By HH Mohrmen
Great thing are many a times accomplished not only by famous and well to do people, but also by very ordinary people. This is a story of an ordinary denizen of Jaintia Hills who has tirelessly dedicated his time, energy and meager resources (that he has) to achieve his long cherished dream. This story also proves right the adage that one man can make a difference. Indeed one with grit and determination can certainly make a difference.
He is a man of short stature, but then again ‘does size really matter?’ Ma Kamai War is Jaintias’ own relic hunter who devotes his whole life to collect and preserve whatever antiques remain of Jaintia Culture that he can lay his hand on. Also founder of the Thaiwan Arts and culture Association (TACA) Ma Kamai is a multi talented artist. TACA was started in 1985 but was duly registered 8 years after it was established.
Ma Kamai’s love for music and arts began in his youth when he performed in the many dramas during the Bamphalar an annual theatrical festival of the people of Jowai. Like many young people in Jowai, he made his debut as a stage artist during the many Bamphalar staged from time to time on the stage of the Iungwalieh of Panaliar, a locality in Jowai where he was born and brought up. A multifaceted personality; Ma Kamai is not only a stage actor but a singer and musician par excellence. He is in fact a dramatist, a poet, a musician all rolled in one. Ma Kamai is also a graded artist of the All India Radio Shillong and the Door Darshan Kendra Shillong. Renowned as he is, this gentleman is humble enough to give credit where it is rightfully due for his development as a multi talented artist. He attributes the growth and development of his musical talent to Late Beriwell Kyndiah and for his dramatic talent to late Arthur Bareh and Beril Lamare.
Ma Kamai’s artistic talent progressed with his age. From a young actor during the Bamphalar and theatrical festival of Panaliar Club Jowai in the yesteryears; he has now graduated to directing. He has directed not only short plays and dramas but along with the members of the Thaiwan Arts he has directed few video documentaries in Pnar. The subject of his dramas and documentaries are mostly legends and folktales of the area I a bid to preserve the rich legends and folktales of the Pnar people. With regard to directing, Ma Kamai proudly says he is not a copycat. He spends a lot of his time and energy researching on his subjects before he brings it to the audience. To substantiate his statement he told this scribe about the drama of the legendary U Kiang Nangbah, which he produced some years ago. He said that he spent many years researching on the subject before he brought it to light. Apart from U Kiang Nangbah and u Chitang, he has dramatized the legendary Queen of the Pnars ‘Ka Syiem Latympang’ which was later on telecast by the Doordarshan Kendra, Shillong. He has also cut many musical albums and in the recent ones he blends the folk tunes with traditional and western music.
The Thaiwan Arts and Culture Association has done a commendable job to preserve the cultural heritage of the Jaintia people. Ma Kamai’s contribution and that of the Association he leads has been recognized and appreciated by various Institutions and NGOs. Some of the recognitions for the outstanding performance of the Association came from the Hynniewtrep Culture Welfare Association, Nehru Yuva Kendra Jowai, Rotary Club Jowai, the Office of the District Industries Centre Jowai, the office of the Deputy Commissioner Jaintia hills District Jowai and of course the list is by no means exhaustive. Ma Kamai War is also a proud recipient of the Meghalaya Day, Tirot Singh award in the year 2007 given to him by the Government of Meghalaya in recognition of his contribution towards protection and preservation of the culture and traditions of the Pnars of Jaintia Hillss.
Thaiwan Arts and Cultural Association, which had a humble beginning was established in 1993 and registered as a Society in the same year. The Association was started with the sole objective of preserving the unique arts and culture of the people of the Jaintia Hills District. The literal English translation of “Thaiwan’ is the Echo. It aptly describes the Organisation which pays heed to the call of our ancestors and works wholeheartedly to preserve our dying culture. The turning point in the Association’s efforts to preserve the cultural heritage of the people was when Ma Kamai in one of his many expeditions to the interior villages, realized with regret the loss of traditional musical instruments of the Pnar. In one of the Association’s meeting he brought the issue up as one that required immediate attention. The Association unanimously resolved that its main goal would be to try and save as many of the historical objects available as possible for the future generations. From then on there was no looking back for Ma Kamai and the Association. It has collected 275 items of valuable antiques, which include traditional dresses, old musical instruments, items of daily uses, weapons and old traditional battle gears of the Pnars, farming equipments and other items. The list of the ancient artifacts collected range from a simple “Sympat Phare” (an item use for killing house fly) to “Khoh bah bru” (a large cone basket to carry the sick and the elderly from one place to another). The khoh-bah-bru is covered with a shield made of cane and leaves called ‘shaladiang’ used by the people to protect themselves from the heat of the sun and rain. The items collected were from all over Jaintia Hills. The hunt for these relics took him to every nook and corner of the District from as far as Khatkasla in the Block I and Sohmynting. The collection of these items is not only an arduous task but also an expensive one for Ma Kamar as he had to spend from his own pocket for conveyance and paying for the historical objects. Ma Kamai said that he was grateful for having a wife who supports the family because in many cases he spent his entire income paying for the expenses in collecting artifacts.
The Association is now facing a huge problem, not only because large suns of money was spent in collecting the artifacts but also because of the lack of space to house the collected items and also to preserve the already fragile objects. This is causing a headache to the Association. Neither Ma Kamai nor the Association has the space and means for the upkeep of the priceless relics let alone to display them. The need of the hour is for the Government to do the needful to preserve the remnants of the items saved from the past generation. One would expect the Department of Arts and Culture to take proactive part and come forward to save these valuable items. The department should approach Ma Kamai and try to convince him to display this unique collection and priceless artifacts at the government museum in the District Library Jowai, before they finally disappear forever from the reach of the Pnar people.