Hundred Drums concludes with record turn up

Hundred Drums concludes with record turn up

TURA, NOVEMBER 14: The 31st Hundred Drums festival concluded today with an amazing turn out. Hundreds and thousands of spectators assembled in a record gathering at the Asanang field near here to witness the last and the most famous dance or Wangala marking the end of harvest and the beginning of winter season.

This year Agatha K Sangma, Minister, Rural Development graced the occasion as the Chief Guest and like last year a Wangala troupe from Bangladesh participated in the 31st Hundred Drums festival held at Asanang and were led here by Pramod Mankin, Minister, Cultural Affairs, Government of Bangladesh.

This year’s Hundred Drums festival also saw the felicitation of Uttam K Sangma, Secretary, NEC, for being the first IAS among the Garos. Besides him Pramod Mankin was also felicitated for being the first and only A·chik to be a minister in a foreign country.

At the onset of the second and last day of the Hundred Drums Wangala festival the organizing committee thanked several benefactors besides Thomas A Sangma, MP, Rajya Sabha, Agatha K Sangma, MP and Minister for Rural Development for their donation towards the Hundred Drums Wangala Festival.

Agatha K Sangma in her address to the gathering informed that she had met with Shiela Dixit, Chief Minister, Delhi and proposed the inclusion of the traditional drumbeats of the Wangala in the opening ceremony of the 2010 Common Wealth Games to be hosted by India. She said “I have talked with Shiela Dixit, CM, Delhi and had proposed the inclusion of the traditional drumbeats of the Garos in the “Beats of India in the opening ceremony of the 2010 Common Wealth Games in Delhi to which she agreed and sent a team from the music maestro, A R Rahman’s technical team here to record the Hundred Drums and they are here among our midst”. Besides giving a donation towards the Hundred Drums festival committee Agatha K Sangma also donated 30 traditional A·chik drums to the Bangladesh Troupe as an act of Goodwill between the two countries.

The Guest of Honors, Pramod Mankin and Uttam K Sangma expressed their happiness to be able to take part in the 31st Hundred Drums Wangala festival and also thanked everyone at the festival for welcoming them among their midst.

Uttam K Sangma urged the A·chiks to be diligent and persevere in their endeavors so as to succeed while Pramod Mankin expressed his immense happiness at being able to share the joyous occasion with the people of Garo Hills and said “We too will, in Bangladesh, during the second week of December celebrate the Wangala. Today I am very happy to be amongst you and hope that there will be ample time for us to meet again in the future”.

Purno A Sangma, former Lok Sabha speaker and local MLA citing the examples of Uttam K Sangma and Pramod Mankin urged the people of Garo Hills to be persistence and diligent saying “Uttam K Sangma is the first among the Garos to have got through the IAS while Pramod Mankin is the first among the Garos to have got through the BCS (Bangladesh Civil Service). Both of them are achievers and have in every right to be proud of themselves. Youth of Garo Hills should emulate them and try tyo reach the point of excellence they have achieved”.

‘Wangala’ the Harvest festival of the Garos is a post harvest celebration performed by the Garos after the harvest is over. The festivals is the culmination of the jhum cycle or slash and burn method of cultivation still being followed by the Garos in the footsteps of their forefathers.

The cycle begins when the Nokma of a Village allots a plot of land for the jhummias of the village for cultivation of crops where jhum crops like jhum paddy, maize, chilies, millets, tapioca, ginger etc are grown The plot is then sanctified by a ceremony called Mite Amua by the local Shaman to find out if the place is suitable for cultivation or not and sacrifice a chicken or a cock to the gods. The land is then cleared by the villagers by cutting the jungle with daos locally known as Atte.This is done during the months of December to January. The cleared land is kept as it is to dry up till February and March when the whole village will fix the date for burning their plots collectively.

The a·ba so·a or burning of the plot of land is then made by first making fire lines so that the fire does not spread to adjoining areas. After this comes the ceremony called agal maka where again the misi saljong the god of fertility is appeased by a ceremony where a cock is sacrificed to make sure that the crops will be blessed by the god of fertility and harvest will be good.

In this year’s Hundred Drums Wangala competition the village of Sadolpara from Dadenggre Development Block, West Garo Hills emerged victorious with their excellent coordination in the field while, Danang Songma, West Garo Hills emerged the runners up and Dingnapara from Selsella Development Block, West Garo Hills the second runners up.

Later, prizes were given out to the Wangala competition winners, besides the indigenous games winners by the Chief Guest and the Guest of Honors of the 31st Hundred Drums Wangala held at Asanang.