Behdeinkhlam Festival (2015) - Jowai // Mesmerizing Meghalaya

Capturing few glimpses from the Behdeinkhlam Festival in Jowai, Meghalaya in 2015.
It is one of Meghalaya's most colourful religious festivals and is celebrated for three days during July. The word literally means 'driving away of evil (plague) by wooden sticks'.
This Festival is connected with a series of religious rites. People dance on the street to the accompaniment of drum beating and pipe playing. The women do not participate in the dancing but have an important role to play at home by offering sacrificial food to the spirits of the ancestors.
Each locality prepares a decorative tower-like structure called a rath. These are carried by 30 to 40 strong people to a small lake at Aitnar for immersion. The festival climaxes when the khnong (the most sacred tree) is brought to the centre of each locality.
In the afternoon datlawakor is played between two teams from the upper and lower valleys of the Myntdu River. It is a kind of soccer with a wooden ball. Those who win are believed to be blessed with a good harvest.
#FestivalsofIndia, #BehdeinkhlamFestival, #Jowai, #Meghalaya, #MeghalayaTourism

[@jayashreehazarika9300]

Haven't heard of it earlier. What is this festival about?

[@anujsarmah7951]

It is one of Meghalaya's most colourful religious festivals and is celebrated for three days during July. The word 'Behdeinkhlam' literally means 'driving away of evil (plague) by wooden sticks'.