By Syed Zarir Hussain, IANS
Hajo (Assam) : More than 200 birds created a sort of cacophony Tuesday in this nondescript village of Hajo, 30 km west of Guwahati, when they were made to fight one another as part of Bihu – Assam’s annual harvest festival.
High on marijuana and other locally available intoxicating herbs, scores of the Red vented Bulbul, a small bird belonging to the Pycnonotus Cafer family, were locked in a bitter fight amid cheers from thousands of spectators and beating of drums and clash of cymbals.
Bird fights have been an integral part of the centuries-old Bihu celebrations in Assam with the locals of Hajo organizing the event with enthusiasm.
The two-day event, which began Tuesday in the precincts of a sacred Hindu temple here, saw nearly 200 birds being coaxed to fight by their owners – all for a trophy and a cash reward of Rs.3,000.
“The preparations for the two-day event began a fortnight ago with locals putting up bamboo traps to catch the birds in the forest,” Dharani Das, a village elder, told IANS.
“Once caught, the owner grooms the 20-centimetre-long bird for the big day,” he said.
“We make a concoction containing bananas, a small quantity of marijuana, locally available intoxicating herbs, some black pepper, clove and cinnamon, and feed the bird regularly to make it strong and sharp for the fight,” Pawan Sharma, a local villager, said.
Legs tied with a string, the inebriated birds start fighting each other aggressively, surrounded by clapping crowds who gather in large numbers at the temple ground.
“It is part of our long tradition and people from far and wide come here during the Bihu season to witness these annual bird fights,” Tutumoni Das, a college student, said.
Once the fight is over, the locals set all the birds free.
“We treat the birds very humanely during the entire period and once the event is over, we release them,” Nripen Bhagawati, one of the organizers of this unique bird fight, told IANS.