Abustling crowd, thumping music, an array of stalls to shop from, multiple cuisines to satiate your taste buds, and live concerts—finding all these in a single venue would probably seem like a distant dream after the COVID hiatus. The tenth edition of the North East Festival—the event started on Friday—currently ongoing in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, broke that spell. Beckoning a slew of artists and visitors to a celebration of culture in the national capital this year, this event—with a line-up featuring music and dance performances, fashion shows, and stalls presenting food and indigenous crafts—had people from Delhi-NCR thronging the complex.
Festival founder Syamkanu Mahanta gave us an insight into how the event stems from a need to connect India to Northeastern culture. “Years ago, our country had witnessed a racial attack against a boy from Northeast that invoked a sense of collective consciousness from our community. We formed an association, began hosting the event, and hoped to introduce this side of India to the rest of the country,” shared Mahanta, who is also the Chief Functionary of Trend MMS, a non-profit organisation that works to promote North East India’s art and culture.
The Delhi connect
“We started with bringing performers from the Northeast, then introduced our food and handloom, and received a great response. However, we realised, to attract more locals from the city, we needed to conduct the Festival in a Delhi way,” Mahanta added. From hosting live concerts and open mics to waging a rock battle, the Festival boasts a line-up of musicians from both India’s north and Northeast. Musicians from the Indie circuit including Traffic Jam, When Chai Met Toast, Taba Chake attracted a large crowd, while rapper Ikka and Assamese singer and heartthrob Zubeen Garg—who performed on Sunday—were the most sought-after. “Zubeen has a massive fan following in Assam and Northeast. The Assamese Association Gurgaon comprises 300 families, and most of them were eagerly waiting to watch Zubeen perform; he is quite popular there,” mentioned Pallavi B Borah, who was handling the Assam food stall on Saturday.
Foodies are in for a treat as delectable cuisines from not just the Northeastern part of India but also from Delhi are served at stalls, providing multiple options to those visiting the Festival. However, citizens were mostly seen savouring Northeastern delicacies. Nicholas Chyrmang, owner of Jadoh Meghalaya stall, was pleasantly surprised at the response received from locals. “People absolutely love our pork Salad and Jadoh [a traditional dish of the Khasi tribe], which is rice made with sesame seeds and eaten with different types of stew. The most interesting thing is that the highest demand for such dishes is from the locals who are keen on trying our food,” he shared. The event will feature a buyer-seller meet today and will conclude by 4pm sans any cultural events.
A novel experience
Several people from the teeming crowd were first-time visitors to the Festival. An elated Pratibha, a Noida-based dance teacher we met on Saturday, shared that she was eagerly waiting to watch Ikka perform later that night: “This is my first time here and I love it already. I saw my friends visiting this place on social media and thought I should come too.” Talking about the stalls showcasing handloom, art and craft, she added, “I really like the handmade bags and jewellery, but they are slightly expensive.”
The multitude of people we witnessed on day two was proof that the rising COVID-19 cases in the city did not put a damper on the event. Despite the government advising the use of masks in public places, we noticed attendees thronging the complex without any. The organisers, however, mentioned that they have been requesting people on social media to wear masks at all times.