Bengal, Manipur, Nepal, Orissa, Punjab, Kerala and Tamil Nadu though called by different names. It ' s a time of merriment and feasting and continues, in general, for seven days. The farmers prepare the fields for cultivation of paddy and there is a feeling of joy around. The women make pitha, larus( traditional food made of rice, jaggery & coconut) and Jolpan which gives the real essence of the season. The first day of the bihu is called Goru Bihu or cow bihu, where the cows are washed and worshipped, which falls on the last day of the previous year, usually on April 14. This is followed by Manuh( human) bihu on April 15, the New Year Day. This is the day of getting cleaned up, wearing new cloths, wishing family & friends, taking blessings from the elders in the family, celebrating and getting ready for the new year with fresh vigor. The third day is Gokhai( Gods) bihu, statues of Gods, worshiped in all households are cleaned and worshiped asking for a smooth new year. Rongali Bihu is also a fertility festival, where the bihu dance with its sensuous movements using the hips, arms, etc., by the young women call out to celebrate their fertility. In this aspect, the bihu dance can also be called a mating ritual by the young men and women. Another very important aspect of Bihu is called‘ Husori’, wherein village elders move from household to households singing carols, also in the style of bihu geets, called husoris. The carol singing starts usually at the village‘ naamghar’( place of worship in Assam) and then proceeds to individual households. The‘ Husori’ singers announces their arrival at the gate of a house with drum beats. The singers are traditionally welcomed into the courtyard where they sing the husori songs and perform a ring dance. At the end of the performance they are thanked with an offering dakshina of paan( betel leaf) tamul( areka nut) in a xorai( brass dish with stand), whereupon the singers bless the household for the coming year. If there is bereavement in the family, or the family does not invite the husori singers due to an illness, the husori band offers blessings from podulimukh( the entrance gate of the household) and move on. Generally the singers are all male. Traditionally Bihu Dances used to be held in open fields wherein young unmarried men and women attired in traditional golden silk muga come and dance the bihu and sing bihu songs. However, with the passage of time, this form of open bihu known as‘ Mukoli Bihu’ started disappearing and the Modern Bihu organized in a stage and a pandal took over. The Modern Bihutoli Bihu:- The rural festival made its transition to urban life when it was first time brought to the stage in Lataxil field in Guwahati by the Guwahati Bihu Sanmilani in 1962, promoted by leading citizens like Radha Govinda Baruah and others. Unlike the rural version, the dancers danced on a
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