Guwahati falls under Parikrama's spell

Guwahati: Delhi-based rock band Parikrama gave a high-octane performance at the ongoing Rongali -- Destination, Culture, Harmony -- a festival of Assam, for their loyal fans of the northeastern state.

The performance by the band, consisting of members like Saurabh Choudhary, Srijan Mahajan, Nitin Malik, Gaurav Balani, Sonam Sherpa and Subir Malik, was one of the main attractions of the three-day fest.

And the rockers, who closed the second day of the fest on Saturday, didn't leave anyone disappointed. They captivated attendees with their approximately 40-minute concert.

Calling the audience "absolutely mind-blowing", the band's lead vocalist Nitin made the gig an interactive one. At one point, Nitin told them to simply sing 'Hey' after him. He also requested them to lift up their mobile phone and turn its light on for a photograph. The crowd did all that with a lot of enthusiasm.

And why not? After all, they entertained the audience with their popular tracks like "Am I dreaming" and "Whiskey blues". Nitin even played an acoustic version of the band's sought after number "But it rained".

If the band mesmerized the crowd with Nitin's powerful voice and the use of instruments like guitar, drums, violin and tabla, rapper Borkung Hrangkhawl, who hails from Tripura, blew everyone's mind with his songs that highlighted many issues including racism faced by the people of northeast.

Dressed in black and grey casuals, the 29-year-old, explained each and every song before performing. For instance, before playing "Journey", he told the audience: "We need to use our life properly. We might feel discouraged due to the ups and downs in our life, but we shouldn't get disappointed."

His heavy words won over the hearts of the crowd, which mostly consisted of young localites.

Hrangkhawl even got off stage and shook hands with his fans.

Apart from music, there were plays and fashion shows too.

Using silks of Assam on outfits that were an amalgamation of the East and West, designer Pallavi Talukdar showcased an interesting collection for men and women.

Another designer named Kamal Lochan took inspiration from the northeast culture. Giving a twist to the Naga shawls, his creations were mostly in red, white and black. The headgear was eye-catching too.

"I used bamboo, wire and paper among other things to make the headgear. The collection is inspired from the northeast region, so I thought of having them along with clothes," he told IANS.

The fest, which also has exhibitions of horticulture and handicraft products, and much more, was graced by the union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh. After taking a look at the horticulture section, he even praised the organisers of the fest for taking an initiative to help the farmers.

The festival, which is being organised by a socio-cultural trust of Assam Trend MMS in association with Hotel & Restaurants Association of Assam, Assam Tourism, department of cultural affairs, government of Assam, and Ministry of Youth Affairs, government of India, will conclude on Sunday.

(The writer's visit has been sponsored by the festival's organisers.