Bishnupriya Manipuri Village Unplugged….

A visit to home that is after a decade evokes cornucopia of emotions and tons of reminisces. The village is not the same that it had been when I left...

By BN Sinha, New Delhi

It was probably first time in twelve years that I visited my native village in winters. Being in cities for livelihood make us very busy confining us to office to home culture, and finding time for vacation form the busy schedule is a bit tough. So visiting back home is always a once in a year affair and that too either in family occasion or in the time of durga pujas. And I always missed the feel of other seasons as for being gone only in a specific season. However , this time I got a chance to visit my home in the winter season , reason for was not very good though.

Bit of excitement was running on my head especially after reading Ranita’s article “Hot potato”. I was expecting to experience a fair amount of childhood days lost in villages. Days in my village are quite different now especially the winter noons when it was a common scene to see a sea of youths in the nearby empty paddy fields for spoting activity. Though in the afternoon few kids were engaged into playing cricket, but those special Bishnupriya Manipuri sports were totally absent like ones, gulla, bodi, bondi, redie etc . Though these sports started diminishing for quite a few years now , but array of youths used to be seen on the fields to play volleyball etc.

But nowadays , thanks to the cable TV, kids are now more engrossed into Cartoon networks, Pogos, Disney etc and teens with SMSs and mobile songs/ x rated video clips. And the elders? ..Well, they have phenomenally developed a nature of hostility towards one another. More of fuels are added by the “ Gaon Panchayat Election” that took place on early of this month in Assam. Almost all the villagers were on their toes with pulled up socks, canvassing for their candidates. There were at least 3-4 of candidates in every village for each post. The involvement was so intense among the villagers that a decades old friend and confidante of Mr. X did not hesitate to return the invitation of Mr.X to attend the funeral function of the later’s relative. In other incidence , even the family where Mr. X’s daughter was married also did not attend the funeral function. These all are just because their candidates were allegedly denied party tickets by Mr. X.. Very unfortunate.

There are n number of disgraceful incidents , notwithstanding some old threads are still alive. For example when all the women of a specific “leiki” married to elsewhere united, there were enormous jubilance and fun, as they again try to recall the old days like the “aalu bhaja”, korei cinchu, bironor pulao, leikir nigolor bandara” etc.

For a moment all the agonies of life were forgotten and witnessed a euphoric breath.
Though there differences among siblings were prominent , nevertheless some threads are still vibrant in Bishupriya Manipuri villages where we can find our parents still showing reliance on the guy next door whom we call kaka or dada, probably without having a blood relation as those kakas and dadas still happily and obediently performs all the “Leisi’s” by our parents…..

The typical Bishnupriya Manipuri village threads are still not lost altogether.. as there are people who still chants
“Bhalobasa doya darade kongala, hridir porosh cheya cheya
Bulouri mi maanu bishareya, bulouri mi maanu……”


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