By Heather Cecilia Phanwar
A museum creates a bridge between the past and the present and reminds one of the culture and heritage that has played a crucial role in giving form to the modern day society. Kamai War is determined to protect that heritage that glorifies Jaintia Hills’ past and defines its present.
War’s museum at Chutwukhu in Jowai is a time machine painstakingly built over three decades. The elaborate collections take one back in time and give a glimpse of the Jaintia tradition.
The 74-year-old collector is preserving over 300 articles, big and small, in a 24×20 ft room behind his residence. He started collecting these artefacts since he was a child. The museum was established in 1993 under Thaiwan Arts and Cultural Organisation, also formed by War.
“My father was a doloi (village head) and that is how I got interested in Jaintia tradition. I want people to know about the rich culture and heritage of our tribe,” says War sitting in his humble living room.
Photographs of the collector, framed certificates and government acknowledgements hang on one of the walls of the living room.
War grew up in penury and had to drop out of Government Boys’ Higher Secondary School in Jowai after Class V as he could not pay the fees. “My mother wanted me to start earning as I was the eldest of four siblings. So I took up a job in a tailoring shop,” he recollects.
Later, he got a job in the Department of Irrigation as a grade IV peon. After retirement in 2010, War now invests most of his time and money in the upkeep of the museum. He says he is grateful to his wife, Williancy Pde, who has always supported him in his pursuit of time’s mementoes.
War looks after the museum himself. He has travelled to every corner of the Jaintia Hills in search of the artefacts and paid whatever price was asked for these valuable articles. There are musical instruments, traditional clothes, potteries, old coins, indigenous weapons and articles of daily use. Among the collectables is a bunch of caps similar to what Kiang Nangbah had worn. The caps were made by War’s father. He also has the earrings of his grandmother and a stieh (big shield) that he bought for Rs 70,000.
A unique Jaintia drum (bom) with a wooden stand adorns one corner of the museum. This, he says, is quite different from the Khasi drum.
“There are exactly 315 collectables, which include 13 types of musical instruments. I spent Rs 78-79 lakh on these, spending almost my entire life’s income,” says War, who speaks nothing but Pnar.
He carefully picks up some articles to explain what they were used for once upon a time.
The white labels on the articles identify the objects as lakyndong, charoh, kuka, pyrla and so on. The polished exterior hides the sign of age but they do tell stories long forgotten. The collector, who looks a few years younger than he is, describes the objects and their utility.
Pointing at the lakyndong, he says it is a unique Jaintia musical instrument made of two bamboos stringed vertically. The collector has also given 25 items to the North-Eastern Hill University.
War employs people twice a year for the maintenance of the museum. He oversees everything and pays them Rs 10,000 to clean and polish the artefacts.
“Every artefact is original each having its own history of time and place. I do not believe in imitations as one may find in some museums. And I want people to see that originality and come here and know about our culture. This is an important reason why I do not want to shift my museum anywhere, not even to the city (Shillong),” War emphasises on “not even”.
“There is already a government museum in Shillong. Also, keeping my museum far from the main town is better for the real enthusiasts. It is always evolving as my collection is ongoing though financial condition decides when and what to buy,” he adds.
War wants to expand his one-room museum and turn it into a two-storey building for better display. Once expanded, he “will try to get necessary documents for promoting it as a tourist destination”.
He has readied the building plan and calculated the estimates and is planning to meet Arts and Culture Minister AL Hek soon. “Earlier too I had approached the government but my file probably got lost in the process,” he says.
Sahapedia, an online multimedia knowledge resource on the arts, cultures and history of India, organised a heritage walk at Kamai War’s museum on the occasion of International Museum Day on May 18.
“I particularly chose this museum (for the World Museum Day celebration) because of the vast collection of valuable antiques of the Jaintia culture and also because I wanted to popularise the museum,” says Naphibahun Lyngdoh, a postgraduate student of Archaeology who led the walk.
Apart from certificates, War has got no financial help from the government so far and the museum is the result of “God’s grace and my family’s support”. There is no entry fee. A small donation box is there for visitors to show their appreciation.
According to Lyngdoh, a discussion after the tour agreed on the role of the district councils in promoting War and other collectors like him.
Also, “Sahapedia has many followers on social media and it being an online encyclopaedia for Arts and Culture can showcase the museum to a larger audience”, she points out.
Meanwhile, War is doing his bit to reach out to more enthusiasts. He has released a book about the collection with details of various artefacts. The office of the Department of Arts and Culture in Jowai wanted to collaborate with him but he preferred to keep it a private affair.
“People come to know about my museum through internet. When Bah Kharkongor (FR Kharkongor) was the deputy commissioner (of West Jaintia Hills) he really helped me. Helen Giri (the renowned art historian, musician and academic) also helped me with ideas and she is an inspiration. She always encourages me to move forward,” says War, who is also a musician, singer and songwriter.
A photo of his in traditional Jaintia attire playing the indigenous drum says ‘Pride of Jaintia: Kamai War’.
The museum is a popular destination among researchers from different parts of India as well as from across the world. The register in the museum shows comments by visitors from Delhi, South Africa and the US.
“When people from faraway land come, I feel really proud to show them my collection and explain to them my vibrant culture and tradition. Many people have asked me whether they can buy some articles. Once I got a price of Rs 2 crore for the museum but I never yielded to the lure of money,” says the proud protector of the Jaintias’ glorious past.
Talking about the faith of the museum after him, he assures that his children and grandchildren are there but one among them, a grandson who is a student of Class VII, is serious about taking care of the treasures.
(With inputs from Nabamita Mitra)