Dr. Rashid Askari
The great ancient
epic poet Homer found "no sweeter sight for a man's eyes than his own
country". The famous 19th century American actor, poet and playwright,
John Howard Payne shared the same view in the creation of his widely
popular song "Home! Sweet Home".
Living in one's own
country itself is a great pleasure. Seeing the faces of one's nearest
and dearest, talking face to face to them, or even having quarrel with
them are also sort of rewarding which may not be precisely felt at home
but, they must be felt abroad. Nearly same is the case of celebrating
one's own cultural festivals of food, music, theatre, dance, and the
like. To observe the Baishakhi carnival at home and to observe it abroad
or to see it being observed may spring from a cognate nationalist
feeling, even if the difference of places matters.
Pahela Baishakh is
the first day of the Bengali calendar celebrated by the peoples of
Bangladesh and West Bengal, and the Bengali communities of Assam,
Tripura, and the rest of the world. The legacy of this celebration dates
back from Akbar's days. It was customary to pay off the dues on the
last day of the last month (Chaitra) of the Bengali calendar. On the
following day, i.e. the first day of the New Year, the landlords used to
entertain their tenants with sweets. The main event of the day was to
open a halkhata (a new account book) which is still prevalent among the
Bengalis. In keeping with this, fairs and festivals used to be held. It
is said that on two such occasions, two Mughal princes stumbled upon
their fiancés (Selim met Meherunnisa and Khurram met Mumtaz) who later
became pivots of the dynasty. The Baishakh celebrations subsequently
assumed wider magnitude, and became part of the social and cultural life
of the Bengali folks.
It is a matter of
great pride on the part of the Bengalis that they have their own
complete calendar, and many of their festivals are associated with its
dates and months. Among the few calendars actively in use, Bengali
calendar is self-asserting. Although the West was the source of the
world's civic calendar, the thread cast lines outward to Egypt, Arabia,
Mesopotamia, China and India. The Bengalis (a section of the then Indian
people) are among the few fortunate ones who have a calendar to use for
administrative, commercial, social and religious purposes.
Celebrating the
Baishakh festivals abroad conveys a mixed feeling. It is true that the
expatriate minds hanker to go back to their homelands on such festive
occasions in order to get a first-hand taste of them. But to miss this
also gives some sort of pleasure through pains. When we watch on
satellite channels the countrymen regardless of age and social
stratification celebrating the occasions with considerable mirth and
merriment, we fall back on our sweet memories of the past. All modes of
Baishakhi celebrations -- the rendering of Tagore songs by Chhayanaut
at Ramna Batamul, the mouth-watering display of panta-ilish with onion
and green chilli are simply unforgettable. The Baishakhi fairs, the
jatra, jari-shari and pala gan, the baul, marfati, murshidi and bhatiali
songs, the sensational puppet shows and the thrilling merry-go-rounds
now seem to be mind-blowing experiences. People putting traditional
Bengali attire on -- men in pajama-punjabi or dhoti-kurta, and women in
white sari with red borders wearing bangles around wrists, flowers
around locks and tip on forehead are the poignant reminder of the
ceremony.
A 'had I the wings
of a dove' like feeling seizes the overseas Bengalis, and when it falls,
they try to take recourse to Keats' 'unheard melodies' which seem
sweeter than those heard. The unheard (or formerly heard) melodies
extracted from these sorts of social and cultural festivals appear to be
sweeter to them. It is a unique kind of feeling! Something like
Tagore's "constantly seeing the beauty of the beloved against the
background of her departure." And a whole lot of Bengalis across the
globe are trying to get the taste of milk out of buttermilk in regard to
the celebration of Baishakh.
Everyone wants
their country to be prosperous and successful. This feeling is far more
intense to the expatriates than to the natives. The people of
Bangladeshi Diaspora want all Bangladeshi to remain united on question
of the national interest. What frustrates them most is the current state
of our society split by trifling disagreements which amount to serious
damage to the country's economy and sometimes cause social and political
casualties. The situation has worsened so gravely that even our
liberation war history has been fractured. Numerous inter-party and
intra-party splits have crippled our national integrity. But we still do
have room for unification through the cultural interaction. The people
of Bangladesh are by birth and by choice lovers of Baishakhi culture.
This could be the vast melting pot of the wide diversity of our
population. The new generations should try to unify the country from
this common platform. This is felt more intensely from abroad than from
home especially on such occasions. Pahela Baishakh can connect all
Bengalis all over the world irrespective of castes, creeds, and
religions.
There are, however,
some avowed anti-Baishakh people who dream of a 'Banglastan'. Despite
being born in the alluvial soil of Bangladesh, and raised in its lush
green vegetation, these religious fanatics dream of Kabul or Kandahar in
their wild flights of fancy. They always pose a threat to the observers
to the Baishakhi festivities. The observance of such secular programmes
seems to form blisters on their bodies. The cultural activities like
those of the Baishakhi could ward off these evil spirits.
There is a growing
realisation among the expatriate Bengalis that our nation should be
culturally empowered in this age of post-colonial awareness. The
once-colonised countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America are bringing
about social and cultural revival. We should join the rally. We, too,
have a deep-rooted cultural legacy which was frequently being held
hostage by the colonial and neo-colonial powers. It is time for us to
resurrect our long-borne tradition, and to celebrate our culture in our
own ways completely free from any hegemonic on extremist control. No
matter where we are, Bengalis are Bengalis.
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