Karbi Folk Literature: An Overview

Jayanta Das

Assistant Professor

JDSG College, Bokakhat, Golaghat, Assam

e-mail: jayanta_bkt@yahoo.com

The Karbis did not have any written script till the last two decades of the twentieth
century, even though they have been creating literary gems and kept them alive orally for
centuries. The spontaneous feelings of the Karbi fore-fathers got unlocked through the media of
songs which provided the basis of Karbi folk literature. In fact, the very basis of Karbi folk
literature is this genre of folk songs. The tribe created songs taking the varied experiences of the
agrarian life centered round the jhum cultivation. The tribe has lived geographically an insular
life amidst nature. Various phenomena of nature, various forms, colours and contours of the
countryside, its flora and fauna, tranquility of nature, the jhum cultivation, the pleasures and
experiences of doing it, the pleasures of pro-creation, diseases and misfortunes, fear for the
inexplicable, etc. form the basis of the folk literature of the tribe. They created their literature in
song form. Their folk memory has kept all these songs alive through generations. They have all
elements of folk literature such as social customs, historical memoirs, ballads like the Hai-ii,
Sabin Alun-the miniature version of the Ramayana, love songs, folk tales, magic and sorcery,
proverbs and idioms, riddles, incantations, invocations, lullabies, magical chants, etc. Many
anonymous poets and litterateurs have depicted the feelings of happiness and sorrow, hope and
despair, aspirations, sufferings and ordeals of migration and settlement, pleasures and pains of an
agrarian life in the hills and have placed these amid nature and society like any other literature.
The modern Karbi literature has grown on the foundation provided by these folk elements of
literature which have been collected and published in the recent years.

Though the literate new generation has started concentrating on writing modern literature,
the practice of creation and respect to folk literature is still current among the illiterate people.
This is however, applicable to all folk literature across the world.

In matters of Karbi folk songs, authors like Bonglong Terang, Kehai Bey, Samsing
Hanse, etc. have compiled a number of books which are compilations of these folk songs. But as
is expected, there is no mention of the authorship of the folk songs included in these collections.
So is the case with the love songs collected by Premkanta Mahanta. They have, however, done
one praiseworthy thing in these collections by incorporating names of some persons with age
along with the place names. Cues have been taken to gather some idea as regards the time of
composition or transmission of these songs. From an analysis of the specimen of the folk songs
collected so far, conclusions have been drawn by researchers that these songs were the gifts of
the Kapili-Dhansiri valley. In the course of time, the folk songs transmitted from the Kuki-Chin
ethnic group got lost. They are no longer available among the living memory of the Karbis. But
though these mainstream Kuki Chin folk songs are lost from the collective Karbi memory, their
existence in the past cannot be denied. The folk tales may provide valuable supporting materials
about establishing a relationship with the remote past, particularly with the Kuki-Chin group of
folk songs. But till now, with the available materials at hand, it has been concluded that the great
expanse of the Assam valley might be the originating ground of Karbi folk literature where the
Karbis have lived for long centering round the fields for jhum cultivation. Their pleasures and
pains of the agrarian life might have been the fertile ground for unlocking their heart through
songs, tales, ballads of love and separation, fears, folk medicine, ways of propitiating gods and
demons, etc.

Among the various genres of Karbi folk literature, folk song is the richest of all and the
Karbis regard these folk songs to be the coveted treasures. An intricate relationship of the natural
aesthetics with the social folk customs of the agrarian people is expressed in these folk songs.
The vivid pictures of true emotions are found in the folk songs in a vibrant way.

Noted Karbi folklorist Bonglong Terang was the first one to collect, organise and publish
the rare materials of Karbi folk literature. His collections include materials from the pre-second
World War times. He published these collected materials in the form of books. First he published
two books titled Rukasen and Adam Asar. The book titled Aron Ateng contained these two
published books along with the additions of a few songs and customs of the Karbi society. As
has been stated, the book has been considered the very foundation of Karbi literature. The most
notable contribution of the book to Karbi literature and society was that it included subjects that
truthfully delineated the Karbi society. Among others, the book contained the descriptions of the
customs of Karbi wedding system.
Subjects of Karbi Folk Literature

The scope of the Karbi folk literature is very broad, stretched to the horizon. The Karbis
are deep believers in re-birth. They believe that when a person of a particular family dies, his
soul takes rebirth in the same family. Thus their folk literature too is not confined only with the
life of its folk life from birth to death; rather it is stretched from one life to another, through lives
indeed. These beliefs find their due place in Karbi folk literature. From an analysis of the Karbi
folk literature, its genres can be classified as follows:

i. Pirthe Keplang (Origin of the earth)

ii. Karbi Keplang (Origin of the Karbi Tribe)
iii. Hemphu Keplang (Origin of the incarnation of god Hemphu)
iv. Kur Keplang (Origin of Karbi clans)
v. Rongkikim (Origin of the first Karbi village organization)
vi. Sarkebat (Origin and intiation of Karbi village head called Sarthe or Gaonburha)
vii. Lakhi Keplang (Origin of Paddy)
viii. Birik Keplang (Origin of chillies)
ix. Hanso Keplang (Origin of ginger)
x. Bongoi Alun (Pastoral Songs)
xi. Tu-aa-a (Lullabies)
xii. Ritnongsandi developed in the Zirkedam (songs sung during starting of cultivation)
xiii. Dengrali (Songs of the relation between man and trees)
xiv. Songs of wailing during the death of a person and dirge songs
xv. Songs having sensual undertones sung during death rituals
xvi. Incantations
xvii. Riddles and proverbs

Karbi Folktales

Among these subjects or genres of Karbi folk literature, the folk songs and the folktales
are the richest. Among the few writers who have tried to enlist the Karbi folk tales in English,
special mention may be made of Dharamsingh Teron and Sikari Tisso. In their ‘Karbi Studies”
Vol. 3, they have compiled a good number of Karbi folktales translated from original Karbi
language with Karbi texts. The stories have been translated and documented with illustrations.

The folktales incorporated in the book:

1. A Hen and her Lazy friends (Vopi Ejon Lapen Asangho Atum)
2. How the Dongo Got its Racket Tail (Voraju Ani)
3. The Hog Deer of Pantisang (Pantisang Aoqhinuqrang)
4. A lazy spider (Ijon Kaselet Asangman)
5. Sita Kamar (Sita Kamar)
6. Ghalakghatak (Ghalakghatak)
7. The Mongoose (Phelangjule)
8. The Legend of Binongvopo (Binongvopo)
9. The Sleeping Cat (Mengkalu Thurthe)
10. The Mad Adventures of Loponbirik and Arphek Achu (Longbirik Lapen Arphek Achu)
11. The origin of two-shore (Kengphi Keplang)
12. The ‘winter-summar way’ (Chung-Phang:ok Atovar)
13. A dog, a hyena and a she-elephant (Methan, Mahar lapen Ingnarpi)
14. The pious orphan and Dalimet Kungri (Jangreso Ningme lapen Dalimet Kungri)
15. Kings Kongso and Bongso (Kongso pen Bongso recho)
16. The origin of bottle gouard (Bong)
17. How the Buffaloes were Domesticated (Chelong Keplang)
18. The Tortoise and the Monkey (Chitungpo pen Kipipo)
19. Vokronso (Vokronso)
20. The Orphan and the Earth Princess (Jangreso Lapen Purthimi Kungripi)
21. How the Hornbills originated (Vo:ingkek lapen Voterang)
22. A Frog and a Tiger (Teke Lapen Chongho)
23. The Tigers’ Rongker (Teke Rongker)
24. The Prince and the Prime Minister’s Son (Recho Lapen Chakri Kethe asopo)
25. Ingru Tulapi (Ingru Tulapi)
26. Songsar Recho (Songsar Recho)
27. The Hingchong Twins (Hingchong Musoso)
 28. A Black ant and a Frog (Misorongpo Lapen Chonghokaloso)
29. The Legend of All Women Village (Arloso Arong Alamo)
30. The orphan and the Vulture’s feather (Takun Arveng)
31. Two Orphan Brothers (Jangreso Kortete)
32. The orphan and the Giant (Jangreso lapen Hi:isirke)
33. The Sunbird and His Wife (Voso Lindok)
34. The Sun and the Moon (Chiklo lapen Arni)
35. The Tiger’s Revenge (Teke Aseme)
36. The Legend of Baby Hill (Osothi:i Anglong)
37. The Tiger and His Human Twin (Teke Recho)
38. Mangbon the Brute (Ingnam Amangbon)
39. Molongkoi, the Fortune-Teller (Molongkoi Asang Kelang)
40. An orphan and a vulture (Jangreso pen Takun)
41. Sumsali and the origin of Fish (Sumsali lapen ok keplang)
42. The Legend of Karpong the King (Karpong Recho)
43. The Jackal and the Quail (Sirung Pen Vo:ut)
44. The Orphans and their cruel Parents (Pichenek-Pichenek)
45. Never Leave a Promised Tale Untold (Tomo Thanji Pule Thanthedet Kertang)

These folktales show the simple life of the Karbis, their beliefs, the things they hold dear,
their worldly wisdom, their world of imagination and world view, and so on.

Features of Karbi Folk Literature

a. Creation and reflection of the folk life

It is an accepted fact that folk literature is the creation and reflection of the folk life of the
people. It is also equally applicable to Karbi folk literature. The Karbi folk narratives have their
inextricable relations with their folk life to the bone. It is because the Karbis observe their social
rites and rituals, marriage, death rituals, social administrative framework etc. following these
folk narratives and songs. It will not untrue to add that some aspects of the Karbi folk literature
have helped maintaining the rules and regulations in the Karbi society.

b. The timelessness or the transcendental quality

 The timelessness or the transcendental quality of any folk literature is also a characteristic
feature of the Karbis’ folk literature too. Through generations the folk literature of the tribe has
survived to its present form depicting its life, aspirations, trials and tribulations, national feeling
and integrity; woes of an agrarian life; its labour, conflicts and struggle; love and expressions of
longing and separation; philanthropy and heroism; religious and communal feelings etc.

c. Orality

Another notable feature of the Karbi folk literature, as those of others, is that it is primarily
oral. The oral history of the Karbis is associated or hidden in many of their folk songs. These
songs contain narrations regarding the state of their primitive economy, routes of their migration,
names of tribes and communities with whom they had had contacts and cultural exchanges,
conflicts, etc. in symbolical references. Much valuable material regarding the ordeals of the tribe,
the pleasures, aspirations, whim whams, passions, concepts of heroism, ideals of love, trials and
tribulations in the hands of various kings while migrating and having settlements, etc. are found
in their oral traditions of folk literature.

d. Tradition of a singer called ‘Lunsepo’

It is notable that in every Karbi village, there is the tradition of a singer called ‘Lunsepo’
who memorises a number of songs from their folk literature. In their social events they sing
songs if necessary. In their marriage institution, the discussions take place through songs from
both sides of the bride and the groom. These songs are sung by definite singers only.

Karbi Folk Songs

Among the genres of Karbi folklore, their folk songs are the richest. These folk songs
depict their folk life truthfully and in a spontaneous way. Songs are the spontaneous outbursts of
peoples’ emotions, passions, etc. They flow out like the stream. The Karbi folk songs also
truthfully delineate the tribe’s folk life. The folk life as we see in their folk songs is the one
created on the banks of the rivers Kolong and Kopili. The songs talk us of an area fed by the
waters of these two rivers. The rivers are the life blood of Karbi civilization and hence the rivers
also find their due place in the folk songs. It is against this backdrop that an assertion has
generally been made: Karbi folk literature as we get today grew in the valleys of these rivers and
is of local origin and development on the banks of these rivers. The original Kuki Chin
mainstream might have been lost earlier. The existence of the link, however, is not denied.

It is this reason why Karbi folk songs speak us of the streams, rivers and rivulets,
serpents, animals, various birds and fishes, trees, etc. These pictures are very familiar to the
Karbis as they live surrounded by these. The exotic beauty of the Kolong and Kopili never
ceased to attract the Karbis and their folk life was soaked in it. Apart from nature, their folklore
also mentions about various ethnic groups who live in the close vicinity with the tribe. The
additions of these groups have increased the charm of the folk songs.

Past Recounting and Migration Memories through Karbi folk song Kecharhe and Mosera
Kihir

Another notable feature of the Karbi folk literature is that if a person dies in Karbi
society, his departed soul is traditionally remembered through some wailing songs. These songs
are called ‘Kecharhe’ and the singer of these songs is called ‘Sarhepi’ or ‘Uchepi’. These
Sarhepis have still kept the songs alive which have passed from generation to generation. The
tradition of singing such songs is an exclusively female affair.

Mosera Kihir is one of the most remarkable genres of Karbi folk narratives and is an
integral part of Karbi funeral ceremony. It literally means ‘recounting the past from memories’.

Chomangkan or Thi-Karhi is the ceremony Karbis perform after death of a person. The
narrative of Mosera Kihir is recited during this occasion. It is an inseparable part of this death
ceremony. It is in the form of a recital during this Karbi funerary ceremony. Mosera Kihir is also
recited on the occasion of the Riso Chojun, which is a ‘collective youth ritual’.

As Karbi tradition demands, it is a custom for the host of Chomangkan to formally

welcome the visiting guests and dignitaries, represented by youths, from neighbouring villages.
It is also imperative to bid them goodbye at the end of the ceremony. The hosts formally express
their sense of gratitude and thankfulness to the guests for their help and cooperation in making
the occasion complete successfully. The host also begs their excuses for any inadvertent
mistakes, lapses, irregularities or commissions and commissions in performing the ceremony or
in dealing with them.
Kecharhe

Among the rich repertoire of Karbi folk narratives, their dirge song called ‘Kecharhe’, is
a very important genre. The speciality of this genre of folk narrative is that it describes the out of
the world journey of the soul into the -chom rongme, chom rongso, i.e., and which they believe,
‘land of eternal happiness’.

Kecharhe is also an integral part of the Karbi funerary ritual Chomangkan or Thi-Karhi.
This dirge singing is an exclusively female affair. There is no part, whatsoever, for the males. In
this funeral ceremony the central figure is the ‘Sarhepi’ or ‘uchepi’, the female dirge singer who
is also the priestess. In Karbi society it is taboo for a male to sing this dirge or wailing song.
Remarkably, it is also forbidden for even the ‘Sarhepi’ to chant the dirge song on other occasions
within the boundary of a village.

Regarding the recital of Kecharhe, Tanmay Bhattacharjee writes:

“In Kecharhe the ladies assemble in the house of the dead person and sing this song. The
song which has a tragic import takes at least two hours for its full recital. It describes the hopes
and despair of the dead person which he had borne during his life time. It is a mournful
expression in song with a heavy heart. The song is divided into many phases:

a. Lang Panglu (the body wash)

b. Ankepi (offering of food)
c. Towar kethan (the road through which the body will pass)

All the three functions are done by women. On the way to the other world, the route
through which the dead person must pass is imagined.

Karbi Folktales

The Karbis are great story tellers. They can tell stories with complete elan. Their stories
are always invariably coloured by their locale. As noticed by Stack, the stories of the Karbis are
always punctuated with the typical indigenous colours.

Karbi folk literature has been made rich by these folk tales. If we look at the subject
matters, we see that the grandmother, the grandchild, various animals and birds, demons,
orphans, love and cruelty, etc. find frequent places in Karbi folktales. Many Karbi folk tales
came down to the present generation though an ‘immaculate band of story tellers’. Tanmay
Bhattacharjee tells us further that some of the stories which were told to Stack were
commonplace and some of these were most probably borrowed from foreign sources. The
indigenous stories are still better.

Heroes and heroism in Karbi folk literature

The Karbi folk memory has kept alive a number of local heroes. These heroes are still
afresh in the Karbi folk memory due to their bravery, great community service and sacrifice for
the cause of the people and the nation. Some of these Karbi heroes have become legends. Some
others have been lost because of the lack of written record.

Among the heroes Karbis adore till today mention may be made of the following:

a. Thong Nokbe Teron:

Believed to be the captain and bodyguard of Jayanta Narang, the Jaintia king, the Karbis
regard him to be one among the celebrated heroes. They believe that, had Thong not been
there, the Jaintias would still have persecuted the Karbis. He is believed to have killed the
king of Ghilani, Recho-Ikpo who could not be defeated by the Jaintia King. Thong was
killed by the Jaintia soldiers out of jealousy. It was because he was greatly honoured by
the king and the Jaintia soldiers could not tolerate this.
b. Vaisong:
Well-built and handsome, Vaisong was deeply loved by his people. He pursued
everything that he believed to be right. The Jaintias did not like him since he was very
sincere. They sought opportunities to trap him and once he fell into one. They enslaved
him for 12 years. He fought a number of important battles and is still remembered as a
national hero.
c. Sir Vomu Tokbi:
Vomu Tokbi, another Karbi hero, is believed to be associated with the slaying of a
predator called Vomu (Eagle) that once tormented the Karbis with frequent attacks. He is
said to have given the Karbis a new lease of life by slaying the eagle.
d. Jabara Timung:
 He was a dear friend and companion of Thong Nokbe Teron, the great Karbi hero. Jabara
too lived for the common good of the people like his friend Nokbe.
e. Rongpharpi Rongbe:
It needs special mention that in the history of the Karbis there is the mention only of one
Karbi woman leader or heroine. Her name is Kareng (Runja) Rongpharpi. Wife of On
Teron, she was the proud mother of the Karbi hero Thong Nokbe Teron. Karbi folk
memory has it that she hacked the Dimasa king’s soldiers to death with an axe because
they asked her after the king’s order to produce milk for tiger cubs. During her leadership
days, the Dimasa king is said to feed human milk to the tiger cubs which the king reared
as pets. Later on, she advised the people to escape the scene since she was sure that the
Dimasas would seek revenge and her strength was limited to withstand the combined
forces. Thus she was successful in evading the attack of the enemies and protecting her
people.
f. Bikha Tokbi:
Bikha Tokbi was with the Ahom army when he fought the Man tribe. The battle ended in
a peace treaty. After the battle, he gave away a few Karbi girls to the Man tribe as a token
of understanding. He was conferred the title of Barua for his valour, but his giving away
of the few Karbi girls to the tribe did not find favour with the people. The people held the
view that Bikha had actually sold the girls. So they hatched a conspiracy against him and
killed him.
Tanmay Bhattacharjee’s book ‘Sociology of the Karbis’ enlists some other Karbi heroes
who are-
a. Sot Recho: Many say the Karbis transplanted the great king Yudhisthira in their folk
tales and named him ‘Sot Recho’-meaning ‘pure king’. He was according to legends,
a deeply religious man and he looked after his subjects quite well. He ruled from the
present site of Rongkhang. The king whether lived actually is difficult to say but
legends say he was there. It is quite possible that a good Karbi potentate was later on
remembered as ‘pure king’.
b. Thireng Wangreng: A Karbi law-giver, he was said to have started the Chomangkan
festival and framed rules for it. He is still believed to be a link between the kingdom
of ‘Jama’ (heaven) and this earth. He is specially invoked during the time of the
 festival and the people seek his best wishes. He conveys to the people on earth that
the souls in heaven accepted their offerings.
c. Har Pokkang: According to the legends, he ruled in the neighbourhood of
Rongkhang under the Jaintia king. He was a good king and the subjects were happy
under him. He was succeeded to the throne by his brother Kadangchiri.

Love in Karbi folk literature

Folk life of every race is incomplete without love and stories of love. Courtship
and wooing, yearnings of the love-lorn hearts, union of lovers at different places of the
village and near rivers, exchanges of looks and glances, yearning for union after
separation, etc. are life blood of every folk literature. The Karbis too have a rich
storehouse of love songs. A number of such songs have been collected and compiled by
Samsing Hanse under the title ‘Karbi Pranayee Geet’. The Karbi youths have their own
ideals of true, immortal love in the love story of Haimu Alun which celebrates love in its
true colour with the message that love cannot be bought by kings, mansions and by
luxuries and that love is not something money can buy.

Keplang or creation stories in Karbi folk literature

The Karbis have various stories and folk narratives regarding the origin of the world, the
Karbi tribe, the Kurs or clans, the ginger, chillies, paddy, and so on. Some of these
Keplangs are-

a. Pirthe Keplang (Origin of the earth)

b. Karbi Keplang (Origin of the Karbi Tribe)
c. Hemphu Keplang (Origin of the incarnation of god Hemphu)
d. Kur Keplang (Origin of Karbi clans)
e. Rongkikim (Origin of the first Karbi village organization)
f. Sarkebat (Origin and intiation of Karbi village head called Sarthe or Gaonburha)
g. Lakhi Keplang (Origin of Paddy)
h. Birik Keplang (Origin of chillies)
i. Hanso Keplang (Origin of ginger)
 These Keplangs or creation stories are invaluable jewels of Karbi folk literature. The
stories tell a lot about the life, belief, mind, worldview and psyche of the tribe. They also
give us valuable hints on the things the tribe hold valuable and essential in their folk life.

Oso Kebei Alun or cradle song in Karbi folk literature

Like the mothers of all other races, the Karbis too have their cradle songs called
Oso Kebei Alun. The Karbi mothers also use lullabies to make her child sleep or to
pacify or quieten it. For that she sings a number of songs. These songs speak volumes
about a Karbi mother’s real world around her. Simple, easy going and agrarian as Karbi
mothers are, their cradle songs portray before us a world of mundane affairs like the
ripening of the paddy, taking dry fish and salt, etc. When the child is restless, she imitates
the sounds of animals and birds.

From the contents of the lullabies it seems that the Karbi mother composes her
lullabies keeping in view the corresponding age of the child. This conclusion can be
arrived at from the Karbi mother’s choice of diction, selection of images from nature and
the didactive style of composition and narration. A close perusal of the lullabies will
bring to light that Karbi mothers have great responsibilities both at home and the jhum
field. The illiterate Karbi mother’s depth of feelings expressed in these lullabies is
amazing.

Haimu Alun –Gem of Karbi Love Song

The text of the storyline of this immortal Karbi love story has been taken from the
book ‘Sociology of the Karbis’ by Tanmay Bhattacharjee. This love story celebrates the
theme of love between two Karbi lovers where in the scene there appears Bordili, a king
having his kingdom nearby. Bordili proposes to marry Haimu who is already married. As
fate would have it, Haimu died, leaving Long, her beloved and the King astounded. The
heart-rending love story is still afresh in the Karbi folk memory and it continues to
remind them of the essence of love.

The river Kapili in Karbi folk literature

 The valleys of Kapili have been the happy breeding ground of Karbi life and literature. It
has found place in all Karbi folklore, folk memory, myths and legends.

The river Kapili flows from the Borail Hills to the south west before joining the
Brahmaputra. The river has given life and succor to more than one tribe and hence it is an object
of reverence for all those tribes. The Karbis live in the lower reaches of the river and their stay in
the trans-Kapili region is now the story of some centuries. Due to their long stay they have
developed a bond with the river. Their folk songs say thus:

Iru kachen Achipong

Kopili pelanghe Kolang

Chipong Don Churi plenchhung.

Meaning: On the banks of Kapili and Kolong, there was a village which consisted of large
numbers of families. The river banks were a lovely place where hundreds of young men and
women flocked to make their love. In that beautiful village Iru Kachen lived.

The river is so inextricably related to the Karbis’ corporate life that it is ‘now woven into the
history of the tribe.’

But it is interesting to note the Jaintia attitude to the river. Their attitude towards Kapili is one of
‘superstitious reverence’ and cult of worshipping originating from an all-pervading fear. They
consider the waters of the river as ‘Kalapani’ or black water (kola=black, pani=water in
Assamese). In the ancient days, they also did not cross the river. Records say that once they
never carried any luggage from one bank of the river to the other. For them Kapili was the
mother goddess. They sacrificed two human beings each year in order to propitiate the mother. It
is really a matter of inquisition how the fear of the tribe changed into a worship cult or why the
same river is revered by the Karbis and feared by the Jaintias.

References
1. Phangcho, Morningkeey, www.karbi.wordpress.com (many passages from his blog have
been quoted verbatiom here)
2. Katharpi, Maggie, Karbi Heroes,
http://www.museindia.com/viewarticle.asp?myr=2010&issd=31&d=1949 accessed on 21
December, 2014 where the writer acknowledged the credit to the Souvenir of First Karbi
Book Fair, 2008
3. Bhattacharjee, Tanmay, ‘Sociology of the Karbis’, BR Publishing Corporation, Delhi 52,
1986
4. Terang Rongbong, ‘Karbi Sahitya Sanskritit Abhumuki’, 1982 (translated version into
English by Dr. Dilip Kalita in 2010)
5. Teron, Longkam, Karbi Language and Literature, http://karbiyouthfest.wordpress.com
6. Das, Basanta, ‘Karbi Sanskritir Itihas’, 2010
7. Dharamsingh Teron and Sikari Tisso, ‘Karbi Studies”, Vol. 3, December 2012, Assam
Book Hive, Guwahati
8. Teron, Longkam, Karbi Language and Literature, http://karbiyouthfest.wordpress.com