ඇසෑමයේ ජනකතා

Folk Tales of Assam

“Burhi Aai’r Xaadhu” (literally translated to Grandma’s Tales) is a collection of stories or folklore, that have been compiled by famous Assamese author and poet Laxminath Bezbarua. As most folktales go, before this compilation, there had been no written record of these stories. While some of the stories are more like the Assamese version of Panchatantra, with speaking animals and birds as main characters of the story, most of these are based on the life of a simple villager. The words of Laxminath Bezbarua wrap these stories up in subtle and sometimes blatant humour, which can somehow never be reflected in translation, no matter how accurate it is.

Having been one of those fortunate ones to have heard these tales from my own grandmother, I realise just how precious those tiny fragile moments are, and how integral they are for the bonding of grandparent and grandchild. In today’s fast moving life where children are thrown into cut-throat competition from a very early age, internet and video gaming have taken the place of innocent storytelling sessions. It is indeed rare to find a child who can and more importantly, want to read books in his mother tongue. Hearing such stories from a grandparent is an even greater rarity.