80-year-old grandmother's energetic Bihu dance wins hearts across Assam

JORHAT: For the Assamese, the Rongali Bihu, celebrated each year at the turn of the Assamese new year, is not a mere festival -- it is a sentiment. An 80-year-old grandmother from Upper Assam, embodying the spirit of the yearly festival, has earned rave reviews on the internet for taking part in a 'husori.'

Despite the huge gulf when it came to age, Dutta followed the youngsters' each step, and her face lit up with a smile as she swayed to the infectious tunes of the springtime fest.

Makon Dutta, a woman hailing from Jorhat, is now becoming a household name in the district after she matched husori performing youngsters step-by-step in her courtyard.

"Although I have danced Bihu, this is the first time that I have danced with such zest. I have danced and sung in the past. We did not have training -- but we sang in the past," she told this publication.

Dutta, however, "does not recall any of the songs that she would sing in the past." She adds that she is quite fond of dancing when Bihu is played on the telly.

Bohag Bihu or Rongali Bihu also called Xaat Bihu is a traditional aboriginal ethnic festival celebrated in the Northeastern Indian state of Assam and other parts of northeastern India by the indigenous ethnic groups of Assam, and marks the beginning of the Assamese New Year.

Follow us on Facebook