Assam hill station to host festival on sports, culture

Assam's picturesque hill station Haflong will host the three-day 'Judima Festival' next month when tourists can indulge in a number of adventure sports like trekking, hiking, angling and satiate their taste buds by gulping one of the best traditional brews of the region.
The theme of the festival, to be held on December 18-20, will be centered on preservation, promotion and nurturing of ethnic culture, music, dance, craft and folk-art of Dimasa tribals living in Dima Hasao district of the state.
Cycling, hiking, angling, local sight-seeing, heritage walk and night trekking for an ultimate trekking experience that ends with a breathtaking sight of sunrise along the Barail hills are part of the initiative which is being undertaken to promote tourism, the organisers said.

The festival has been named after the Dimasa traditional brew - Judima, which is one of the best brews in the region.
The name has been chosen due to its uniqueness in taste, methods of preparation and integral part it occupies in every aspect of Dimasa social and cultural life.
The festival is not only a symbolic celebration of the rich Dimasa drink but also to initiate the idea of an alternative means of livelihood to the local brewers, they said.

There will be rock-music contest and a rejuvenation session for both mind and body through 'Guided-Meditation' (with instrumental music) for the visiting tourists.

While Guwahati-based band 'Spreading Roots' will perform in the final night, Bollywood singer Papon is expected to be the show-stopper.
The first edition of the festival held in January 2016 saw the conglomeration of cultures from different ethnicities which helped in further strengthening the harmony among various tribes residing in the hill district.
The festival also seeks to establish Haflong, the only hill station of Assam, into the tourism map of the Northeast, the organiser said.