TURA: The Christmas and New Year celebrations that began in the Garo Hills region of Meghalaya and neighbouring Garo inhabited areas of Assam from December 24 culminated on January 2 with the traditional ‘Song Kristan’ in which entire villages came together to participate in a mass song and dance event through the streets.
The age-old tradition of ‘Song Kristan’ involves people from villages singing and dancing to the beat of the traditional drums as they move from one village to another during the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
Originating from the traditional Garo village of Nishangram in neighbouring Goalpara district of Assam the celebration extends towards the Garo villages on the Meghalaya side of the border in North Garo Hills culminating at Bangsi Apal village.
Christianity in Garo Hills traces its roots to Nishangram village where the first Garo Christian Ramke W Momin, hailed from.
Similar ‘Song Kristan’ celebrations take place in other parts of Garo Hills, particularly in the East Garo Hills district which involves a community feast in the morning followed by dancing to the beat of the traditional drums known as ‘Kuls’.
On Monday morning all eyes were once again on Nishangram village of Goalpara where hundreds of men, women and children gathered to begin the annual ‘Song Kristan’ celebrations.
As the drum beats echoed and the traditional Christmas songs begun to be sung, both old and young were soon up on their feet dancing to the rhythm of the music. While the song and dance troupes began to move from the locality streets into the main road of the village in the direction of the neighbouring villages, bystanders and travellers alike joined in swelling the crowds into a couple of thousand people.
“The celebrations display the strong bonding Garos from both states share and this has always been our culture. It is more special during the Christmas season because that is the time entire families are back home with their children many of whom study outside for most part of the year,” inform some of the organisers of the annual event. This year, the over twelve-hour ‘Song Kristan’ event witnessed the active participation of people from as many as 20 villages bordering both sides of Assam and Garo Hills.
