly areas of

Meghalaya, Karbi Anglong, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, and Nagaland especially in the

Garo Hills, Khasi Hills, and Naga Hills.

The linguistic similarity between northeast India and East Asia and Southeast Asia reveals an

interesting possibility as to the migration of the Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Burman language

families into Northeast India during the Neolithic time. This indicates strong connections

between East Asian and Southeast Asian Neolithic cultures with their counterparts in

Northeast India. The expansion and multiplication of the rice farming communities of these

nearby east Asian regions ultimately introduced rice cultivation into Northeast India. Though,

we have no adequate data for the correlation of rice agriculture with the two early inhabitant

linguistic groups: viz. Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Burman, still, on the basis of circumstantial

evidence, it can be inferred that these two groups of people might be responsible for the

introduction of rice in Northeast India. On the basis of the vast amount of Tibeto-Burman

language groups presently inhabiting Northeast India, that outnumber the Austro-Asiatic

group; it is more probable to correlate the former with the early farming communities of the

region. Thus, extensive scientific multi-disciplinary surveys are needed in order to put forth

concrete evidences regarding the Neolithic culture of this region. The cultural process should

be highlighted in relation to the environment and the ecological background, to which the

Neolithic people have adapted their life style .

Acknowledgements

The present work is based on data, collected during the preparation of dissertation for my

Degree of Master of Arts in Ancient Indian History, Culture and Archaeology in Deccan

College, Post-Graduate and Research Institute, India. This modest attempt would not have

been possible without the support, guidance and encouragement extended to me by various

people at various stages. I am ever grateful to my guide Prof. V. S. Shinde, of Deccan

College, who took keen interest in my work, and provided me with valuable advice and

constant guidance. I would like to thank Dr. D. K. Medhi of Gauhati University for his active

guidance and constant care during the preparation of Master dissertation. I wish to thank Dr.

Sheila Mishra of Deccan College, and Prof. Robert Sala and Dr. Xose Pedro Rodriguez

Alvarez of Rovira i virgili University, Spain for reviewing an earlier version of this

manuscript. I am grateful to my friend from Canada Miss Helen Adamson for her kind help

in correcting very meticulously the language. Finally, I would like to thank to all my family

members and fellow friends for their moral support and constant care of me at every level.

North-East Region Traditional Dress

North east region of India consists of the seven states- Arunachal Pradesh, Assam,

Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Tripura- famous by the name of 'seven

sisters'. Along with the scenic beauty of northeastern India, its traditional ethnic clothes

represent the true spirit of India. Although Indian sarees, lehengas and salwar kameez are the

most widely worn dresses in almost whole of India, the vibrant and bright traditional clothing

of the people of North East India, in fact, gives an identity to the Asian fashion worldwide.

Here is a brief account of women's traditional costumes of each of the seven states of north

east India.

Traditional Dresses of Arunachal Pradesh

The traditional women dresses of Arunachal Pradesh have vibrant colors and

myriad patterns that instantly give a feel of their tribe culture. There are many

tribes here and each have a distinct pattern of clothing. The women of Buddhist

Monpas tribe wear a jacket above a sleeveless chemise which is tied to their

waists with a lengthy and narrow strip of cloth in a rounded manner. They wear a

lots of fashion accessories- silver rings, earrings cut from bamboo-bits decorated

with beads or turquoises.

The women of Hill Miris tribe wear attractive crinoline made

from cane rings which does the function of a blouse. The women

of Sherdukpen tribe wear a collarless and sleeveless robe like

garment that stretches from the shoulders to the knees. They also

wear a full-sleeved embroidered jacket and a waist cloth which is

known as 'Mushaiks', worn above the robe.

A Naga tribe called Tangsa also lives in Arunachal Pradesh. Women of this tribe wear a very

attractive woven petticoat and a linen blouse. They look like the ancient replica of modern

Indian skirts and shirts. The Miji women wear an ankle-long white cloak and accessorize it

withbig-sized silver earrings and necklaces.

Traditional Dresses of Assam

Assam is well known for its gorgeous Assam silk sarees that include Muga

sarees and Pat sarees. These handloom sarees are the perfect bridal wear

having gold and silver threads embellishment. However, the more

traditional dress of Assamese women is the Mekhla Chador- the three piece

clothing set which resembles the half saree of South India. It consists of a

long skirt type petticoat and a long piece of cloth like saree but not as long

as a sari.

The finely woven Chador or Chaddar is used just like the pallu part of saree by wrapping it

round the Mekhla or the embellished petticoat. A matching blouse accompanies Mekhla

Chador. On the occasion of marriages, the brides of Assam also wear 'Riha' or a short cloth

like scarves which is mainly used for tying the knot with the bridegroom's shawl during the

wedding rituals.

There are many tribes in Assam too. The women of Dimasa tribe wear a skirt-like clothing

which is called 'Rigu' and an embellished vest-like attire called 'Rijamphai', sometimes also

known as 'Rikhaosa'. A Thai Phake tribal woman wears a striped girdle- the 'Chin' that

stretches from waist down to the ankles. She also uses ' Chairchin', a cloth belt to encircle her

waist. She wraps her upper body with a long stripped cloth called 'Fanangwait'. The short

version of this is worn by the young girls which is known as 'Fafek.' They also wear

multicolored blouse called 'Chekhamchum.' Many jewelery accompany these traditional

costumes of Assam which include Khopo Phool- an earring having looks of an orchid; Gaam

Kharu- a gold polished large-sized silver bangle; Lokaporo- gold or ruby or mina or enamel-

plated earring with bird figures; Jethi Poti- a wide band of cloth decorated with tiny

medallions and a pendant at the center- they give The women of Assam a decent and

beautiful appearance.

Traditional Dresses of Manipur

The easy to wear traditional dress of Manipur consists of a shawl known as Innaphi, a wrap

around cloth Phanek and a stiff skirt type clothing called sarong. The Phanek is usually worn

with a blouse and an upper cloth which is worn like a mini saree. With the spread of

Christianity here, the young Manipuri girls like to wear jeans and tops or shirts. However,

they also wear the modified versions of their traditional attire.

For example, the Innaphis worn by Manipuri women are much similar to

the modern wrap around skirt. The women of Manipur wear different

clothes at different festivals. For example, on the occasion of Rasa Leela

festivals, they wear the Potlois and Kumins. Koks an Phurits etc. are worn

during the dance based festivals. Different tribes of Manipur have their

own distinctive dresses like Lmaphie, Saijounba, Ningthoupee and Phiranji. The dress called

oirang Phi' is worn like as a saree by many women across India.

Traditional Dresses of Meghalaya

Meghalaya is the home to the three famous hill tribes of India- Khasi, Jaintias and Garos .

The traditional costume of Garo women consists of Jainsen, which is an unstitched garment

woven from mulberry silk and wrapped around the body. The splendid Endi silk shawls are

one of their costumes which is liked all over India for their finesse and

warmth. In rural areas, the Garo women drape a short cloth around their

waists which is called the 'Eking'.

When they go out of their homes, they use its longer version. A Garo

woman also wears blouse and an unstitched 'lungi' like cloth which is

known as 'Dakmanda.' It is fastened around the waist. It has a six to ten

inch broad borders decorated with attractive motifs or floral patterns.

The traditional costume of the Khasi women consists of a Jainsen which touches the ankles

and a blouse above that. A khasi woman ties the edges of 'tap-moh khlieh' which is a

checkered cotton shawl, round her neck or pin it up at the shoulders. It performs as an apron.

On festive occasions, she also wears 'Ka Jainsem Dhara'- a long piece of Assam Muga silk. A

senior khasi woman wear a strip of woolen cloth called 'Jainkup'.

The women of Jaintia tribe wears a velvet blouse along with a sarong called 'Thoh Khyrwang'

which is wrapped around the waist. A long Assam Muga silk cloth is tied round shoulders

which flows down to the ankles. A Jaintia woman covers her head with a head accessory

which is a cloth-piece with checks called 'Kyrshah'. Women of all the tribes of Meghalaya

love to wear ornaments made of gold and silver.

Traditional Dresses of Mizoram

There are many traditional dresses of Mizo women. The most favorite and common

among them is the Puan, which is veru similar to a Churidar Kurta with three pieces-

a legging, a top clothing and a head cloth which resembles dupattas. On the occasion

of weddings and other festivals, the Mizo women wear 'Puanchei'.

It has many varieties such as `Chapchar Kut`, `Mim Kut` and `Pawl Kut`.

Puanchei has two parts- a straight long skirt type clothing and a shirt or top

that is worn above it. They are traditionally bright in color with checkered

patterns. The headdress, worn during dances, is the most attractive feature of

this Mizo Lusei dress. This headgear is made of a coronal which is built

from brass and colored cane. There are porcupine quills on this head dress

and upper edges of these quills are added with green wing-feathers of the common parrot.

Some very attractive blouses are also worn by the women of Mizoram such as Kawrchei and

Ngotekherh. They are usually worn along with `Puanchei` while performing various Mizo

dances.

Traditional Dresses of Nagaland

The traditional shawls are the most prominent as well as popular traditional clothing of

Nagaland. The women of Aos clan of Nagaland wear a skirt- one and a quarter metre long.

Around 2/3 of the skirt length is draped around the waist and the outer edge is used for

securing the dress. These skirts are of varied types and differ according to villages and clans.

Some of the popular types of Ao skirts include Azu jangnup su- with red and yellow-black

stripes; Ngami su- the fish tail skirt; and Yongzujangau- the cucumber seed skirt which is

woven in red threads on a black base. The women of Angami clan mostly wear a plain blue

cloth and a white cloth with black marginal bands of varying breadth . They can also be seen

in men`s garment. Casually, these Angami women wear a petticoat called neikhro, a

sleeveless top called vatchi, and a white skirt called pfemhou. The vibrant colors and patterns

are the distinctive characteristics of the Naga women's clothing.

Traditional Dresses of Tripura

The women of the tribes of Tripura like those of Khakloo, the Halam, the Lushei and the

Kuki-Chin tribes are excellent weavers which also reflect in the clothing

that they wear. The women of Tripura, more particularly of the Khakloo

tribe wear 'Rinai' which is a very long and broad piece of cloth draped

around the waist and which reaches the knees. A comparatively short cloth

called 'Risa' is for upper body which contains beautiful embroidery.

More recently, the young Tripura women like to wear blouses in place of

Risa but on the occasion of weddings, it is mandatory for them to wear Risa. These women of

Tripura also love to wear different fashion accessories, particularly beads and coin strands

around their necks.

The women of the Lushei tribe wear a dark blue cotton fabric similar to a

skirt or petticoat. It is wrapped around the waist and is held securely by a

corset of brass wire or string. The traditional costumes of the Kuki-Chin

women contain patterns which look like the hide of snakes. These dresses

are known by different names like Thangang, Saipi-khup, Ponmongvom,

and Khamtang. Historically these clothes were worn by women of

aristocratic families.

For men, traditional clothes are thekurta. In south India men wear long, white sheets of cloth.

In north Indian languages like Hindi, Marathi and Oriya these are called dhoti, while in Tamil

they are called veshti. Over the dhoti, men wear shirts, t-shirts, or anything else.

TIBETO BURMAN DANCES

Arunachal Pradesh is a state of India. It is known for dance music, which comes in many

different styles. Dances from the region are often ritual in nature, but are also celebratory.

They are mostly group dances, though others are restricted to men. Dances include popir,

ponung and pasi kongki (of the Adi), rekham pada (of the Nishing), aji lhamu (of the Monpa)

and hiirii khaniing (of the Apatani).

The Idu Mishmi Ritual Dance

The Idu Mishmis have a ritual-dance and a fertility-dance. The ritual-dance is performed by

the priest or priestess in the ceremonies of Ai-ah, Ai-him, Mesalah and Rren. The fertility-

dance is performed on the last day of the Rren ceremony. There is no definite myth about the

origin of this ritual dance. According to local tradition, the first priest who officiated in a

funeral ceremony was Chineuhu and his brother Ahihiuh, was the first priest who officiated

in the other three ceremonies in which this dance forms a part. This dance is associated with

the priestly office. Besides the priest, there are three or four other dancers who are selected

from amongst the spectators.

In addition it is the usual dress which consists of a loin-cloth, a short-sleeved coat, and a

sword slung on the right side, a leather bag slung on the left side and a few bead-necklaces,

the priest wears a few other articles. These articles are an apron with particular designs, a

head-band decorated with two or three rows of cowries, a necklace studded with the teeth of

tiger and bear and a few metal bells. A priestess wears these special articles in addition to the

usual Mishmi woman's dress of a skirt, a long sleeved coat and bead-necklaces. The priestess

is generally accompanied by female dancers. The accompanying dancers wear the usual

dress. The dancers stand in a line, the priest is second either from the right or left. During the

dance, one dancer standing at one end of the line plays a small drum slung from his neck. The

priest and the other two dancers play a very small semi-globular single-membrane drum,

striking it with a bamboo-stick which is kept tied to the drum with a string.

The fifth dancer, if any, plays a horn bugle. When there are five dancers, the priest stands in

the middle of the line. He sings a line of invocatory song while all the others play the musical

instruments, flex the knees bobbing up and down and alternately raise the right and left heels

and stamp these on the ground in time to the drum-beats. When the priest finishes singing the

line, others repeat it in chorus. Again the priest sings another line of the song which the

others repeat in chorus and thus it goes on.

Dances and Music about Gita Govinda Project

Dance forms an important aspect of the socio-cultural heritage of the peole. They dance on

important rituals, during festivals and also for recreation. The dances of the people of

Arunachal are group- where both men and women take part. There are however some dances

such as igo dance of the Mishmi priests, war dance of the Adis, Noctes and Wanchos,

ritualistic dance of the Buddhist tribes, which are male dances. Females are not allowed to

participate in these dances. Some of the popular folk dances of the people are Aji

Lamu(Monpa), Roppi(Nishing), Buiya(Nishing), Hurkani(Apatani), Popir(Adi), Pasi

Kongki(Adi), Chalo(Nocte),Ponung(Adi), Rekham Pada (Nishing), Lion and Peacock dance

(Monpa) and so on. Most dances are performed to the accompaniment of songs sung

generally in chorus. Musical instruments like drums and Cymbals are played. The folksong of

Pailibos relate more to their folk history, mythology and description of their known past.

Themes of songs are like fables involving creatures or the animal and urgent words signifying

moral deduction.

Following are their chief folksong, sung on different occasion:

Ja-Jin-Ja: On occasion of feasts and merriment, during marriages or other social meets, this

song is sung. Both men and women sing it in chorus or individually. But once the song starts,

all those who are present join them in singing. Baryi: It is a song which narrate their history,

their religious lore and mythology. Its whole cycle takes hours to complete. It is also a feature

of festivals or of occasion of important social or religious gatherings. Both Ja-Jin-Ja and

Baryi produce a nostalgic feeling in Pailibos as the glories of the past ancestors are narrated

through them. Nyioga: It is sung when a marriage ceremony is concluded and the bridal party

returns leaving the bride in her home. The theme is that of the joy. It contains pieces of

advice to the bride for her future life.

Dances form a vital element in the zest and joy of living of the tribals. They dance on

important rituals, during festivals and also for recreation occassionally. They vary from

highly stylised religious dance dramas of the Buddhists to the martial steps and colourful

performances of the Noctes and Wanchos.

The dances of the prople of Arunachal

are group dances - where both men and

women take part. There are, however,

some dances such as Igu dance of the

Mishmi priests, war dances of the Adis,

Noctes and Wanchos, ritualistic dance of

the Buddhist tribes, which are male

dances. Females are not allowed to dance

in these dances.

Some of the popular folk dances of the people are Aji Lamu (Monpa Tribe), Roppi (Nishing

Tribe), Hiirii Khaniing (Apatani Tribe), Popir (Adi Tribe), Pasi Kongki (Adi), Chalo (Nocte

Tribe), Ponung (Adi Tribe), Rekham Pada(Nishing Tribe), Lion and Peacock dance

(Monpa) and so on. Most of the dances are accompanied by songs sung generally in chorus.

The Monpas, besides performing  Monastic

dances for three days during Torgya festivals,

also perform other dances  on different occasions.

Some of them are- Aji Lhamu dance, yak dance

and lion & peacock dances etc.

Among the Adis dance had evolved

almost into an art form mainly for

entertainment and recreation. The

'Phoning' dance of Adis is performed by

teams of young girls in perfect rhythmic

unison. Similar group dance in colourful

costumes are performed by Nishis and

Tagins of Upper and Lower Subansiri

Districts.

 

Dances of Assam

 

 

Bihu Dances

Bihu is the most popular folk dance of Assam. The

people of Assam are very proud of it and rightly so.

Except Bhangra no other folk dance in India can

compete with the rythmic exuberance of Bihu. Bihu

dances performed by young boys and girls

characterised by brisk stepping, flinging and flipping

of hands and swaying of hips represents youthful

passion, reproductive urge and 'Joie-de-vivre'.

Satriya Nritya

Satriya, The Beautiful Classic Dance of Assam. During winter (November- February) the

best place to see the Satriya dance is Guwahati. A tourist to Assam during winter would do

well to find out if their visits coincide with the annual Satriya Dance festival organised by

one of the following institutions : Puspanjall Cultural Academy, Sangeet Satra, Srimanta

Sankardev Sangha and Satra Mahasabha. The Satriya Dance festival organised by these

institutions would normally have all the facts of this dance including Dhemalis by Goyan

Bayans. Apart from this, many institutions show Satriya Dance on the make shift open stages

during Bihu festival (April May) The lively and colourful folk dances of Assam

Barpeta's Bhortal Nritya

Developed by a well known Satriya artist, Narahari Burha Bbakat, Bhor Tal Nritya is an

extension of Sankari culture. Six to ten dancers equipped with cyrnbols perform this dance to

the first bit of '7hiya Nom" and pro- duces a good number of attractive formations displaying

the cymbols. The dance can be seen during festive occasions in and around Barpeta and

Guwahati.

Tea Folk's Jumur Nach

In the passage of more than a hundred years of their settlement in Assam the tea tribes have

developed a synthesised form of dance called "Chah Baganar Jumur Nach". (Jumur dance of

tea garden). This dance is performed by girls and boys together, sometimes by the girls alone,

with precision of foot work while clasping tightly each others waist. This is a beautiful dance

to watch. A visitor to any tea gardens can easily see this dance.

Bodo's Bagurumba

Bodo community has many folk dances to boast. Among them the best and the most

attractive is the Bagurumba dance. This is mainly a formation dance with slow steps and

outstretched hands. About a score of girls dressed in most colourful attire perform this dance

to the accompany- merit of Bodo traditional musical instruments. A tourist in Assam can see

this dance in the Bodo inhabited areas of Kokrajhar, Bongaigaon, Nalbari, Darrang and

Sonitpur districts.

Mishing's Ali Ai Ligang

Mishing community of Assam has a festival caged All Ai Ligang in which they perform

dances for making an offering to their deities. Mishing's B;ihu can be seen in North Eastern

part of Assam i.e. Sonitpur and Lakhimpur districts.

Manipuri dance is one of the major Indian classical dance forms. It originates from Manipur,

a state in north-eastern India on the border with Myanmar (also known as Burma). In

Manipur, surrounded by mountains and geographically isolated at the meeting point of the

orient and mainland India, the form developed its own specific aesthetics, values,

conventions and ethics. The cult of Radha and Krishna, particularly the raslila, is central to its

themes but the dances, unusually, incorporate the characteristic cymbals (kartal or manjira)

and double-headed drum (pung or Manipuri mridang) of sankirtan into the visual

performance.

Manipuri dancers do not wear ankle bells to accentuate the beats tapped out by the feet, in

contrast with other Indian dance forms, and the dancers' feet never strike the ground hard.

Movements of the body and feet and facial expressions in Manipuri dance are subtle and aim

at devotion and grace. The traditional Manipuri dance style embodies delicate, lyrical and

graceful movements. The aim is to make rounded movements and avoid any jerks, sharp

edges or straight lines. It is this which gives Manipuri dance its undulating and soft

appearance. The foot movements are viewed as part of a composite movement of the whole

body. The dancer puts his or her feet down, even during vigorous steps, with the front part

touching the ground first. The ankle and knee joints are effectively used as shock absorbers.

The dancer’s feet are neither put down nor lifted up at the precise rhythmic points of the

music but rather slightly earlier or later to express the same rhythmic points most effectively.

The musical accompaniment for Manipuri dance comes from a percussion instrument called

the Pung, a singer, small cymbals, a stringed instrument called the pena and wind instrument

such as a flute. The drummers are always male artistes and, after learning to play the pung,

students are trained to dance with it while drumming. This dance is known as Pung cholom.

The lyrics used in Manipuri are usually from the classical poetry of Jayadeva, Vidyapati,

Chandidas, Govindadas or Gyandas and may be in Sanskrit, Maithili, Brij Bhasha or others.

Meghalaya dance forms an integral part of the culture of Meghalaya. The festivities in

Meghalaya seem to be incomplete without dancing and music.

Dance in Meghalaya forms an important part of the Meghalayan society: birth, marriage,

annual festivals, etc. They seem to be incomplete without the dance performances. Moreover,

the dance at Meghalaya is performed at every level of the society, be it Shnong, Raid or

Hima.

Some of the important dance forms of Meghalaya are:

Ka Shad Suk Mynsiem – Ka Shad Suk Mynsiem is an annual spring dance that celebrates the

harvesting and sowing seasons. This dance is performed to celebrate the agricultural cycles.

The performers of the dance are girls and boys who wear colorful clothes and jewelry.

However, only unmarried-virgin girls are allowed to perform this dance.

Ka Pom-Blang Nongkrem – The Nongkrem dance is a part of the religious festival, Ka Pom-

Blang Nongkrem. Unmarried girls decked with gorgeous attire, gold and silver ornaments,

and yellow flowers, dance forward and backward forming a circle. Men also dance in a wide

circle with a sword and a white hair whisk in their hands.

Ka-Shad Shyngwiang-Thangiap – This is a ceremonial dance that expresses sorrow. This

dance form starts on the day of death, outside the kitchen door, and end on the day when the

last rites are supposed to be conducted. The dancers of Shyngwiang-Thangiap are supported

by men who play music on flute, bamboo pole and drum.

Laho Dance – Laho dance forms a part of the Behdienkhlam festival. Men and women

dressed in colorful garments take active part in the dance form. This dance form is performed

by a girl, linking arms with two boys on either side. It is remarkable that, instead of any

musical instruments, a man with a natural talent in recitation, recites couplets during the

dance performances.