A TRIP TO VIZAG AND ARAKU

                                     BOHAG -THE HARBINGER OF HOPE

                    


                      Foxtail orchid                                                                Togor

                

                                                                     Aalfulia,kopou phul

                   O’ dehi kot pala chit biyakul

     Aalfulia,kopou phul

                  O’ dehi kot pala chit biyakul

      Habi bhangi dekhilu

          O’ birikh bogai singilu

                          Kun hahi eei pahi bonoriya phul

Kopou-the beauty of Bohag. Bohag Bihu holds a very special place in every Assamese heart. It is the time of merrymaking and frolic. Late in January when my father said, ”tumi eaibar bohag Bihu t ghorole ahiba ne?’’(Are you coming home this time in Bihu?) I was like Papa,“Apuni Janene eitu mur last semester”(Papa you know this is my last semester) Papa said nothing. But as people say life is a box of chocolates, we never know what it has to unfold the very next moment. Amidst workloads and assignments, it was midway when we got to hear the cases of COVID-19, declared a pandemic by World Health Organisation sweeping across nations. On the 20^th of March when we got a notice issued by our institution we were left with no options but to pack our bags for home.

  The Biju Patnaik International Airport wore a different look. With pilots, air hostesses, attendants, security personnel each one had a mask put on. My heart was thumping and I could hear the heartbeats so clearly. The fear of being not allowed to broaden the flight at the thermal check and detections of any symptoms of COVID-19 was a case of concern. Everything went well though. Air India provided the best of services and helped us reach safely in our home town. The pilot announced. This is Sudhir Chatterjee in the flight deck. In about 20 minutes we will reach Lilabari Airport. The temperature shows 17 degrees celsius. The weather is clear. I hope you had a wonderful time. Thank you for boarding Air India. The network signal became visible as the plane landed and there were phone calls in a row of worried parents and well-wishers. After that, there were formalities with orders issued from the state health department with the next few days for the quarantine period. From the 24^th of March, there was a nationwide lockdown announced to contain the spread of coronavirus pandemic in India. It restricted the movement of 1.3 billion population of the country. Amidst quarantine, I realized so it's April, and Bohag is at my doorstep. I was happy. As a child, I still remember getting holidays for bihu.My brother is my best companion. We would take our cows to the field and throw vegetables at them singing songs.

 Lau kha bengena kha,

  Bosore bosore barhi ja

                                                                 Mar xoru baper horu

 Toi hobi bor bor goru.

I would wait for my gifts and I get so happy when I get a beautiful frock from my uncle. Then we would go and visit our grandparents to seek their blessings. I would get decked up in a beautiful Mekhala-Sadar wrapped around my tiny body. It would take several minutes for mama to get it wrapped around my body. The riha given by my grandmother was the most beautiful of all and I treasure it dearly. Amidst work my mother had to attend to my needs as well, putting bobby pins around my hair, my short hair often left her efforts in vain. Somehow she would put the fox tailed orchid(Kopou phul) around my hair. We would then go out to seek blessings from people dancing to the tune of Bihu songs. To support our Bihu songs we had toka, dhol,and gagona. At times we would tune our dances to the beat of our clappings. Till late evening we visited people’s houses crossing villages. Memories of those bygone days include having Pepsi of one rupee from the money we collect from people’s homes. It was so much fun. Mama papa would be worried at home and sometimes go searching as well. Back home I would pester mama to put jetuka in my hands. Then the whole night I would wake up at intervals to see whether my hands are red with the color. Every morning I would smear mustard oil to make them look red. When school reopens after the holidays at times I find it difficult to attend the classes, my mind filled with these memories. When my mates would gather around the bamboo grove in the field for the post-Bihu feast (bhoj) how can I attend classes at school? Being a regular student I could not opt to miss classes as well. Back home I would have a tiffin packed for me by my husori mates (friends) with mouth-watering Assamese delicacies-hahor mankho (duck meat), khasi mankho, egg and lot other dishes. This is the result of our week-long hard work which ends in the culmination of the bihu celebration. These are the memories of the days I had as a child.

As I grew up new responsibilities got added. For higher studies when I left home for Bhubaneswar I never thought that in my final semester I would be back home so surprisingly for the Bohag Bihu. But this time the situation is very different. The number of cases due to COVID-19 is staggeringly high every passing day. People are stranded in their homes. Nature is at its best though and it is rejuvenating itself. There are the Kopou flowers blooming bright in my courtyard. They are a perfect delight to the eyes. Every evening I can hear the clamorous choir of bird songs from the bamboo groves. The Togor phul is showy. High atop a simul tree has decked itself with greenery. The monkeys are having a perfect feast having the seeds. The squirrels are frolicking around. The Keteki bird is singing late night ‘moi keteki’. The koyal is singing in the woods his love song. There is so much of beauty around. This lockdown has brought to us the message of the minimality of our existence as humans. This time due to government regulations and orders of social distancing though bihu is a different picture yet we cannot but celebrate spring. The viridity around brings a smile in my face though there are uncertainties looming around the corner. For every Assamese home, Bihu means the celebration of spring. It is the start of a new year. Somewhere a loved one would wait with the gamusa for her senai to arrive. Bihu is the celebration of love, it is the celebration of hope that there is a better tomorrow. Till then the cuckoo rules the world. 

As Dale Carnegie quotes

One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon instead of enjoying the roses that are blooming outside our windows today.