The Tea Tribe forms an important proportion of population of Assam, and are scattered across the Brahmaputra Valley. APPL Foundation’s endeavor to promote and preserve their intangible culture and heritage has transpired an annual “Sirish™” (A Sanskrit word means soul within the body) festival. This has given the community a platform to showcase their distributed fragments of performing arts, literature as well as sports.
“The Sirish™ festival, which is the only integrated festival honouring the momentous contribution of the tea tribe community to the state of Assam is a watershed moment for us at APPL Foundation. We expect that all future editions of this annual festival will provide for not only national but also international recognition to the members of this great community”
-Ranjit Barthakur, Chairman, APPL Foundation
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A jhumur folk dance competition held at the cultural venue of the Festival saw the participation of teams from all estates of Amalgamated Plantations. The competition was judged by an eminent jury panel selected from within the tea community.
APPL Foundation had developed a video of a modern rendition of a traditional “Jhumur” song called Rail Gadi Jhumur in 2015. Now it our very own theme song!
Different castes and tribes over the time have migrated from various parts of the country to the Tea plantations of Assam to not only work but turn it into their homeland. It is the various aspects of each of these castes and tribes that have merged to conceive a unique treasured culture of its own known as “TEA TRIBE CULTURE”.
Music
Dance
Festival
Language
A confluence of the various tribal cultures has generated a brew of culture where dance and music are inseparable limbs. At Sirish Festival, cultural performances predominate which narrates tales of the tea tribe community.
As a mode of conjuring the spirits of sportsmanship various forms of games have been integrated into the tea tribe culture. Thus sport is an integral part of the Sirish Festival.
The tea tribe community is rich with talents who have displayed their creative excellence in literature and art. Icon Awards is an effort to acknowledge their gift to the society and felicitate them with due honour.
Cultural Icon Award to Mr. Subil Bagh
Literature Icon Award to Mr. Sanatan Tanti
Cultural Icon Award to Mr. Ramchandra Sasoni
Literature Icon Award to Mr. Sameer Tanti
Cultural Icon Award to Mr. Dulal Manki
Literature Icon Award to Mr. Sushil Kurmi
The story of ‘Assam Tea’ begins in 1823 when Robert Bruce, an Englishman, met Birsa Gaum, the Singpho chief to explore the potential for tea. A century and half later, this blend has carved a niche for itself globally. It is possible that there isn’t a tea lover who has never tasted pure Assam Tea.
GUWAHATI, Feb 15: To acknowledge the contribution of the tea tribes in the State, APPL Foundation is organising the fourth edition of Sirish™ Festival on February 17 and 18 at Misa High School field in Nagaon district, stated a press release. The programme is also co-sponsored by State government, Amalgamated Plantations (P) Limited, ABITA, SBI, NRL, Yes Bank, etc.
Speakers at the news conference on Wednesday. Picture by UB Photos
Guwahati: Two icons of Assam's tea tribe community - Sushil Kumar and Dulal Manki - will be honoured at Sirish Festival, being organised by APPL Foundation, at Misa, near Nagaon, on Saturday and Sunday.
