A whole new world .... Banna goes to the North East !

As I return from a full day’s survey of people, skills and handicraft in and around this little town in upper Assam (the first major town in upper Assam I am proudly told by the locals here) the pinkish sky and the faint rays of light from a setting sun are all indicative of falling dusk and a cool evening ahead. But wait a minute! Its only 4:00 pm … seemed like way past 6:30!

Settling down on simple and comfortable Bamboo chairs as I sip my perfectly brewed cup of “ Lal Cha” I realise suddenly that there is pitch darkness outside  - the sun has set  , afternoon merging into evening and it is only 4:30…. Silence all around!  It’s the end of a long day for everyone; a far removed and different world from life in Bangalore, the city I live in.  In the town of Bokakhat (a small town in upper Assam) this is the time of day when families get together and discuss and share the day’s happenings over cups of tea (usually Lal cha), relax, unwind, make plans etc.  As I make myself part of this “ Adda” session I sense a feeling  of contentment among the people I am with and a general simplicity in their approach to living.

Lal  Chai 

My work in the Handicraft sector has taken me to different parts of the country to meet with artisans , look at their traditional skills and understand the work that they are doing, products that are being created. One such trip has brought me to the North east of India including Assam, Meghalaya and Nagaland. The North East for many of us, especially down south is unchartered territory, a modern frontier land. We only hear of separatists and the odd “North East Package” offered out of political opportunism. Personally, I heard of it only from my father, who was posted in Jorhat, Assam when he was a fighter pilot with the Indian Air Force. I thus landed in Guwahati not knowing what to expect, with some trepidation but hoping to achieve all that I had set out to do

At first glance it seemed like any other smaller city in India.  Concrete and construction everywhere , roads being laid out, highways being repaired , large amounts of dust, settled on trees and leaves, changing their colour from green to a sickly grey, the famed scenic beauty of this part of the country almost hidden behind large clouds of dust.  The people - distant yet curious and friendly.   Having packed in a lunch of “ Chowmein” ( all restaurants refer to noodles of any kind as Chowmein in these parts on their menus) we set course into the interiors of Assam  heading towards upper Assam and the surrounding areas to look at handicraft, folk art, weaving techniques etc whilst soaking in the local culture to get a real sense of the people and the lives they lead .

My hosts – the mother and son duo of Mrs. Jaba Deb and Nelson Deb are friendly and welcoming, excited at the prospect of an outsider coming to see this part of the country they call their own and also very proud of what they have to offer whilst at the same time anxious of making sure my every comfort is taken care of given my lack of familiarity of these parts and their perception of me being a “BIG City Girl”.  We are headed towards upper Assam , more specifically to a town called Bokakhat not more than 25 kilometres from the famous Kaziranga national park.

Jaba Aunty - Mrs. Deb 

 Bokakhat is also home to my hosts, the Deb’s and I will be staying as a guest in their home. All along the  6 hour journey driving on mud roads in parts , Mrs. Deb ( or auntie as I am free to call her as soon as  I meet her ) is full of concern “ I hope you will be comfortable in our house. I hope you will be ok ! If not , then we don’t know where we can put you up. Ours is a small town and there are no hotels. The only ones are Homestays at Kaziranga and I am not sure you will be comfortable there on your own” she says.  I try to put her at ease .. tell her I will be fine and it’s the work that I have come for. This does not really help.  Auntie just smiles at me indulgently and shakes her head. But says nothing. Anxiety still writ large on her face.

About half way through our drive we stop for tea. This is my first introduction to “ Lal cha” or the specially brewed red tea common to these parts. Light and red in colour it’s perfect and refreshing. I notice auntie taking out a little pouch and from it a little packet of “ Supari “ or beetle nut.  She cuts it deftly, puts it into a green “ Pan” leaf and chews on it while we sip our tea.  Almost everyone I see around me does the same. Supari and Pan are integral to day to day life here. Be it after a meal, before a meal at chai time or simply anytime.  Offering Supari to guests is also an integral part of the hospitality in these parts. Another interesting tradition in these parts is the draping of the “ Gamusa”. The “Gamusa” is a hand-woven piece of cloth more like a stole which is draped around guests as a welcome gesture just like one would a garland of flowers. 

Tea and Supari done we get on our way once again. As we drive through several villages towards upper Assam , one of the things  I notice as common is the use of Bamboo.  Most homes , even the big ones don’t have concrete walls – Just large cut outs of Bamboo woven and plaited closely and fixed into the ground. A number of homes don’t even have gates.  Again bamboo poles fixed together to make movable gates.  I also see that a number of homes we drive by are actually built on stilts. This is essentially because of flooding caused by extensive rain in these parts in the summer and monsoon. For those homes that are not on stilts, a number of them have mud walls, thatched roofs and to protect the mud walls, large cut outs of Bamboo.  My curiosity getting the better of me I ask about the use of Bamboo. Again Jaba auntie smiles indulgently and says “ Bamboo is life in these parts , Bamboo is everthing. We use it to build our homes, for storage, as decoration, we use it for everything. It is our life “ she says.  I also notice that at many road side tea stalls there are also stacks of Bamboo boxes , trays , baskets and bowls in different sizes, all used for different purposes -  another testimony to how important Bamboo is here. We are by now driving through parts of the Kaziranga forest, not too far away from our destination – Bokakhat.  

A short distance after we leave the forest area, tea gardens come into view on either side. The Deb’s tell me these tea gardens have been functioning from  the pre- independence area  including the managers bungalows which are large imposing structures again built on stilts.  The view on either side of the lush and green tea gardens is simply breath taking.  The pristine greenery of the tea gardens , distant bobbing heads of workers picking tea leaves, low hanging clouds all lend themselves an almost mystical charm, a sight that is permanently etched in my mind.

We enter the town of Bokakhat  - one main road which is also a busy Bazaar area and turn off on a narrow winding road towards the Deb residence.  We are welcomed at home by “ Dadi “ ( Grandmother ) the old lady of the house. She is warm and welcoming and excited too about a guest coming all the way from Bangalore ( I am sure  Bangalore and its location in India is inconsequential to her ), I realise she only speaks Bengali.  The Deb’s are third generation Bengali’s settled in Assam having made it their home for generations.  We have a simple home cooked meal of rice, vegetable and lentils and settle into a discussion on my expectations from this trip and the handicraft available here, the possibilities etc. 

There is a lot of North east handicraft available in different parts of the country including Bangalore.  I am here to look at everything that is available, see how it is all made, talk to and spend time with the people who make products, understand their motivation, why they do it and how their products are received.  On my list to see and experience are the intricate weaves and weaving techniques, Kantha embroidery, work with Natural Fibre such as Jute, Banana Stem, Bamboo and Cane, wood craft, handmade and beaded jewellery ……

Nelson and I set out to meet a group of local women for whom “ Kantha” embroidery  is an integral part of their daily activity. It’s a skill that has been passed on for generations and there are a number of applications and uses to this skill. The ladies have been informed about my impending visit and each one of them is neatly dressed waiting for my ( read big city girl) arrival. Their homes big and small are all spruced up for this visitor. As soon as we go in and settle down to look at their work, out comes the “ Hopura “  filled with Supari and Pan leafs .  This is part of the hospitality in these parts and serving it to guests in the “ Hopura” is considered auspicious and is customary. 

The “ Hopura “ is a long lamp shaped object typically made in brass. It is a common site all over Assam and is typically found at the entrance of homes and offices or simply used to offer Supari and even sweets to guests. Just like the “ Gamusa “  the “ Hopura” is  an integral part of the culture in Assam. It is symbolic of the people here, their lives, customs and traditions.  I look around at the Kantha work around me and  am speechless !. It’s exquisite, beautiful and unlike any kantha embroidery I have seen before.  And this beautiful and exquisite work is done by a group of ladies tucked away in a quiet corner of upper Assam. 

While it is their means of earning and livelihood, it is also something they do as part of their daily routine. A skill and application that has been passed on over generations and is just second nature to them. I ask one of the older ladies - Parul Didi how she learnt all of this and she says “ I can’t say I really learnt. This is something , possibly the only thing we know as a skill outside of our regular lives as homemakers and I just use this skill. My mother used to do a lot of Kantha, my grandmother used to as well and Kantha has always been around me “ . She says “ it is only in the last few years that I do a lot of Kantha for bulk orders from people like you.  Otherwise if it wasn’t a saree or a stole, I would use thread from old and worn out cotton Sarees and embroider quilts.  It is my passion !! “ So much focussed enthusiasm and never mind that she has failing eyesight and also postural pains from sitting for long hours at her work.  I am yet again amazed at this enthusiasm and also struck by the sheer vastness of the journey  Parul Didi’s skill traverses in a sense. From her home here in Bokakhat to possibly  shop shelf somewhere in South India in Bangalore or a customer’s wardrobe.

We come back home in the darkness of the evening for the sun has set. Although it is only somewhere close to 5:00pm. Not able to contain my excitement I sit down with Jaba Auntie and tell her all that I have seen and how excited I am. It has indeed been a revelation ! She Smiles listens to me again very indulgently and disappears into one of the inner rooms of the house.  For a moment I ponder over this indulgence. We have become friends I realise in this short span of time. Never mind that I live in a big city and the Deb’s here in upper Assam.  Never mind that we are strangers to each other in several ways. Never mind that our expectations and realities in many ways are different.

The fact is that we have in many ways embraced each other in so many different ways in a short span of time, embraced the differences in the way we live, think, act and the similarities etc. Auntie now emerges her hands full of what look like several meters of cloth and textiles. One by one she lays it all out for me to look at. She looks at me silently , observing my reactions. What I have in front of me are exquisitely embroidered sarees , embroidered home linen, quilts, rugs, stoles etc.  All these are Jaba Auntie’s creations put together over many years in between running her home, bringing up two children and managing a large extended family.

 These creations are exquisite reflecting unbounded skill and talent. I ask her how and where she learnt all of this and her response is fairly similar to that of Parul Didi’s .. “  Kantha is something I have grown up with” she says with a laugh. “My mother cousins and aunts used to do this and once I got married I found that my mother – in – law and all the older women in my husband’s side of the family also worked on Kantha in their free time , in between daily chores, brining up children, etc.  This is a skill that I have and one which has been honed over a period of time. “ She also goes on to say that there have been a few people like me in the past who have taken an interest in her work and given this form of embroidery is a common enough past time in the family it took her a while to understand all the excitement around it.  However she goes on to say “  When I realised there was appreciation for the work we do, I decided it might be a good idea to create a more formal means of livelihood for some of the women around these parts who are as skilled as I am or even better. Just like for me, this form of embroidery is something they have seen and lived with all their lives and while they manage their homes , why not give them a small source of income ? “ A novel idea  I thought !

Again I am somewhat amazed at Auntie’s foresight and self- belief.  So she now works with a group of skilled women from different parts of Bokakhat intensely engaged in making Kantha embroidered products of all types. While she keeps some of the more complicated pieces to do herself,  she guides and trains this group of women prodding them gently to complete work, correcting their mistakes and finally making sure they know their work is appreciated. 

I wake up to bright sunlight the next morning. Look at the time and it is only 6:00 am in the morning. Just as the sun sets early in these parts it rises early too. The Deb household is already bustling with activity. Seems like almost one quarter of the day is already over for them. A fresh cup of Chai and breakfast done, Nelson takes me out to meet a weaver and his family. Assam is also known for its intricately woven Sarees and “ Mekhala Chadars “ ( the traditional dress of Assam worn by the women folk ) on Silk.

There are three types of silk here that are common – Muga Silk, Pat  Silk and Nooni Silk, each special in their own way. Muga is a stiff silk typically gold in colour and finds a marker mainly in Assam. Pat is the softer silk that’s easy to drape and falls well and then there is Nooni which is light.  The other rough variety of silk common to these parts is the slightly rough Eri Silk. As we head to the weavers home, a distance of 30 kilometers away from Bokakhat, I notice that we are once again driving through tea gardens. I also notice tall brown spires in the distance letting out black smoke. Nelson tells me these are Brick Kilns. Brick manufacturing and Kilns are again common to this region.  The bricks manufactured here are sent to various parts of the state and other regions in the North east. An interesting fact here is that the kilns only operate for 6 months of the year and are shut down during the summer and monsoon months because of the rain. So people engaged with and working in the kilns find other means of livelihood for six months of the year.

Ghanshyam Ji 

The weaver, Ghanshyam ji’s home is like many others I came across and have described. It is actually at the entrance of a tea garden made of mud walls covered with large cut outs of Bamboo for protection. His looms are here as well. I am welcomed with great warmth, hospitality and enthusiasm. Again the “ Hopura “ Comes out first laden with Supari.  While I take a little bit in appreciation of their hospitality, we start talking about weaving techniques, the various possibilities, the looms, the way they operate etc. I take a close look at the Handlooms here and notice that they are essentially made of Bamboo and wood.  The weaving technique requires  excellent co- ordination between eyes hands and legs and the main controls to change and re- set design are actually  long poles of Bamboo mainly operated with ones legs. Bamboo again being an integral part.  While Ghanshayam ji speaks only Assamese, his enthusiasm to tell me all about his craft comes through. Nelson translates all that he is saying. He says “ Muga silk is only in demand in Assam and does not find a market anywhere outside. Muga silk today is very expensive essentially because its production is fast diminishing mainly due to changing weather patterns. Also  Chinese today are the largest producers of silk and have invaded our local markets here as well. It is just easier to buy readily available raw material and spin it into  yarn to then weave Sarees and Mekhala’s. “ Although Ghanshyam ji seems a little puzzled by the intensity with which I am recording his conversation and taking photographs of the weaving process he indulges me once again. Our work done, as we head out Ghanshyam ji Calls out . He says ‘ Didi , you have taken so many pictures of my looms and my people, why not one picture of me and my family ? just so you remember us ?”. I willingly oblige.

As we make our way back to Bokakhat, I see a number of little shops on the roadside selling Cane and Bamboo products like little boxes, Bags, baskets etc. There are also the stalls selling handmade wood products. One of the most common products one finds made from wood is the famous Assamese one horned rhinoceros.  A beautiful souvenir to take back home.  As we drive through Nelson tells me about a very well known temple in these parts. This is an old temple dedicated to the goddess Durga and is called the “Sri Kako Guhani Durga Than “. “ Than” means temple or place of worship in the local language. This “ Ma-r-than” as the locals call it is several hundred years old. We are asked to leave our footwear outside the temple compound and as we enter the temple premises. There are several smaller temples dedicated to various Gods in addition to the main one. 

Temple 

A long winding path leads us to the main temple structure and I can’t help but notice a small pit with a sharp edged metal block. This is the place where sacrifices are made to appease  the Goddess.  I go further in expecting to see the Goddess Durga sitting on her lion sword in hand like in all other temples. However this one is different. There is no idol of the Goddess. Instead what I see is simply a tall mound almost reaching the roof of the temple covered with several pieces of decorative cloth which are actually offerings made by devotees to the Goddess. On either side of the mound are what I count as 8 – 10 lion heads.  The long – haired priest stares at me with a warily. I am not allowed to take any pictures of the inner sanctum. “ This is a sacred place “ he says. And I am a stranger.

We head back home and over a cup of “ Lal Cha” I tell auntie all about my experience with the weaver and the cane and Bamboo I have seen. She surprises me yet again ! Goes into the inner room again and out she comes with Jute bags, Cane and Banana boxes she has made. Another home grown skill she says. Something she has picked up over the years. “ I make my own bags and baskets in different colours, shapes and sizes. I even make my own little storage boxes from cane and Bamboo. I don’t buy them. I use Bamboo to make storage baskets as well. It’s easy. “ she says. I quickly pull out some design ideas for natural fibre products I am interested in and ask her if she can make these for me. “ I have never sold any of these products I have made unlike the kantha work. But why not ?  This is also something I can do” She accepts willingly. Once again the journey her skill and products will make is a story in itself.

The Hopura 

I am headed to Dimapur the next day and this is my last day in Bokakhat. The skill and potential I have seen and experienced in Assam and more importantly Bokakhat will stay with me for a long time. The next morning I wake up nice and early to bright sunshine. It is again only 5:30 am. Jaba Auntie is busily watering her plants and tending to her Garden. As I join her I notice the care and concern with which she tends to her garden.  I walk around and see that she has flower beds all along the front which decorate her courtyard, on the side of the house is a home- grown vegetable garden and at the back is a patch of medicinal herbs. I ask her about how she manages this vast space and she says “ Beta I do all the gardening myself. This is my passion. My time with my plants is my most peaceful time of the day. During the season I also put together several flowering plants in holders and pots and display them at the bi- annual shows  held at the tea gardens close by. I also  supply a number of these plants to nurserys in and around Bokakhat. “  I am once again left marvelling at her enthusiasm, skill, initiative and enterprise.  

Its soon time for me to leave. As I prepare to do so, Jaba Deb gives me a little box and says “ I have nothing much to give you but this. A small gift for coming to visit us, spending time with us and embracing everything about us. Come again soon ! “ I open the box and see that it is a Hopura.

Ladies at work 

Woodcraft 

Loom 

temple another view 

Bamboo Gate 

Bamboo Walls 

Bamboo 

Weaving 

I drive away through winding roads lined with Bamboo walled homes and through the greenery of the tea gardens I know this has been an experience of a lifetime.  I know I am leaving with a lot more than what I came with.  My trepidation at the beginning has given way to an embrace of a new world, a new culture and newpeople
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This will stay with me through times to come. The North East is no more unknown, unseen and unexplored.