Bihu vs Bollywood

There was a time when Bihu in Assam was a seven-day-long pastoralfestival where households would come out in the open fields and celebrate. Groups of people would go door-to-door singing the traditional husori. Each of the seven days were dedicated to different aspects of the Assamese culture.

 

With time, celebrations became larger and costlier. In 1952, under the leadership of Singhapurush Radha Govinda Baruah, 'architect of modern Assam', the first large scale communal Bihu was organised at the Lotashil field in Guwahati. Soon, Bihu committees sprang up all over the state. 

 

Starting off with traditional Bihu songs and dances by locals, the lure of mainstream media proved too powerful. Artists belting out modern songs began to get audiences, particularly in the 1970s. And then came the Bollywood juggernaut. Since 1995, traditional songs have been replaced by modern chalu numbers, rendered by young artists who demand and get hefty remunerations, especially if they had made their mark in the Mumbai film industry.

 

In a bid to preserve the cultural ethos of the festival, 15 Bihu committees from Guwahati arranged a press meet on March 16 and declared that the Bihu committees of Guwahati would pay a maximum sum of Rs 70,000 to an artist. This, they argued, would preserve the cultural spirit of Bihu.

 

When contacted, most major committees maintained that they followed directives of the co-ordination committee. Says executive president of Guwahati Bihu Sanmilani’ (Lotashil), “Our president Rana Goswami is also president of the co-ordination committee. Under such circumstances, how can we defy this decision? Our rates have been fixed strictly at Rs 70,000”. The president of the Paschim Guwahati Bihu Sanmilanee (Bhorolu), Karendra Kalita, too said they prefer quality cultural activities to glamour. Yet, performers have been reported to have raked in as much as Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 3.5 lakh –much against the spirit of the press conference. Meanwhile, the tussle over Bihu's soul continues.