By Natalia Ningthoujam
Guwahati, Jan 18 (IANS) Aiming to celebrate the vivid colours of Assam, the fourth edition of Rongali Festival will begin here on Friday. The three-day fest will showcase the culture of communities of the northeastern state and also give a platform to 75 musicians, housewives who will exhibit their culinary skills, designers, cyclists and more.
"We are bringing different communities together through this festival. For example, the Mising community will showcase its history through a dance form. Folklores will be shared. It will be the most colourful festival and visually appealing," Shyamkanu Mahanta, Chief Organiser of Rongali, told IANS.
Adding more colour to the fest, which will take place at the Srimanta Sankaradev Kalakshetra, the Rongali Art Carnival will bring young artistes of the region for doodles, string art, graffiti and more. Around 10 magicians will also show their talent and tricks.
A traditional food competition will bring around 60 participants who will whip up some vegetarian, non-vegetarian and sweet dishes.
"This time, there will be around 35 stalls and a food competition. Housewives from Assam will be participating in it," said Mahanta.
As much as he wants the country to know more about his home state, he also wants Guwahati to be the best destination for music lovers.
While home-grown singers Zubeen Garg and Papon will once again get the audience get up and dance, several rock bands are set to wow the music fans as well.
"We are getting a good line-up. There will be a rock band competition too. Around 50 bands are participating. Some are from Bengaluru, Bhutan and other places. We are trying to make Guwahati the hub of music in India," said the organiser.
Apart from Assamese singers like Neel Akash, Kussum Kailash and Zublee Baruah, the Raghu Dixit Project and DJ Nucleya are also part of the line-up.
Around 20 designers will take the centre stage and present their creations flaunted by 30 models of the region.
Sports has been given equal importance by the organisers.
"We will have traditional boat race. It is similar to the boat races in Kerala," said Mahanta.
In addition, a Rongali Tourism Cycle Rally was organised on Thursday to create awareness about Assam as a destination of cycling. Some 100 cyclists participated.
Rongali is organised by Trend MMS -- a socio-cultural organisation of northeast India -- which also hosts North East Festival in Delhi.
(The writer's trip to Guwahati is at the invitation of Trend MMS. Natalia Ningthoujam can be contacted at natalia.n@ians.in)
