GUWAHATI, March 26 � With the hint of spring in the air, young people are getting ready to welcome the much- awaited Bohag Bihu by dancing to the rhythm of the dhol and other folk instruments. In what can be described as very heartening, young boys and girls are showing keen interest to learn the folk dance and play the folk instruments as well.
Eminent folk artiste Somnath Bora who has been conducting Bihu workshops across the State, said that earlier the boys and girls born and brought up in the big towns were not that much interested to learn the dance or play the folk instruments. �But in the last few years there has been a welcome change in the State. Young people in the towns are attending Bihu workshops and learning to dance and play the folk instruments,� said Bora observing that availability of Bihu VCDs is one of the motivating factors for the young generation, particularly the urbanites. Bora said that interest of the youth in their culture is a positive sign and this will ensure that the culture of the State will always exist.
Bora further said that awareness amongst the parents is another reason for the huge response to the Bihu workshops. �Most parents want their children to know about their roots and enrol their children in the Bihu workshops,� said Bora.
It needs to be mentioned here that in the capital city too, young people are attending the Bihu workshops conducted by different socio cultural organisations.
�Transitions are sweeping across the State and the changes are felt even in the cultural life of the State. But in the midst of this flux, I want my children to be initiated to the distinct cultural process of the State and so I have got them enrolled in a Bihu workshop,� said Monideepa Das of Beltola adding that her children are happy to participate in the Bihu workshop.
