CULTURAL EXHIBITION AND LIVING CENTER, GUWAHATI, ASSAM

Abstract

The Assamese Culture is rich in its different festivals, customs and traditions, different attires for various occasions, handloom and handicrafts, religion and food. Bihu is the most commonly known festival throughout the country. But other than that there are many other traditional festivals, beliefs and customs that are not much known by many. The population seems to be gradually moving on and there is a massive decline in the population still following those traditional beliefs and customs or even having the knowledge of it. The Assamese people are on the verge of losing their identity due to the negligence towards their own culture. More and more people are seen inclined towards living the western lifestyle.Furthermore, people's apathy toward their culture, as well as their naive acceptance of western culture and lifestyle, have all contributed to the transformation of Assamese culture. The gap is increasing as there is a lack in promoting and encouraging our own culture which is a clear sign leading to cultural extinction and us Assamese on the verge of losing our identity. People living in the rural areas still organize the traditional festivals and follow the traditional customs and beliefs. However in the cities the traditional festivals like ‘Deodhani Nritya’,’Bhaona’,’Borgeet’ etc are almost never seen. More and more people move to the city everyday for better living conditions and more opportunities therefore end up inclining towards the western culture which is predominant in the cities. Even the cultural festivals like Magh Bihu, Bohag Bihu etc which were being organized in various Football Grounds and Volleyball Fields in different parts of the city are now declining rapidly too Keywords - Culture, Globalization, Cultural Negligence, Identity