‘Pohela
Boishakh’ is the 1st day of the year in Bengali calendar. This is also the New
Year for parts of India,
Sri Lanka and a
few other South East Asian countries. In Bangladesh,
‘Pohela Boishakh’ connects citizens in common joy irrespective of faith and
regional differences. This new-year began through the Mughal Empire when farming
taxes were collected based on the Hijri which is a lunar date book that didn’t agree
with the crop thereby causing hardship among farmers who had to pay taxes out
of period. According to the Fatehullah Shirazi (A renowned scholar and
astronomer), formulated the Bengali year on the basis of the Hijri lunar and
Hindu solar calendars.
The new farming
year was opening introduced on 10th or 11th
March 1584, but it was dated from Akbar's ascension to the throne
in 1556. Then the New Year became identified as “Bangla Year”, which usually
known as “Bonggabdo”. Celebrations of Pohela Boishakh started from Akbar's
reign (1556). It was usual to clear up all dues on the last day of the Bengali
Year (last day of Choitro). On the next day of the New Year (Pohela Boishakh),
landlords would keep amused their tenants with sweets. The major event of the
day was to open a new book of accounts or new accounts. Which normally known as
“Halkhata”.
Celebration of Pohela Boishakh at Ramna Park |
This is still
done in a lot of saleable shops and markets. ‘Pohela Boishakh’ in Bangladesh
is closely linked with rustic Bengal but the festivity
has spread to the cities. Fairs and festivals are held with farming products
and handicrafts for auction while songs and dances provide amusement to all.
The largest fair is held in Dhaka where generally
100,000 people gather together to welcome the new-year. As mentioned former,
the festivity of Bengali New Year, ‘Pohela Boishakh’ takes place both in West
Bengal and Bangladesh.
But, ‘Pohela
Boishakh’ in Bangladesh
didn’t receive a joint form until 1965. During the growing association for a self-governing
state from Pakistan
that began by the end of the 1940s and continued until the sovereignty in 1971,
the former Pakistani Government implemented a lot of policies that were
somewhat modified versions of the British “Split and Law” principle. In additional
words, those policies were destined to differentiate a Bengali Muslim from
others and keep away from a strong, joint movement for self-government. As a continuance
to such steps, the Pakistani administration banned poems by the Noble winning
Bengali writer, Shree Rabindranath Tagore. Then, Chhayanaut, the only main Fine
Arts institution of the time intended their artistic show for Pohela Boishakh
to be a means of complaint.
Preparation for Monghal Sobhajatra in Pohela Boishakh |
Pohela Boishakh marks the begin
day of the farming season. Generally on Pohela Boishakh, people bath early in
the morning and dress in well clothes. Most of women and girls wear “Sari”,
which color is mixed up with red and white and beautify themselves with Churi,
Ful and Tip and most of the man and boys dress in “Panjabi”, Pajama, Lungi,
Dhuti and Kurta, which color is also varied up with red and white. They spend
much of the day visiting relatives, friends and neighbors and going to fair. Particular
foods are prepared to amuse guests. Lots of townspeople begin the day with the conventional
breakfast of “Panta Bhat” (rice soaked in water), green chilies, onion and
fried Hilsa fish.
Traditional food of Pohela Boishakh- Panta Bhat |
This is one country festival that
has become extremely big in the cities, particularly in Dhaka
and Chittagong. Different organizations
brought out processions and prearranged musical programmes, fairs and cake
festivals to blot the day. Students of the Institute of Fine Arts of Dhaka University
took out customary “Mangal Shobhajatra” in the morning with thousands of
revelers wearing chequered masks. The colorful parade was decorated with paper
sculptures of a gigantic tiger, Doyel (magpie robin) which is the national
bird, a rooster and a long snake and masks of owl, tiger and fish. Dhaka
Metropolitan Police (DMP) affirmed off-limit to all vehicles roads stretching
from Matshya Bhaban to Shahbagh and Doyel Chattar to TSC of the Dhaka
University.
A sum of 24 CCTV cameras would be
set up across the city. Members of the law agencies will deal out drinking
water among public at Ramna Park
during the programme and Fire Brigade and ambulance will also be in position. Safety
measures would also be taken at the cinema halls and ambassadorial zone.
Different socio-cultural organizations have chalked out intricate programmes to
rejoice the day. Bangla Academy
and Nazrul Institute arrange separate programmes to welcome the Bengali New
Year. The Liberation War
Museum will stage a variety of
programmes that contain dance, ‘puthi-path’ and folk songs at 10:00am on the day. Although the ceremony of
Pohela Boishakh has become admired in the urban areas, but New Year's revels
are closely linked with rustic life in Bengal.
Mongal Sobhajatra in Pohela Boishakh |
Generally on the day the whole
thing is scrubbed and cleaned. People bathe early in the morning and dress in
fine clothes and then go to visit relatives, friends and neighbors. Special
foods are prepared to entertain guests. Baishakhi fairs are arranged in lots of
parts of the country. Various agricultural products, toys, traditional
handicrafts, cosmetics as well as a variety of kinds of food and sweets are
sold at these fairs. The fairs also offer entertainment, with singers and
dancers staging Jatra, Kavigan, Palagan, Jarigan, Gazirgan, Gambhiragan and
Alkaap gan. They present folk songs as well as Baul, Marfati, Murshidi and
Bhatiali songs. Narrative plays like Yusuf-Zulekha, Laily-Majnu and
Radha-Krishna are staged.
Among additional attractions of
these fairs are puppet shows and merry-go-rounds for kids. Many old festivals linked
with New Year's Day have left, while new festivals have been additional. With
the elimination of the zamindari system, the punya linked with the closing of
land revenue accounts has moved out. Kite flying in Dhaka
and bull racing in Munshiganj used to be extremely colorful events. Another well-liked
village games and sports were horse races, bullfights, flying pigeons, cockfights
and boat racing. Some festivals, however, carry on to be observed; for instance,
bali (wrestling) in Chittagong and
gambhira in Rajshahi are still accepted events.
Fair in Pohela Boishakh |
Nowadays, Pohela Boishakh festivity
is not only in Bangladesh
but it celebrates in lots of countries in Asia. However,
Bangladesh Boishakhi carnival celebrates in Australia, Sweden
and UK. Though,
in UK, Boishakhi
festivity takes place on street as Boishakhi Carnival which is the biggest
Asian carnival in Europe. On the other hand, Bangladeshi
society in Sweden
rejoice this festival with full of pleasure. They bring out this festival road
march and move to dissimilar street. Obviously, in Australia,
the Boshakhi rejoice in lots of cities including Melbourne, Sydney,
Canberra etc. Though, at Sydney
there is an Olympic Park where the Boshakhi fair takes position where
Bangladeshi sell Bangladeshi food to restricted Australian people to exchange civilization.
At the ending, Pohela Boishakhi
takes position in various Arab countries through fair and food festivity. Now,
Pohela Boishakh celebrations also blot a day of cultural unity without difference
between class and religious affiliations. Of the chief holidays celebrated in Bangladesh,
only Pohela Boishakh comes with no any preexisting expectations (precise
religious individuality, culture of gift-giving etc.). Unlike holidays like Eid
ul-Fitr, where dressing up in plentiful clothes has become a standard, or
Christmas where exchanging gifts has become an essential fraction of the
holiday, Pohela Boishakh is really about celebrating the simpler, country roots
of the Bengal. As a result, more people can contribute in the festivities jointly
without the load of having to make known one's class, faith or economic ability.