It’s been ages since I wrote a travel post, although I’ve been thinking about writing one for a while. Often, there’s so much else I want to write that travel posts take a backseat. But Nagaland was special for so many reasons that I decided to write about it even though this post comes almost one month late.
The White Owl Literature Festival and Book Fair
I always dreamed of my writing taking me to places I’ve never visited. Going to Dimapur, Nagaland, for a literature fest was surreal!
I did my first ever event on How I Feel, and although I had a very mixed audience in terms of age-group, I loved it. We explored emotions, drew emojis, and wrote a little, all in this beautiful bookstore, The White Owl. Among the many charming things the literature festival did was to make these steps with our books on them!
I did a writing workshop based on my first novel-in-verse, Uncontrollable with a group of students and a few others. When I’m working with this book, I typically do an activity on free verse that explores emotions and invites participants to write about an emotion. So far, all the times I’ve done this activity in Bengaluru, Pune and even online, I’ve found that young boys are less enthusiastic about sharing their work. If they do read their poetry, it’s poetry about anger, and it’s always after a few others have shared work. In Dimapur, it was so refreshing to see the boys step up and talk about guilt, joy, and much more!
We explored poetry a little more with Fishbowl, working on concrete poetry and free verse. It’s so heartening when the room is packed with enthusiastic young writers! This time, we explored our deepest darkest fears, which worm their way into our hearts when it’s dark outside. I especially love it when teenagers who are reluctant to read their work aloud come to me later to show me what they’ve written!
As with all lit fests, I also thoroughly enjoyed attending other sessions by other writers and illustrators! I did a poetry workshop with Anushka Ravishankar, watched Ogin Nayam and Pankaj Saikia weave their magic with wordless picture books, learned a little sign language with Lavanya Karthik, and soaked in the joy of stories!
Exploring Dimapur
Since the literature festival was in Dimapur, that’s where we spent most of our time. We stayed at the lovely Zone Niathu by the Park, a sprawling resort that hosted the festival. We visited a couple of touristy places, but the highlight was Heirloom Naga Centre, a gallery, workshop and café that was utterly charming. It was thanks to Pankaj that we visited this place, and we were all duly grateful!
The gallery ticket costs ₹150, and it’s well worth it. The collection sports a range of artefacts from baskets to furniture, warrior gear to quilts. Photography isn’t permitted, though, so I have nothing to show for it!
The eatery is lovely too! We didn’t eat there and although we wanted to return and have a meal, the place closes at 8 pm, so it wasn’t possible. We did have a coffee, though, which was very reasonably priced (₹70 per coffee), and the decor is absolutely lovely!
Getting around is quite straightforward too. While rickshaws don’t have meters, settling on a price with the rickshawala isn’t difficult. More than once, a helpful security guard flagged down a rickshaw for us and negotiated a rate.
Khonoma and Dzuleke
Having gone all the way to Nagaland, a few of us stayed back and took a day trip to Khonoma and Dzuleke. As we were pressed for time, we went through a tour operator, although I believe other options are also available. Khonoma is a couple of hours away from Dimapur, and it’s known for being a green village. Cobbled paths and steps take us right through the Khonoma, so of course, there are no vehicles at all! The water there, we learned, is cleaner than mineral water, and the village is a quiet place nestled in the hills. The best part, for me, was little shops like this that we found everywhere!
You pick an item, drop money into a jar, and leave. There’s no shopkeeper and nothing to stop you from taking the jar of money! Some shops have candy, others have wine, and still others have vegetables. The method is the same–pick up, pay and go.
Having a guide walk us through the village allowed us to pay attention to details like the old gates and reconstructed forts, as well as morungs, where men gather to learn about their tribe’s customs and traditions. We learned about peer groups and competitions, where prize money is used to build something for the community, and where people come together as a village, rather than as individual families.
After a simple home-cooked meal, we went towards Dzuleke. We stopped at scenic spots along the route, and breathed in the fresh air of the hills before heading back to watch children play indigenous games. That was such a treat! We watched young boys wrestle, throw shot put, race and compete. It was lovely!
I wonder if and when I will visit Nagaland again. Perhaps someday I’ll trek in Dzukou or visit a place I haven’t heard about yet. But for now, I’m happy!
Leave a Reply