Awestruck in Arunachal

dance ritual

We planned to witness the famous Mopin festival (usually celebrated in April) during our visit to eastern Arunachal Pradesh. But it was in the nick of time that we learnt that Mopin is celebrated with much more enthusiasm in Aalo (and not in Pasighat, where we had planned to attend Mopin). We quickly rescheduled our plans and reached Aalo for the festival.

Mopin is the most important festival of the Galo tribe of Arunachal Pradesh. The  numerically-dominant tribe is considered  a sub-tribe of the Adi tribe family.

Most of the festivals in Arunachal are linked to the agricultural cycle, and are held either before or after the agriculture season. Mopin is no exception, and is celebrated before the start of agriculture season, in the local month of Lumi.

Galo people follow animism as their faith. The concept that all creations in this universe have a living soul of their own is the cornerstone of animism. This beautiful belief tends to make the animists respect all that is around them, especially the environment. Donyi Polo (meaning Sun-Moon) is considered the main god of the tribe. It is his blessings the tribe seeks to ward off every evil spirit that could cause impediments during their forthcoming agricultural season.

Signboards proclaiming ‘Albe Atoka’ (‘Welcome’ in Galo language) were all over the place. White seemed to be the dominant colour of Mopin. Both men and women wore special white, decorated  dresses for the festival. The dresses, made  well in advance, showed intricate work.

Smearing iti (white rice flour paste) on the cheeks to symbolise purity, harmony and love was another custom we saw. All the decorations for the festival were painstakingly made of bamboo shavings. The fact that everything used for the festival was biodegradable became one of the best things we liked about the festival.

We were told that Mopin is nowadays celebrated more as a community event in community halls called dere. It is concluded with the sacrifice of a blemish-free animal (usually a mithun). The heads of the sacrificed mithuns are preserved on the wall of a dere, a calendar to show the number of times Mopin was celebrated at that venue.
The festival also showed the nyibu (priest) uttering ritual chants in the dere for long durations, supported by an assistant.

The delicacies for the festival were prepared by womenfolk as a community effort. Ithi, a version of boiled-rice pancake  covered in a local leaf, was a delicacy which we were offered.

Of course, we saw that Mopin became incomplete without the generous helpings of Apang, the local beer.

But we found the Popir dance to be the best part of Mopin. The rhythmic and elegant movements of the performance, usually presented in large groups, made it an exquisite sight to watch. The accompaniment of soft music, the white costumes of the performers (mostly women), and the elaborate ornaments made of beads worn around the neck formed a good background for the dance.

True to their close connection with the environment, household utensils and appliances made of bamboo were part of the dance.

In most dances, the women carried conical bamboo baskets called rele bongos (used for carrying goods) adorned with decorations. As per the Galo traditions, the blessings of Donyi Polo are invoked and collected in rele bongos.

There were also mixed dances in which the men wore traditional and elementary dress. We found the male dancers to be no way inferior to their women counterparts, in terms of elegance of the dance movements.

We were told that the festival was originally celebrated within their households, and then evolved into a community event. Whatever be the mode of celebration, we hoped that such a culturally rich festival, which radiated joy and warmth, would continue for a long time.