Kohima Kaleidoscope: Hornbill Festival

(If you are feeling too lazy to go through the entire article now, why don't catch a glimpse of the breathtaking Hornbill Festival through this slideshow of photos I clicked? It may lure you into reading the article J )  

CLICK HERE for the slideshow. 

(And if the slideshow is taking too long to start, CLICK HERE to view pics.)

As scorching summer bids goodbye to Nagpur and the temperature drops to a pleasant degree, I begin missing Dimapur in Nagaland (CLICK for video clip )  where my husband Manishankar was stationed from May’06 to April’08. As Dimapur is a place very conveniently located if you wish to explore the North-East of India, we took the opportunity and visited most of places in the seven sisters.

Even before we reached Dimapur, I’ve been told that we are not to miss the HornBill festival at Kohima, the capital city of Nagaland. As luck would have it, we did miss the festival the first year. Determined to be there the next time, I started counting days from mid-October, the time when festive mood sets in Nagaland with a series of traditional fairs and handicrafts exhibitions. The Hornbill Festival, organized by the Government of Nagaland, is held every year from December 1 to December 8 in Kohima. The festival is a tribute to the Hornbill, which is the most admired and revered bird for the Nagas, for its qualities of elements and grandeur.

Finally, one fine morning, bags packed and my Nikon F55 loaded, we set out on our much-awaited journey, from Dimapur to Kohima to attend the festival. The journey from ultra-modern Dimapur: a commercial hub where life moves in fast track, by the road through picturesque hills to the sleepy, laid back but culturally rich city of Kohima was like visiting a niche from where civilization begins its journey.

As we have the audacity to hope we’ll get accommodation available easily during the peak tourist season, we had to go around heavily crowded streets of Kohima for over three hours. Finally, we found room at the Japfü Hotel, situated on the hilltop opposite Japfü peak.  It’s a great hotel with best available amenities, beautiful rooms, friendly staff and great food, specially Naga delicacies. We decided to rest and explore the town in the evening and head for Kisama heritage village, the venue for the event the next day. 

Kisama village is an hour’s journey from Kohima. We reached there as the cultural events were about to begin. It was when we reached there, we realized our second mistake; only this time, it was a blunder: to under-estimate winter in Kohima. We were sufficiently armed with warm clothes, but as it was in the morning, we wore only light woolens and left the rest safely ensconced in bag. Counting on the sun to show up and keep the weather warm in Kisama was a blunder. As the place was far above sea level, sunrays struggled to seep through thick fog and often lost. Not that we minded the bitter cold. The fog enveloped the Kisama hilltop and gave it a mystic character. We were walking in the clouds. It was a lifetime experience that is difficult to explain. 

The mood was perfect for the event. Performers presenting traditional Naga dances in the open air amphitheatre, smoke curling up from traditional houses of Naga tribes that dotted the hillside... everything in perfect harmony. Through the six hours of traditional extravagenza, the audience from every part of the world took a historical tour.    Then it was time for a break.

We went around through Naga huts of every tribe: each one unique, each one different yet making a statement in  unity.

Evening came and there was a complete transformation of mood. The climate turned to bitter cold, which is considered 'cool' by local youth, as it is good time to 'chill out' with friends. The transformation  was from traditional to uber-fashionable. Naga shawls, jewellery made up of beads, animal bones and horns were replaced by Reebok shoes, Lee Cooper jeans and leather jackets. It was time for Hornbill National Rock Contest. The event is organised every year by Music Task Force, Government of Nagaland. The traditional heritage village turned into an ultra-modern township with blaring music, latest musical and sound instruments and continental food.  

I can go on writing about my experience during the best vacation of my life so far. May be some other time. For now, this year's festival is a few days away, you can see videos, more pics or check out the details HERE.