Diluting Kut Spirit
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: November 02, 2012 -

A cultural dance being performed during Kut celebration at Molnoi Khulmi Ground in Chandel district on Nov 2012 :: Pix - Hueiyen Lanpao

With the soft autumnal breeze slowly wafting across the length and breadth of both the hills and the valley, the air is once again filled with the cries of 'Li...Li...Li...Ho!' and wishing one another 'Kut Chibai'.

And why shouldn't it be? After all, it's time to celebrate Kut, the biggest post-harvest festival of the Kuki-Chin-Mizo-Zomi group of people living in Manipur and elsewhere.

It is that time of the year to reap the fruits of hard labour, offer thanksgiving to the god for the bounteous harvest and blessings, catch up with friends and relatives, participate in singing and dancing, live up to the colourful ancestry and rich traditions, reminisce about the past glories and look forward to a brighter future.

In short, it's time to celebrate the joy of living that transcends every man-made barrier.

In celebrating Kut festival, there is no barrier that segregates the rich from the poor or the weak from the stronger.

Everyone, irrespective of their social standing or background, can partake in the celebration and share their experiences, thus reinforcing the social bonds within the group while demonstrating, at the same time, the strength and solidarity to all those outside the group. This is the beauty of Kut festival.

It has been acknowledged that Kut has been in existence in various forms and under different nomenclatures much before the advent of Christianity amongst the Chin-Kuki-Mizo-Zomi tribes, but it was revived in its contemporary form only in 1979.

Subsequently, it was given State recognition and a State Holiday was declared in 1982 along with designating November 1 every year as the day for celebrating Kut festival.

Since then, Kut has become the most anticipated annual event of the year.

So, it is unfortunate that lately there have been severe criticism over placing too much emphasis on organizing Miss Kut contest or fashion parades, thereby overshadowing the whole purpose of celebrating the festival, which is essentially to promote and imbibe the culture and tradition of the land and its people.

In fact, the cultural aspects and elements of celebrating Kut festival have been reduced to just fillers for in-between the rounds of Miss Kut contest or changing cloths by the contestants.

On the other hand, too much focus on the State Level Function held under full media glare and insistence on participation of political bigwigs, who are good in preaching what they never practice in life, has eclipsed the true spirit of Kut, which is best manifested and seen in the celebration at the village level.

This is indeed sad.