– By Sabina Zeenat
April 13, 2013 - The sun was out but the wind was chill and Mississippi still wore its snowy garb. Minnesota had not seen the green grass and the bursting trees yet, but the hearts of the Assamese Minnesotans were warm and filled with the joys of Rongali Bihu. We celebrated this anticipated event in a log cabin nestled in the Lions Park of Shakopee, which we lovingly call our bihutoli.
It was a fun filled day with friends joining us from neighboring Rochester, Saint Cloud and Iowa. The colorful day started with jolpan, consisting of a delicious ensemble of traditional Bihu treats and snacks. This was followed by Sanjeev Bordoloi’s vibrant opening speech and Oxomiya Xomobeto Sangeet. The very eager kids kicked off the cultural show. The 3-7 year olds- Aatharva, Taj, Aarhi, Reisha, Devarsh, Geet, Loy, Annie, Ruhi, Nimisha and Sabreen impressed us with their recitation of an Assamese all-time favorite kids’ poem, taught by Geeti Das. This was followed by a Bihu dance by our enthusiastic little nasonis, taught by Anju Deori. The fun and passion with which they performed was very admirable. Solo performances in Assamese by Devarsh, Nimisha, Ayan, Diksha and Darsh and solo musical performance by Ruhi and Geet showed how truly talented our young kids are. Nibir, Samir and Ayan performed a lively Bhangra dance followed by another elegant dance by talented sisters Nishan and Sabreen. Ashmita entertained us with a beautiful Bharat Natyam dance. Brothers Nibir and Samir amused us with a short comedy on Bollywood movies. The cello-violin- keyboard orchestra performance by Nibir, Riyah and Ashmita captured the audience’s attention with their musical harmony. It was very heartening to see how well our youngsters have embraced a piece of our rich tradition by participating so passionately in the Bihu festivities. All of them were very excited and always looked forward to the Bihu practice sessions to work on their performances. The kids had their share of fun with some delightful indoor games arranged by Prantor and Sanjeev. As outdoor sports were not an option due to the cold weather, the creative indoor games captivated the little hearts.
Our talented adults entertained us during the cultural evening. Anju, Ankita and Geeti’s beautifully choreographed Bihu dance was one of the highlights of the evening. We enjoyed their elegant and charming performance. We equally enjoyed the husori which was replete with tradition. The pepa, dhol and taal reverberated the sounds of Bihu thousands of miles beyond Axom into our own Minnesota bihutoli. The brilliant and unique sound of these instruments keeps us close to home. We were entertained by the solo performances of Pranab, Dipankar and Minti’s melodious songs accompanied by Saroj and Arun on guitar and keyboard. We sat back, relaxed and enjoyed their performance. The fun day ended with a sumptuous dinner. The memories were captured by Gautam Deori, whose tremendous expertise with his camera lenses recorded the memorable day for years to come.
