By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Sep 26: It was a sight that could easily be mistaken for an enchanted garden. Rows of miniature trees, each painstakingly shaped and nurtured, stood like living sculptures at the Annual Bonsai Show 2025 in Shillong.
The event, which returned after a six-year pause, carried not just the charm of artful horticulture but also the excitement of a long-awaited reunion between enthusiasts and their beloved craft.
The Shillong Bonsai Society, which hosted the show, put in immense effort to revive the tradition after the pandemic had disrupted its continuity.
Shillong Bonsai Society secretary, Vishu Singhania, reflected that the gap had been long and many connections had faded over the years. Yet, he expressed happiness that people had travelled even from Guwahati with their specimens, and that the show was able to draw in both familiar and new faces.
Local participation, he admitted, was not as strong as in earlier years, possibly because some had not heard of the event, but he remained hopeful that the coming year would bring greater engagement.
This year’s show displayed 90 specimen exhibits prepared by Society members, alongside 49 entries from individual participants.
The collection left visitors amazed, many of whom seemed surprised that a live plant exhibition could be as much of a treat as the city’s more familiar musical festivals. “It is a festival of patience and beauty,” remarked one onlooker, summing up the atmosphere in the exhibition hall.
Among those observing the growth of the Society with interest was noted cave explorer and Shillong resident, as well as treasurer of the Society, Brian D. Kharpran Daly.
He pointed out that while the group had only a handful of members, their passion had kept it alive and steady.
Their efforts, he added, were not only about keeping the art form going but also about teaching others through workshops and hands-on training, so that bonsai could slowly take root in more homes and hearts.
The enthusiasm among the crowd was palpable, but members of the Society noted that true devotion to bonsai went beyond appreciation.
Kharpran explained that while everybody loved the sight of these carefully crafted trees, few realised the time, discipline, and above all, patience that went into creating them.
Bonsai, he stressed, was more than a hobby—it was a living art, one that could outlive its creator and carry forward as part of a family’s legacy, passed down through generations. Beyond sentiment, he also believed the art offered economic possibilities, especially for young people who might one day turn it into a livelihood.
Commercialisation, of course, had its own story. Singhania observed that a sapling worth just a few hundred rupees could, with the right care and artistry, appreciate to several thousand. Mature bonsai trees, he pointed out, could fetch anything between Rs 50,000 and Rs two lakh, depending on their age and refinement. While the market in India was not as robust as in some parts of the world, he was optimistic that interest was steadily growing.
The Annual Bonsai Show was, therefore, not just an exhibition of miniature trees but also a reminder of resilience—of a community of artists keeping alive an ancient practice despite challenges. And as the tiny forests stood gracefully in their pots, they seemed to echo a message larger than themselves: beauty, patience and legacy take time to grow, but once nurtured, they endure for generations.
