Pahela Boishakh Is a Festival of the Universal and Non-Communal Spirit of Bengalis

Pahela Baishakh or Nabarbasha means ushering in the new year. This has been happening since ancient times. Similarly, the first Boishakh New Year of the Bengali nation. This is our new year. It is embedded in our blood and consciousness. Because for us January 1 means the new year! Today we bring the culture of others into our culture. Our year is Bengali, our month is Bengali but we follow English. If many people are asked, what is the date of the Bengali year today? We don't remember the date and the name of the year. Therefore, Pohela Boishakh brings joy and love to Bengalis, removing all the wear and tear of the whole year. Pohela Boishakh is a bridging of civic life with people. Be it busy city life or rural life, this New Year unites the Bengali nation in a sense of nationhood. The Pohela Boishakh event becomes a meeting of roots for every Bengali. The Bengali nation rises above all the identities of religion and caste and welcomes this New Year.

Since Pohela Boishakh is the first day of the Bengali month, there is a frenzy of eating and drinking around this day. Every house in town and village has a good or bad, more or less cooking, which everyone observes as a pala-parban or a festival day. Sweets are the main attraction of any Bengali festival, in fact, no Bengali festival or event is complete or complete without sweets and along with fish, fish. Panta hilsa and many other things have taken place in the list of celebrations this Pohela Boishakh. Various types of meat and fish are cooked on this day.

Among the fish, the main attraction is the hilsa fish and the fish traders increase the price of all kinds of fish, especially the hilsa fish, based on this day in the market. A few days before Pohela Boishakh, the price of this fish increased. But everyone tries to buy as much as possible and yogurt is sweet. Village fairs turn into festivals. The color of this festival has repeatedly pushed the Bengali nation forward to build a non-communal state. The people of this country are always sincere, genuine and pioneering to welcome the new year. Many rituals are organized by people of all professions around the year of long preparations. We find different art of drawing of folk practical paper through this painting. The artist dreams of the future in their colorful paintings. The generation of the Bengali nation developed its own culture. Many cultural organizations in the country, including Dhaka University, organized the Mangal Shobhajatra (Procession for Virtuous). This procession started in 1989 as a strong protest against all bad culture and irregularities. In 2016, the United Nations body UNESCO included this procession in the list of the important cultural heritage of the world. Which was a huge achievement for Bengali culture.

Apart from this, music, dance, or recitation are held in every region of the country including RamnaBatamul. Each of these arts reminds us of our roots. Welcome the new year of your identity. This New Year's festival is a universal and non-communal spirit program for men and women, people from all walks of life, rich and poor. The freedom to join the festival is also equal for everyone. When a nation is strong in its own culture, it cannot be swallowed by any bad culture or bad reform. Therefore, the arts that have climbed up the ladder of their own culture need regular practice. We have to take a position under the shadow of our own culture to protect and spread our own culture. We will also be familiar with other cultures, but our individuality should not be covered behind it. As Bengalis, it is also important for us to have a responsibility toward our own culture.

Pohela Boishakh, the first day of Bengali New Year, true history, the festival day of Bengali life, and the address of our roots. Pohela Boishakh means 'Eso hey Boisakh, Eso hey Boishakh,'. PahelaBoishakh, the first day of the Bengali year, comes around every year with that familiar song. This song, written by poet Rabindranath Tagore, makes the first day of the Bengali year even more beautiful. This Pohela Boishakh erases all the calculations. The first day of the year in Dhaka begins with a cultural program organized by Ramana BotomulChayanot. This Boishakh celebration starts all over the country with its own rules or style. Every year the procession comes out from the Fine Arts Institute of Dhaka. Throughout the day, there is a festive atmosphere everywhere, with fairs and small festivals in many places. This festival is not only limited to Dhaka, various fairs, jatras and music events are also organized in the rural areas. Various postures while sitting. Various sweets, batasa, murki, nimki, etc. Nagordola, Bioscope and many other fun games. In the village, football games and boating are also included. This type of Boishakhi fair lasts for a whole month, along with various Boishakhi events.

Pala Parban of village Bengal is very different from Pala Parban of the city. Boishakhi celebrations in the city are again a little different. Chaitra Sankranti is organized on the eve of Pohela Boishakh in Dhaka city, where after the evening various events are held in the art gallery. Dance, song, recitation and much more. Alpana was also painted on Manik Mia Avenue in front of the Parliament building overnight. The background of Boishakh is depicted in Alpana. Many people flock there to see the Alpana painting. Sometimes it is organized all over the country. All the divisions of the whole of Bangladesh draw together and on the same day. Which is a proud and lovable aspect of Bangladesh.

There is an interest in buying new clothes, especially on this day. There are some main colors in the dress, red-white or just red or just white is the first choice. This was a custom earlier too but nowadays it has become a fashion. On this day most boys and girls, men and women all wear red or white colors regardless of the dress they wear. Boys mostly wear Punjabi and most girls wear saree. A variety of colorful clothes can be seen on that day. Everyone goes out to celebrate this day by dressing well and tidily.

In Bangladesh, all the people, according to tradition, also the indigenous community of this country celebrate their new year, which is PhulBoishabi. They celebrate this festival for three days. Like our Pohela Boishakh, this is also one of their festivals. They start this day by floating colorful flowers in the river early in the morning. Then various events continued throughout the day. On that day we all Bengalis celebrate the day together forgetting all differences, together we rejoice, leave the old days behind, and start the journey of the new day.


Hiren Pandit is a columnist
and a researcher.