Nagaland: Preparation for grand Hornbill festival starts after 2 years

Preparations for the famous Hornbill festival, which would be conducted with great grandeur this time after two years of restrained celebrations, are in full swing in Nagaland.

The festival will be held from December 1 to 10 in Naga Heritage Village in Kisama, some 12 kilometers from the state capital of Kohima, said H Khehovi Yepthomi, advisor for Tourism and Art & Culture while talking to the media.

Yepthomi chaired a coordination meeting with the tribal hohos on Monday on the preparations for the festival, the annual tourism promotional event of the state government that brings together the Naga tribes. 

The festival, which began in 2010, will be in its 23rd year. The celebrations were canceled in 2020 and 2021, but Yepthomi stated that this year's Hornbill Festival would be a spectacular occasion with fresh ideas and themes.

Due to the epidemic, the event was held for almost three days in 2020, however, the festival was canceled midway through last year following the massacre of residents at Oting in Mon district.

The Hornbill Festival, which has achieved global fame, promotes the rich and colorful culture of Nagaland and its tribes and it is indeed the most renowned celebration of Nagas. There is a huge gathering for merrymaking in the form of drinking, eating, singing, and dancing.

One of the biggest festivals held by Nagaland's indigenous warrior tribes is the Hornbill Festival. The Naga people have a long history of preserving their distinctive culture and traditions. 

Each of the state's tribes and subtribes has unique methods for promoting its culture. Each tribe's traditional ceremonial attire is unique, and there are also multicolored spears and Daos with dyed goat hair. 

Other well-known traditional items from the Naga people that steal the show are their unique headpieces and ivory armlets. Earlier, wearing them required the warriors to demonstrate their valour.