Kamrup: The Rabha tribal community’s vibrant annual festival, Baikho, was celebrated on Saturday in Gamerimura village, located along the Assam-Meghalaya border.
The festivities, including rituals to observe Baikho Puja, were organised by the Gamerimura regional units of the All Rabha Students’ Union (ARSU), All Rabha Women Council (ARWC), and the Six Schedule Demand Committee (SSDC) at the Gamerimura High School playground.
According to Rohini Kumar Rabha, the head priest of the Baikho Puja, the rituals commenced with the sacrifice of a pig and twelve cocks. This was followed by priests and villagers seeking blessings from their deities. Rabha highlighted the significance of Ghila Guti (African dream seeds) and Soko (rice beer) in the Baikho Puja Festival.
As part of the celebrations, a felicitation program was held to honor fifty-five students from the Gamerimura area who recently passed their HSLC and HS examinations. The program, attended by Ashok Nongbag, general secretary of the ARSU Kamrup District, and other guests, featured various traditional Rabha dances.
Rohini Kumar Rabha explained that the festival also included the Rabha traditional game ‘lewa tana’ (tug-of-war), organised among priests, boys, and girls of the area. The community performed rituals, burned incense, and worshipped their gods and goddesses, seeking blessings for a good harvest, progress in education, adequate water supply, good health, and overall prosperity.
A highlight of the festival was the ‘Barnakkai’ (fire test) dance, performed in the evening. Priests applied rice powder paste to their bodies before dancing on fire made with charcoal, demonstrating their faith and fulfilling their wishes through the ritual. Prior to the ‘Barnakkai,’ the priests observed ‘Killabhanga,’ a ritual for invoking power.
Pradip Rabha, Vice President of ARSU, noted that the Baikho festival is celebrated across various regions, including Kamrup, Goalpara, Udalguri, Tamulpur, Bhergaon, and other parts of Assam, as well as in Fedardoba near Tura, and several villages in Meghalaya. Rabha communities in West Bengal also celebrate a similar festival, Rontuk Puja.
He emphasised the historical significance of the ‘Thaan’ (place of worship) established by Rabha King Dodan in Dairong, Hatigaon, and other locations.
The Baikho festival, observed on the full moon of the Assamese ‘Jeth’ month, falls between May and June.
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I am sure people in Assam or Northeast India are hardly aware of the Baikho Festival.
I recently heard about it from a friend on Instagram. Would love to attend it someday and learn more about their culture.