Evenings for tourists in Darjeeling are
no longer lonely affairs ever since the hotel owners and the
local civic body decided to organise cultural programmes to
revive tourism in the hill town. “The tour packages
are limited to just taking the tourists around for sight seeing
which gets over early and the tourists are left with little
to do in the evenings. The programme is meant to entertain
them after that,” Mr Sangay Bhutia, president of the
Darjeeling Hotel Owners’ Association, said.
People in the Darjeeling hills wind up early and the town
goes to sleep with the night still young leaving the place
isolated. This season though, the Mall resplendent with lights
and buzzing with dance and music has certainly brought to
life the otherwise silent evenings of Darjeeling. The Mall
(chowrasta) is now seen teeming with tourists deep into the
evenings enjoying a variety of cultural dances and songs performed
by local artistes. “In addition to the traditional dances
of different communities we have the local bands and dancers
performing both Nepali and Hindi numbers. The once-in-a-while
performances by Prakriti Giri, Karma Sherpa are special treats
for all,” Mr Bhutia said.
Moreover the tourists, who refuse to be passive audience,
are also seen dancing on the stage, which makes it all the
more lively. “This is a refreshing experience as we
not only enjoy but also get a glimpse of the Nepali culture,”
Shubhra Tandon, a tourist from Delhi, said. For the local
residents though, the experience reminds them of the annual
carnival in Darjeeling. “It's been a while since we
had such programmes after the carnival. It has brought back
the charm of the carnival days,” Darshana Subba, a local
resident said.
The political turmoil in the hills had earned the region a
lot of negative publicity. “The tourist inflow has certainly
increased since the programme was started. The agitation has
nothing to do with tourism and the situation is completely
peaceful,” Mr Bhutia said.
Courtesy: The Statesman |
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