North East Tibetan cultures come alive at Footprints

Footprints 4.0, the North East and Tibetan cultural fest held here on Sunday had a royal touch of sorts with the presence of the King of the Royal House of Tripura Kirit Pradyot Deb Burman. He made the occasion even more inspirational with his thought provoking message to the hundreds of North East, Tibetan students gathered when he said that North East and Tibetan students when they go out of their states must be the ambassadors of their culture.

He said: “One should be proud of being an indigenous, as the Constitution puts it. North East students must be ambassadors of their particular state, wherever they go. When you go out of your state you not only study but you are studied as well.”

Speaking about the problems of North East, Mr Deb Barman said, “For the rest of the country people of North East are all same, though there are over 600 languages and hundreds of tribes. There seems to be lethargy among leaders of the country when it comes to the problems of the North East. As future leaders, students of North East must make a difference. People of the north east even if considered a backward group should come together to develop their states and voice their opinion.”

Welcoming the gathering, Principal Fr Ambrose Pinto said, “We are proud to have about 180 Tibetan students and several hundred North East students in our institution, who bring with them their traditional heritage and give us the broad perspective of society. They look alike but have different cultures which they will stage today. Each state has a different culture, tradition, food habit and yet they show a great level of oneness.” He further added, “Diversity and pluralism are pillars of Democracy. These values help in bringing about unity in society.”

The fest based on the theme ‘Breaking the barriers and building bridges’ focused on bridging the differences among the tribals of the North Eastern states and the others. This was well seen when the gathered crowd welcomed the plethora of traditional dances and music of the North East and Tibet. While different dance forms and music portrayed war, victory, love and sadness; the play on Irom Sharmila portrayed the strength and determination of the people. The air was filled with the aroma of delicacies of the indigenous tribes which was savored by one and all present and the crowd went dizzy when the students showcased their traditional attire in the much awaited ramp walk.

- Jennifer I M S Com

Pics by Raghunath II M S Com