Passing down the art of moibung khongba and pung yeiba
Ch Narendra hones skills of youngsters
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, December 24 2021: Artiste oja Chakpram Narendra has been promoting Nat Sankirtana in his personal capacity by teaching a handful of students the art of pung yeiba (A type of drumming) and moibung khongba (conch blowing), the traditional music instruments of Manipur without taking any fee.

Notably, Nata Sankirtana has been recognised as a representative list of intelligible cultural heritage of humanity during a sitting of the intergovernmental committee of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2013 .

Chakpram Narendra, s/o late Naran Singh of Nongmeibung Chakpram Leirak in Imphal East district tutors about 14 young students the art of blowing conch and drumming at his home.

Speaking to The Sangai Express, Chakpram Narendra, who also is a research scholar of dance and music at Manipur University, said that he started educating young students about the art of blowing conch and drumming in 2017 .

Saying that his class normally starts at 3 pm and ends at 5 pm, he continued that three of his students have started performing at bigger stages in Chennai, Shillong and Agartala.

Passing down the art of moibung khongba and pung yeiba

The musical class was halted for months due to COVID-19, but it has now resumed with 14 pupils, he said.

Continuing that completely understanding the art of drumming and blowing conch takes time as the subject is profound, Narendra said that students normally take 6 to 7 months in learning the basic art of blowing conch.

Narendra said that he does not take any fees for his musical class with a firm belief that passing down the art of Nat Sankirtana to younger generations is a reward in itself.

The Sangai Express also spoke to senior guru of Jawaharlal Nehru Dance Academy, Leimapokpam Lakhpati Singh.

The guru said that Sankirtana has been a part and parcel of major religious events and rituals such as wedding, shradha since the time of 'our forefathers' .

The Sankirtana was transformed as an art form by renaming it as Nata Sankirtana during the time of Rajarshi Bhagyachandra.

He also said that Nata Sankirtana of Manipur is unique and different from the forms practised in other States.

Saying that Nata Sankirtana is being taught as a subject at JN Dance Academy, he opined that opening such a subject in other Government dance colleges would be right.

Continuing that preserving such a unique artform should not be limited to a group of people, he reminded that December 4 is observed as International Sankirtana Day every year.