The festivities called the Assamese Get-Together (AGT) 2006
were held in San Mateo, California over three days, June 30
and July 1 & 2. Here is a slightly edited version of the report
put together by the Bay Area organizers of AGT 2006. The
report is also available at the AGT Web site assamesegettogether2006.org.
5:00PM – 8:30PM, Friday, June 30, 2006
AGT 2006 was to start tomorrow at the San Mateo Marriott. It was time to execute what has been in the planning for a year. Attendees from outside the Bay Area had already started arriving and checking into the hotel. The Registration Desk was set up at 5:00PM. Attendees were given a registration package with a t-shirt, a souvenir and an event schedule. Most of the local volunteers had already checked into the hotel. We were ready, eagerly looking forward to welcome the guests and make AGT 2006 a memorable event for all of us.
8:00 AM – 12:00 Midnight, Saturday, July 1, 2006
This was the first day of AGT 2006. The Registration Desk was manned starting 8AM in the morning. Home-made delicious Assamese snack, provided by the families from different parts of the country, was served near the Registration Desk.
The first event of the day was a picnic at the nearby picturesque Coyote Point picnic area on the San Mateo Bay. The weather was perfect for an outdoor event. AGT 2006 was off to a great start with a large turnout (200+), inspired by the beautiful sunny California weather. Volunteers offered ride to everyone who needed transportation to and from the picnic. Food and fun were aplenty.
On-site AGT, there was an exhibition of original artwork and photography by community artists. The exhibition also displayed Assamese handicraft and handloom, and distinctive Assamese jewelry. The exhibition was to remain open for the entire duration. Next to the exhibition was the “Kollez Studio” set up by local community photographers. Attendees and their friends and families had an opportunity to get professional photographs taken to carry home sweet memories of AGT 2006.
The plan for the evening included a cultural program. The program was divided into two parts, youth and adult, with a dinner break in between. The youth program started at 4 PM sharp. Youngsters from the Bay area and other parts of the USA participated. Items were highly entertaining and of very good quality. The highlight was a dance drama performed by local children. The drama was beautifully choreographed to the Jyoti Sangeet “Bishwa Bijoyee Nawajowan” and the plot was from the 1942 Independence Movement of India, when Kanaklata Baruah and Mukunda Kakati became martyrs fighting for India’s independence. It was memorable. Other performances included a Borgeet by Arindam, a keyboard performance by Priyam, a Bihu Dance by Eshan and Pooja, songs by Niyor and Shruti, an Assamese poem recitation by Indranil and another Bihu Dance by Indali. All performances provided ample proof for how well the young generation has embraced and inherited the culture of their parents.
Dinner was served after the youth program. During dinner, Pranab Sarma, on behalf of the Organizing Committee and the Bay Area Assamese community, delivered the welcome speech. The main Cultural Program of AGT 2006 officiallly opened with the lighting of lamps (Bonti Prajjyalon) by Sofia Hazarika and Devajit Chaliha on the two sides of the stage at 8PM. The lamps remained lit for both cultural nights. Shelly Bhuyan sang the National Anthem to get the ball rolling. The audience witnessed great performances from young artists Aditya Nath, Pritam Sarma and Samar Kalita. Satyajit Nath accompanied Aditya on the tabla during his Indian classical performance. Hilly Kalita, a well-known classical dancer from Southern California, beautifully performed a Kathak dance. There were great vocal performances from local artists Monalisa Bora, Moushumi Bhattacharyya and Ranju Sarma, including songs ranging from Borgeet to popular Assamese and Hindi songs. Puza Sarma from New Jersey presented the audience with a couple of Jayanta Hazarika’s songs and a Hindi song. Another performer of the evening was Ruprekha Bhuyan. Southern California artist Dipankar Sonowal, on his guitar, brought the audience some beautiful tunes of Assamese songs. Ankita Baruah’s solo Bihu Dance was absolutely brilliant. Akhil and Ranjita Chodhury mesmerized the audience with an electrifying Bihu Dance. Female artists from the Bay Area choreographed and danced to an elegant Goalporiya Lokageet by Moushumi Goswami from her own CD.
Luna Bora and her team presented a unique program titled “Oxomiya Xaj Posakor Prodorxoni” when she with the help of local female artists, showcased authentic Assamese handloom and jewelry and explained technical details about them. A modern dance to the Jyoti Sangeet “TORE MORE ALOKORE JATRA’’was performed elegantly by a group of local artists. The dance was choreographed by Amrita Sharma who skillfully fused beautiful movements and mudras from different classical dance forms of India. Later in the evening Nilima Chaliha gave a graceful Kathak performance to the song “Kahe Chere Mohe” from the movie Devdas. A couple of other dances were performed by Geeta Baruah and by Eileen and Anjali. The evening turned out to be a sequence of truly excellent performances.
One of the star performances of the evening was a comedy drama by artists from Southern California. The dialog and the acting were very entertaining.
Dr. Anima Choudhury was the invited Guest Artist for the event. With her melodious voice and thoughtful commentary, she enchanted the audience with a great musical extravaganza; she also shared insights into the prevailing cultural trends in Assam as she sang. The evening ended in a great note when local artists with dhol and taal joined Ms. Choudhury on stage, who sang a number of Bihu songs, prompting the audience to dance till the conclusion of the program.
8:00AM – 12:00 Midnight, Sunday, July 2, 2006 The second and last day of AGT 2006 matched, if not exceeded, the fun and entertainment everyone had on the first day. The day started early at 8 AM with two organizational meetings. In fact, for some of us the day had started a little earlier as we needed to move the stage from the previous night’s location to another. For all other attendees, socializing started early. There were home made delicious Assamese snacks near the Registration Desk, provided by the families from different parts of the country.
Some of the events planned for the earlier part of the day were a Cottonian Meet, a Bihu workshop, a documentary show on Assam, a documentary on autism and a watercolor workshop. Attendees divided time according to preference and interest. A slide show on Cotton College took former Cottonians for a nostalgic trip down memory lane. Sweet reminiscence took the attendees as far back as 1928 when they listened to Dr. Dilip Das, the oldest Cottonian present; he was attending AGT 2006 from Boston. The Bihu workshop turned out to be the great story of the day when more than 100 people, young and adult, received instructions from Sangeeta, Jonali and Ranjeeta and worked on improving their moves. Everyone enjoyed every second of the workshop. It had such an influence on the participants that Ricky Barua, with his creativity, created a skit which he performed during the main cultural program later in the evening. After all the fun and entertainment, a light lunch provided with sandwich and salad was just perfect for the day. After the lunch, there were two presentations, one by Jugal Kalita on a super-specialty hospital being built in Assam and the other on autism by Paban Sarma. For art enthusiasts, there was a watercolor workshop conducted by Mahesh Baishya which was well received by a large group of attendees.
The cultural program for the evening started at 4 PM sharp with performances by the youth. The youth program was of such high quality that it easily matched the performances by adults later in the evening. The program had one of the youngest artists present, Indali Bora, dancing to “Bonoria Ami Bonor Sarai” wearing a beautifully designed costume. It also featured Seema Barua, who with her skillful presentation of Kuchipudi dance enthralled everyone. Meghna and Devika, sisters from Minnesota and Karbi Choudhuri, a local child artist, made the audience clap and dance to popular Bollywood numbers. Devaswa performed a memorable Bihu dance.
On piano, Amitav and Arindam performed beautifully. Prerana and Arunabh, accompanied by Sonkumoni Sarma on keyboard, sang Assamese songs, Anjoli and Antor Choudhury followed with a quality performance. Finally the Bihu Dance by the Bay Area children provided the best possible ending to the high quality youth program.
An Assamese dinner was served which received mixed feedback from the attendees. During the dinner, an educational audio-visual quiz show was presented on a large screen by a group of youngsters who not only impressed the audience with a lot of informational tid-bits regarding Assam’s geography, history and heritage, but also tested the knowledge of the audience on Assam with numerous questions. It was creative and thoughtful.
The adult cultural program started with a recitation of Jyotiprasad Agarwala’s “Biswasilpi” by Saswatee Chatterjee, followed by a modern Assamese dance by local artist Amrita Sharma. The evening showcased several brilliant vocal performers. Abhranil Baruah, the popular local artist, was at his best when he sang songs by his father Rudra Baruah. He included some of his father’s songs which have never been heard in public before. The audience was treated to melodious songs by Sankumoni Sarma from New Jersey, who sang a number of Assamese songs and gazals. He was followed by local talent Moushumi Goswami who sang Goalporia Lokageet. There was also a memorable vocal performance from Prasanta Sarma. Obhi Hazarika enthralled the crowd with his sensational performance on drum and Ricky Baruah along with his sister performed an entertaining skit based on facts related to AGT 2006.
After the vocals and instruments, it was time for classical dances. The Daxa-abatar dance by Ankita Bordoloi was brilliant; this was followed by a performance from the well-known and accomplished Satriya artist Bonmayuri Kalita. “Oxomiya Xaj Posakor Prodorxoni” continued from time to time showing beautiful women dressed in authentic Assamese handloom and jewely.
The mood for the evening was earlier set by a comedy drama written by Akhil Choudhury and performed by local artists portraying the lifestyle of Assamese individuals living in the USA. It was a great performance and kept the audience laughing all through. The local Bihu Hushori Group, now well known all throughout USA for their live performances over the last few years, lived up to their reputation and once again thrilled the audience with their lively performance. Then there was this performance by Rick & Nick Bhuyan, who with their creativity, provided some of the magical moments of the evening. Earlier in the evening, AGT organizers felicitated the oldest member of the community present, Dr. Dilip Das who attended AGT from Boston with his family. Dr. Dilip Das was introduced on stage by Devajit Chaliha, one of the senior-most members of the Bay Area Assamese community who reminisced days from decades ago he spent with Dr. Das.
Dr. Anima Choudhury once again enchanted the audience with her melodious singing for the second night in a row and provided the concluding performance of AGT 2006.
11:30AM, Monday, July 3, 2006 Most guests, attending AGT 2006, were slowly checking out of San Mateo Marriott leaving behind a few who were here from outside the San Francisco Bay Area for an extended vacation in the Golden State.
Concluding Remarks AGT 2006 was a part of history. After a year’s hard work focused on planning and preparation, the Assamese community of the San Francisco Bay Area finally hosted AGT 2006 on July 1st and 2nd for two days filled with cultural and musical extravaganza. It was also a community get-together. There were sighs of relief for those involved in organizing the event. AGT 2006 was a great deal of fun and entertainment for all. For two days, San Mateo Marriott was home to more than 320 Assamese people including visitors from all parts of the USA and Canada, and from Assam. There were memorable individual and group performances, brilliant original art work and photography on display, unprecedented exhibition of unique collection of Assamese handicraft and handloom, great entertaining workshops, group meets, documentary presentations, performance from the invited guest artist Dr. Anima Choudhury and endless socialization starting from the picnic at Coyote Point to late night gatherings in hotel guest rooms. No big names were missed during AGT 2006; instead we witnessed the promise of emerging big names. It was indeed a memorable event to be part of.
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