JOIN USIn Nagaland, just like in many other parts of India’s Northeast, the Christmas-y feeling sets in as soon as December announces its arrival.
So, no matter where you go, here, in Dimapur — Nagaland’s biggest town — the star of Christmas appears everywhere, and in all sizes. Stars range from the simple to the fancy, and shine from atop churches, people’s front yards and, of course, in the shopping arcades.
Nagaland being a Christian dominated state — 90 per cent of the Naga population is Christian — Christmas happens to be the biggest festival of the year. While the celebrations are mostly traditional, there are a few customs and practices that are unique to this region.
Food, an important part of any festival, is one such defining aspect. Alovi Aye, a civil servant, who hails Nagaland, puts it this way, “Unlike other places, in some of the Northeast states — including Nagaland — the Christmas feast is hosted by the church. So while there may be families who have their own Christmas lunch at home, it’s mostly community feasting we have here.”
But there is a great deal of variation, too, considering the fact that there are 16 officially recognised tribes in Nagaland and each has its own church. “Every tribe has its distinct feature. For instance, its food habits. Obviously then, the Christmas feast will have at least a couple of food items that are specific to a tribe in a particular community feast,” reveals Asen Jamir, a college student based in Dimapur.
Aye provides some examples of festive fare, “Axoni, or fermented soyabean, is an integral part of the feast of the Sumi tribe. Gahlo, which is like a rice porridge with vegetables, and Moudi, a dish made of beef, pork and Mithun — the state animal that is a domesticated free-range bovine species — without water, is a speciality of the Angami tribe.” The Lotha tribe loves its pork with bamboo shoot and the Ao tribe specialises in Anishi, a preparation of yam leaves, she adds.
Meat is an integral part of the spread, considering the over-hunting of the Mithun (Bos frontalis) though measures have been taken to protect it. This has, of course, resulted in the Mithun slowly making its way out from festival menus. Aye believes that this is “a good thing” given the need to protect this species.
But conservation needs apart, Shiloh Lotha, an entrepreneur, who runs her own boutique in Dimapur, says that she eagerly awaits the feast every Christmas and loves the spirit of community it signifies, “This festival is all about love and brotherhood, and the community feasts that we have reinforces this. The village women get together days before the actual celebration, pounding the rice, cutting the vegetables and preparing the meat for the feast.”
According to Lotha, most of the local churches organise the feast themselves, as they have the requisite funds for it. But sometimes they also accept donations. “Whatever it is, it’s an occasion to bond with each other, especially the kids who go out of the state these days for their education and come home for Christmas. This tradition brings us all closer,” she observes.
As in Nagaland, Christmas is celebrated with a lot of hooplah and merriment in Mizoram — another Northeast state that has an almost an 87 per cent Christian population. Here too celebrations centre around the community feasts, with the hoary practice of eating boiled rice, meat and vegetables in wild plantain leaves still practiced in many villages.
But Marshal David, who owns a music shop in Aizwal, Mizoram’s capital, points out that one doesn’t need to wait until December 25 to be soaked in the Christmas spirit. “Come December 1, and no matter where you go, the yuletide spirit is in the air. The holiday mood having set in, people are in good cheer and shopping their hearts out. And, of course, you hear Christmas songs every now and then,” she says.
And just like without the food there are no Christmas celebrations, the right mood is only set with the right kind of music. ‘Krismas lenkhawm’, or Christmas songs by Mizo composers like Rokunga, Patea, Damhauhva and others, as well as carols in English are sung by guitar strumming carol groups, which go from house to house and get a warm welcome everywhere.
In Aizawl, street corners and road intersections are done up in colourful decorations with cribs depicting the birth of Christ, snow men, life-sized Santa Claus dolls, reindeers and even sleighs are up for sale in the shops.
Meghalaya, the third of the Christian-dominant state of the Northeast — with 70 per cent of the population of this faith — also leaves no stone unturned in its celebrations. Georgina David, a young doctor who works in a missionary hospital in Shillong, says that she cannot recall another instance when the whole town gets together to celebrate a festival with so much enthusiasm, just like one big family. “I am from Delhi and have been in Shillong for the past one year, working in this hospital. Even before December, weeks before actually, I was asked the same question by the staff and all I knew was that I was going to be here for Christmas.
And when I said yes, there was such an exuberant response! I didn’t quite understand why, until December came and the whole town changed gear. Beautiful decorations were put up everywhere; shops were open until a little late for enthusiastic shoppers; and offices were running on minimal staff because everyone was off for the holidays!” laughs David. She adds, “In the hospital, too, there is a change in mood. The flow of patients dwindles and the staff move into holiday mode.”
Since music is big in Meghalaya there are, not surprisingly, music concerts every evening for at least a week until Christmas. And one shouldn’t be surprised to see random people break into a four-part harmony at the drop of a hat in a busy market! According to David, the success of the Shillong Chamber Choir simply underlines the fact that people here love their music. “Around Christmas that love seems to soar. There are choir practices everywhere, in which young girls and boys, dressed to the ‘T’, let their voices rise and drop like true professionals…it’s a scene to behold!” she remarks. Shillong’s Cathedral Church, one of the oldest institutions of its kind in the Northeast, has thousands of people attending the midnight mass.
In short, if you are looking for a magical Christmas — with a delicious, musical twist — then you may consider heading to India’s Northeast.