Wansua: keeping the tradition alive

With the grip of modernization being so strong on the humans and with that the these days emotions are being expressed through various mechanized like facebook, twitter etc just to name a few, people seemed to have forgotten the ways how youths and others used to propose love to their beloved. But here, at Morten, a sleepy village in Karbi Anglong in Assam, in the midst of ranges of green hills, the people belonging to the community have especial way to express their love and this traditional way has been continuous for ages.

They call it ‘Wansua’. The festival in which invited folk artists from the nearby villages gather at the host village and perform the love songs to create an environment of love among the youths.

“The folk artists are invited from nearby villages and they are taken care by a selected family of the host village. They collect the names of the young girls of the village on the first day of the three day festival. Then they start singing love songs thereafter,” said Maheswar Patar, head master of Amri High School.

“This is one of the most popular festivals among the Tiwa people. This is a wonderful opportunity where youths propose their love to the girls and boys of their choice. The youths in groups try to woo boys of their choice during the festival,” he further said.

The boys in colourful outfit with various items like pumpkin, pineapple etc propose their love interests. These items work as a symbolic gift that if the girl accepts his proposal she would be awarded with that.

But the other important angle of the festival is that the villagers of the area pay tribute to their cultural gurus by devoting the rice power prepared during the day hour. “The Wansua festival is also of paying tribute to the cultural gurus of the communities and the various sub communities of Tiwas. The rice power prepared together in a place singing hymns by the artists in full traditional attire before in the evening these are send to the households to make steam cakes,” he said.

But the ancient festival seems to be in danger of being extinct. “It may be extinct if necessary actions are not taken now. We are doing our best to keep this tradition alive but the government also should try to protest such colourful festivals,” said Lal Singh Madar, the president of Tiwa Sahitya Sabha.

Similarly the Tiwa people observe many festivals like Barat, Sarga Miswa, Jon-Beel Mela and so on in the different weathers of the year which are connected with the different deities of their own. Songs and dances also follow the festivals.