From my hometown
Siliguri – the gateway to the Northeast, I began a journey in May 2010 and came
to the beautiful land of Mizoram. I can still remember and feel that softness
of clean fresh breeze welcoming me as I stepped outside Lengpui airport that
afternoon. The green peaks submerged in pristine white cloud looked like
goddesses dressed in white saris. I felt myself blessed by the nature which
took away all my initial fears of an unknown place. That was the beginning of
the fascinating experiences that I still continue to relish in Mizoram. One
thing I had keenly observed during my initial days in Mizoram is the influence
of western culture in contemporary Mizo lifestyle, especially in music, fashion
and certain social values. It made me once ponder – can one culture retain its
core identity in spite of gaining influences from other cultures with the
progress of time? Perhaps it can, if people truly understand what really
culture is all about. And that understanding involves an appreciation for other
cultures, a humble attitude of sharing and a deep faith in the fundamental
beauty of one’s own culture. This is what I exactly thought while watching the
traditional Cheraw dance performed by young Mizo boys and girls at a local
function in Aizawl. In Mizoram, I have witnessed the existence of an unshakable
“Mizo spirit” among every people I met. The simplicity, the honesty, the
sharing attitude and the way these people are still connected to the mother
earth has yet again enlightened me to the existence of pure cultural beauties
in different parts of my country.
Being from a
traditional Bengali Muslim family I had a very cultural upbringing where I grew
up experiencing different, or say amalgamated form of arts and cultures. My
father’s keen interest and knowledge in Bengali literature ensured that I and
my sister were never left out from the treasures of Tagore and Sharatchandra.
Even though I studied in English medium, I always felt proud of my own culture.
As a child I listened to both Preeti Saagar’r nursery rhymes and read Sukumar
Ray’s Aabol Taabol with same enthusiasm. During our long summer holidays we
used to spend valuable time in the village at our grandfather’s house. I
remember how we used to wake up early morning to the tune of baashi (flute)
played by my grandfather. From fishing in the pond to chasing ducks at the
backyard, I enjoyed doing everything during those brief yet fulfilling summer
holidays that any ordinary village boy is supposed to do in his childhood. My father was in
Railways, so he had a transferable job. I spent most of my childhood in North
Bengal and Assam. While staying in Alipurduar, celebrating Diwali, Durga Puja,
Holi, Christmas, New Year and Bihu was quite common as the Railway Officers
Club used to host big family parties on almost every occasion. On Eid, we used
to invite everyone at our house for a grand celebration. I consider this array
of different cultural influences to be one of the most important contributing
factors to my own personality.
Even miles away from
home I never really felt to be parting away from that culture. Just a week
before the Rongali Bihu, my friend Pranjal changed his mobile ringtone to a
popular Bihu tune. He even took all the pain in the middle of night to replace
his own facebook profile picture with a dashing photo of himself in traditional
Bihu attire. Evidently, he attracted huge likes and comments from his friends
and friends of friends. I, therefore find it a complete myth when somebody says
that we are losing our culture to the aggression of other cultures or
modernization or influence of technology. I often see my friend Gyanashri in
regular western formals sitting at her desk in her office. Being a young
professional working in a private bank she obviously has the willingness as
well as the right looks to look smart. However on the auspicious day of Bihu, I
saw the same Gyanashri in a different avatar – completely transformed as
traditional Assamese girl dazzling in a beautiful Mekhla Sador. I feel really
proud to be a part of a new generation today that knows how to define and
respect their culture. I beg to disagree with those who think that we neglect
our own culture. In fact, we know and love our culture as much as our
forefathers used to. The only different thing about today’s generation is that
they are better equipped and bold enough to adapt themselves to different
situations than their earlier generations. Once my good friend Manjit was
discussing about the hurdles we often face in our life to make people
understand the need for change. Though, many people still misunderstands,
overreacts and often objects to the idea of change in the socio-cultural
context, but still we need to explain that change is and always will be an
undeniable phenomenon. As a society we cannot remain inert from the change that
is required for our own development. Being passionate about one’s own culture
doesn’t necessarily require one to become insecure about it. If we can
understand the larger picture of the global and social issues and put them in
their proper perspective, it will perhaps become easier to overcome our
regional or cultural insecurities.
It angers me when I
hear about singers, writers or painters being threatened or their artistic
freedom is intruded by self-declared protectors of religion and culture. It is
fundamentally wrong to believe that artistic freedom can become a threat to any
culture. If an art exhibition in the capital celebrates womanhood they are
neither promoting nudity nor showcasing anything that is remotely contradictory
to our so called “Indianness”, In fact, people motivated by narrow definition
of culture and nationalism often fail to understand that art, to the extent of
free expression and depiction of eroticism has been fundamental to our ancient
heritage. Similarly, I also believe if a girl band in Kashmir wants to showcase
their beautiful talent, they are neither becoming Anti-Kasmiri nor intending
anything Un-Islamic. If Zubeen sings a Sufi song like Ya Ali at a Bihu function
in Guwahati, it certainly doesn’t means that he is in any way disrespecting the
Assamese culture. Culture shouldn’t be made binding by political boundaries. I
still become mesmerized whenever I hear the song, “dil hum hum kare”. It is
fascinating to feel how Dr. Bhupen Hazarika’s song could aptly express the
grief of an ill-fated woman from faraway Rajasthan.
Culture should never be
treated as a closed system. History tells us that cultures have flourished in
places where people had been more accommodating rather than conservative.
Culture is the essence of humanity; the testimony of the evolution of mankind;
their hardships; struggles; learnings; failures; successes; celebrations; and
their gradual steps towards development in the never-ending process of
civilization. But sometimes, some of us, restricted by our narrow imagination
and influenced by some particular vested interest groups, try to associate culture
only with our selfish and often manufactured identity. They tend to presume
that culture is only what that defines who we are, what we do and where do we
came from. True, culture does defines all that, but yet on a more significant
level, our culture is also about tolerance, artistic freedom, sharing and
showing respect to other people and other cultures. Because, in our journey of
life…... We’re in the same boat brother…
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