Rongali Bihu, Minnesota, 2008

The icy layers of the mighty Mississippi have melted and the river now flows without its snowy garb. Spring has sprung in this part of the world and its time to celebrate the return of the new season. The Assamese community of Minneapolis and St. Paul celebrated Rongali Bihu on the 19th of April 2008. We celebrated the most anticipated community event of the year in the picturesque log cabin at Lions Park, Shakopee. The growing Assamese community in the Twin Cities made the Bihu celebrations ever so sprightly.  Friends from neighboring Iowa and Rochester, Minnesota, joined the festivities.

Sumptuous jolpan of doi sira, laroo, pitha and other sweets and snacks kicked the day off to a great start. The mukoli bihu and husori set the mood for the perfect Bihu celebrations. The cultural program this year was a notch above the previous years’ and captivated the audience for hours. There was a good variety of performances which included xomabeto sangeet, adhunik geet, modern and classical dances, okonir bihu and a comedy show. The sweet and sensational two-year olds – Geet, Nimisha, Ruhi, Kabita and Sabreen performed their bihu naas wearing traditional outfits. It was truly a delight to watch the toddlerville in action! The older kids did a beautiful rendition of ‘Bilote Halise’ and a great group dance. It was a thrill to see Tanish, Nibir and Ashmita with their individual song and dance performances. Minti, Dipankar, Rinti, Pranab and Namita’s adhunik Assamese and Hindi songs added the melody to the day’s programs. A zikir performance was a new addition to the cultural evening. Sarat and Pankaj led the group to a very impressive performance. Then came the scintillating break dance from our dance guru Parvez, accompanied by the dance diva’s, Meghna and Devika. They simply lit up the dance floor. The cultural climax of the evening was a comical masterpiece, a play titled “Barua’r Ghorot Ebela”. Somesh, Brajen, Devika, Monika, Namita and Purabi wow’ed the audience with great theatrical performances. Nilanjana scripted the play and it was comedy at its best.

Although a whiff of the northern air kept the weather on the cooler side, it did not stop the spirited crowd from enjoying the outdoor games. Everybody enjoyed the tug-of-war, marble-in-a-spoon race, sack race and the musical chair. A grand dinner in the evening perfected the day and brought a fitting closure to the day’s celebrations.

By  Sabina Zeenat
 (collage by Geeti Das)