School final examination period is getting over soon. Having completed the examination, students will get at least 30 days of vacation. To utilise this vacation, the State Art and Culture Department and Union Ministry of Culture may organise cultural events to popularise the ethnic heritage among the students.
These students will be the future of the nation. They should know their rich heritage and unique cultural identity. Leading cultural legends may impart special training on the rich traditions.
In other words, the students may take wise lessons from the cultural icons to practice their very own heritage. The award-winning celebrities may inspire the young students to practice and preserve the rich culture including traditional music, song and dance of the Northeast.
If a person gets due recognition from competent authority for specific work in the form of award, honour during lifetime then it may be counted as the highest reward for him or her.
Influencers and leading personalities are being awarded or honoured along with all states of India by different organisations serving at the national and State level from time to time.
On March 6, 2024 President Droupadi Murmu presented Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowships and Awards for the year 2022 and 2023 to leading personalities of India in music, dance, drama, art, etc. in New Delhi.
She said that art is not just for the sake of art. It also has a social purpose. According to her, there are many such examples in history, when artists used their art for social welfare.
Artists have been contributing to the awakening of society through their creations. Indian art is the best example of India’s soft-power.
She opined, “Today mental issues like stress and depression are increasing. There are several reasons for this. One of the reasons could be focusing more on material happiness rather than spirituality. Connection with art makes us creative. Art provides a way to discover truth and gives meaning to life. Art and artists have worked to weave the diversity of India into the thread of unity. By doing this, they have also fulfilled the fundamental duties enshrined in the Constitution. Sangeet Natak Akademi for promoting various art forms for the last seven decades. She said that the work done by the Akademi in the field of performing arts and intangible heritage is very important. All the recipients of Akademi’s Fellowship and Awards expressed confidence that they will continue to enrich the Indian art tradition through various forms and genres of music and drama.”
The first citizen of the country gave away fellowships and awards to a few artists and drama personalities from Northeast India.
They include —Helen Giri (Folk & traditional Music 2023, Meghalaya), Dulal Roy (Guwahati, Fellowship Award), Gobinda Saikia (Sattriya), Karuna Borah (Other Major Traditions of Dance and Dance Theatre- Ankiya Bhaona), S. Noyonshakhi Devi (Manipuri), Gunakar Dev Goswami (Direction), Olen Megu Damin (Folk &Traditional Music & Dance, Arunachal Pradesh), Tarawati Bori (Folk /Traditional, Music, Assam), Chingtham Ranjeet Khuman (Thang Ta, Manipur), Lakshahira Das (Overall contribution in performing arts, Assam), Latasana Devi (Manipuri dance), Bhaben Borbayan (Sattriya), Urmika Maibam (Manipuri), Dimpee Baishya (Sattriya), Chow Saratham Namehoom (Folk Music, Arunachal Pradesh), Binita Devi (Puppetry, Assam), Moirangthem Kendra Singh (Nata Sankirtan, Manipur), Pukhrambam Reepa Devi (Manipuri), Mukunda Saikia (Sattriya), and so on.
Most importantly, Meghalaya’s musicologist and historian, known for her efforts in promoting Khasi music tradition – Padmashri Helen Giri was given away the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (Akademi Puruskar) 2023 under folk and traditional music. A former faculty member at NEHU, she is a member of the executive council of the Sangeet Natak Akademi.
She is known to have contributed to the restoration of traditional Khasi musical instruments and has instituted a scholarship fund at the Martin Luther Christian University, Shillong for the promotion of Khasi music.
She assisted in the establishment of 35 traditional music institutes and organised music festivals, besides working for the rehabilitation of differently-abled children. She authored Khasi Under British Rule, 1824-1947, a historical narrative of Khasi life during the pre-independence period.
The Central Government awarded her the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri in 2008, for her contributions to Khasi music.
The Akademi citation says about Professor Helen Giri: “Born on February 7, 1944, Helen Giri is a distinguished folk and traditional artist from Meghalaya, renowned for her tireless efforts in the promotion and preservation of Khasi dance. As a top-grade folk singer of All India Radio, she has been instrumental in bringing Khasi traditional music to national platforms. Her performances as a singer at various State, National, and International levels have garnered widespread recognition. Not only has she actively participated in numerous programmes and festivals, but she has also organized festivals dedicated to traditional music and dance in Meghalaya, which have been warmly embraced by the community. Through her dedicated work, she has sparked a revival in the field of arts and culture, particularly in the context of Khasi traditions. Furthermore, Helen Giri has taken initiatives to identify Master Craftsmen skilled in various categories of musical instruments. This endeavour has not only preserved the artistry but also served as an avenue for income generation in the villages she has supported. Her multifaceted contributions have significantly enriched the cultural landscape of Meghalaya. Shrimati Helen Giri has been honoured with the Padma Shri for her contribution to the Arts and Culture of Meghalaya. Shrimati Helen Giri receives the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for the year 2023 for her contribution to the folk and traditional music of Meghalaya.”
From a geopolitical point of view, Northeast India India is regarded as the cradle of many castes, communities, cultural ethos and faiths. Tucked away in a ‘strategic region’, linked with the national mainstream by a narrow corridor called the “chicken’s neck” via Siliguri in Bengal, those who once visited the region can never forget this paradise on the planet Earth. That is, it is considered as the greatest region among all the regions of our nation in terms of hospitality rendered to its visitors, tourists, et al. Both domestic and international tourists visit Sikkim, ‘the oasis of peace in India today’. One can, thus, find a unique combination of hospitality and service mentality amongst the local people in NEI. The region is gifted with a good number of natural resources. It possesses the world’s largest reserves of Sillimanite (a mineral used as refractory) in Sonapahar of East Khasi Hills district in Meghalaya. Of late, the record of rainfall at Mawsynram has exceeded that of Cherrapunjee. World’s biggest river island, Majuli, is located in Assam. The world’s oldest functioning oil refinery is Digboi refinery (Assam). Its preliminary survey was done by Oldham, the then superintendent, Geological Survey of India, in 1901. Oldham came to discover coal, but, fortunately found mineral oil here.
To sum it up, India is inching ahead keeping an equal pace with other countries of the world in bagging a wide range of awards and honours. This is a good trend. In a word, the concerned agencies and government departments must keep a regular tab on the yeoman’s services of the noted people of all states to honour them with awards from time to time. The upcoming generation will definitely learn many wise lessons from leading legends in art and culture. With the help of new media platforms, the tech-savvy new generation will also be motivated by them to carry forward the rich heritage of NE at the international arena soon.
