In touch with the past

Heritage festivals are an expression of the lifestyle, feelings and traditions of the region. They remind us of our roots, writes Charandeep Singh

Heritage festivals sensitise the present generation towards the past

The heritage shows of Punjab recreate the rural ambience

Babar, the great Mughal Emperor, who laid the foundations of the Mughal Dynasty, wrote his memoirs Babarnama in the 16^th century, and in them had mentioned very significantly the culture and the traditions prevalent in his kingdom at that point of time. He always exhorted his progeny that they should never forget that the blood of the great Timur runs in their veins. Why was he doing all this? Just to make himself immortal? No. It was done to ensure that the coming generations do not forget the great traditions and the rich cultural heritage that they have had in the past.

Furthermore, in the court of King Henry VIII of England, there were plays enacted and dramas presented, showcasing the rich heritage of the times gone by. It was done to sensitise the contemporary Englishmen of their great traditional heredity, which had to be preserved and taken forward.

Some of the sociologists opine: "If we forget our roots and heredity, where do we stand? You lose everything." Now we always talk a lot about Punjab, Punjabi and Punjabiat, but what is being done to preserve our great and unmatched cultural legacy? Our folk music is dying, and folk instruments are fast moving into oblivion. Even our folk dances have become a rare sight. If you ask any boy, he would know for sure about Jazzy B, but he would give absolutely dumb expressions if asked about the three classical musical gharanas of Punjab.

What should be done? How should the present generation be given the taste of its lineage? Is organising heritage festivals the answer? To an extent, yes. They have been organised sporadically, and they have been instrumental in giving a young Punjabi a taste of his long forgotten ebullient cultural heritage. It is all about our virasat, the only intangible asset that we can preserve. "Heritage festivals are a way of manifesting the cultural background of the region. It is an expression of the lifestyle, feelings and the traditions of the region. With heritage festivals we can always sensitise the present generation towards the past and history; otherwise, most of us tend to believe that our duty is only towards the present", opines Dr Sukhdev Singh of Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, who is also the convener for the Amritsar chapter of Intach.

What is the light and sound show at Red Fort in Delhi? Or, for that matter, what does Ram Lila signify? These acts just give us a peep into our glorious past. They depict as to how things used to be and how they are as of now. As a society, we are very proud of our past, and all these shows and various acts enacted at heritage festivals make us ponder on what it should have been and what it is vis-`E0-vis our culture.

"In India today there is a definite move towards Westernisation. Heritage festivals make the present generation more in sync with the art, culture, drama and architecture that we used to have," adds Raja Malwinder Singh, who is a member of the Patiala Heritage Trust. `A0"Everything what we have today was earlier rooted through the villages. Mirasis and court singers made our culture vibrant. We had Sufism, Ek-tara musicians and the old tradition of ragas. They are gradually vanishing. Heritage festivals try to bring the common man back to his roots", says Brig (Retd) Suhkhjit Singh, chairman, Kapurthala Heritage Trust, also a scion of the Kapurthala royal family.

When these fests are organised, every individual is bound to derive some kind of a benefit. These days we are all alienated from society and from our past, and such festivals celebrate our cultural past. Like in Punjab, Punjabiat is common to all the festivals. In the Patiala Heritage Festival, we have always had a crafts mela. There was the jutti stall and saag-makki di roti.

Then we have the Bathinda Virasat Mela. The organisers have constructed an ancient village by the name of Jaipalgarh on four acres, which has become a major tourist attraction in Bathinda. The village has a house of
potters, weavers and Zaildaran di Haveli, all with a traditional touch.

Then there is Vailian da Verha, a meeting point of the miscreants of the village, which has attracted a lot of attention. Agrees Amrinder Gill, Punjabi singer: "In heritage fests, we get an opportunity to perform in front of large audiences, which at times we do not get in our solo shows. I performed in front of a crowd of 70,000 people in the Bathinda Virasat Mela. I got a chance to listen to the pure unadulterated gayaki of the gharanas, which we had in glorious old days. It is a very enriching experience to be there in such fests." Narrating one incident of the Patiala Heritage Festival, Raja Malwinder Singh says: "We had Pandit Jasraj performing at Qila Mubarak once, and he gave a live recital of his own composition of Om-Namah-Bhagvati-Vasudeva. This was only the second time in his life that he was giving a performance of his own composition live. His performance in front of a chaste Punjabi-speaking crowd was so appreciated that Jasraj was almost in tears. This is pure music, which you get only in heritage festivals."

HOME