Performed from memory, the Kecharhe Alun is a significant death ritual of Assam’s Karbi tribe. The oral epic has never been properly studied, recorded, or documented — until now. When a neighbour died last week, Kasang Teronpi, was summoned immediately. The news was shocking, but the call was routine. For years now, the 80-year-old resident of Taralangso […]
Tag: Culture
In Meghalaya, a marathon is catalysing an inherent but hidden talent among its locals
Welcome to the hamlets of Mawkyrwat, where everyone has a new hobby: running Swonding Molong first started running because it made him feel good. Later, he realised that it even helped him work better. Yet, for the longest time, Molong — a 55-year-old ginger farmer from Meghalaya — kept it a secret. “It started in […]
There is no movie theatre in Mizoram—but Mizo films thrive
Bereft of a single movie theatre, how Mizoram produces and consumes its films: loud speaker announcements, door-to-door ticket sales, dubbing and directors who double up as producers, distributors and even actors In Mizo, the word tlangau means local announcement. And every evening, in the neighbourhoods of hilly Aizawl, a tlangau blares out from loud speakers, […]
A group of Nagas is leading India’s first overseas ancestral remains repatriation efforts
Comes after Pitt Rivers Museum in England engaged in an “ethical review” of their permanent displays, with a bid to “decolonise” their collections On September 14, 2020, the Pitt Rivers Museum in England’s Oxford made a landmark announcement. In a post-pandemic overhaul of its collection, the iconic museum — one of the best-known in the […]