Chana Lukhoi The man from the East

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Chana Lukhoi - The man from the East
— A brief sketch on the life of IACAM -2006 award winner —

By: The Sangai Express *

'Chana' is a small village in Lamlai Assembly Constituency. It is about 18 kilometres from Imphal on the Imphal-Ukhrul Road.

When the name of a village called Chana is mentioned, it sounds blurred and unimportant because the name is almost unknown to the rest of Manipur. There is nothing worth seeing in and around the village. No historical events of the past is associated with the name of the village.

But to day the name Chana is becoming to be immortal in the generations to come because of one man. There is hardly any Shumang Leela lover in Manipur who doesn't hear and is familiar with the name 'Chana Lukhoi', one of the best script writer or playwright of Shumang Leela (courtyard play) of Manipur to-day.

With the name 'Chana' before Lukhoi' makes the combination Chana Lukhoi and thus Chana the name of the village where Lukhoi was born has been flung to the breeze these days.

Chana Lukhoi - IACAM 2006 Award Winner

On the 26th October 2006, Chana Lukhoi has added one more feather in his cap. He bagged the first IACAM Award - 2006.

He is the first recipient of the award instituted by Indigenous Art and Culture Association Manipur (IACAM) to honour noted Shumang Leela playwrights in Manipur. The award is donated by the Shijagurumayum family in memory of (late) Shijagurumayum Nilbir Sharma Shastri.

The award is for the first time conferred to Chana Lukhoi for his long contribution to Shumang Leela as a script writer for the last many decades.

'Morning shows the day'. This maxim holds true in the case of Chana Lukhoi. From his early childhood he had got an extraordinary talent as an orator. Among his playfellows he was a skilful narrator of folk tales of Manipur.

He was born in 1954 to late O Mani and O Amuleima. His grandfather Oinam Sanghai was also a renowned Manipuri folk tale narrator of his time. During his high school days he was a student of Lamlai High School, Pung-dongbam.

He was one class senior to this writer. He was very popular in the school among the students and teachers. By his skill in elocution, by his leadership quality he became the general secretary of the school unopposed.

When he got the chance to use the microphone in any school function, his speech was so attractive and awe-inspiring that even the teachers of the school predicted that Tunal (he was then known as Tunal) would become a figure of Manipur one day in the field of Drama and Leela. The prediction is true to-day.

From his childhood days, he liked to go in the footstep of his late grandfather. After the death of his grandfather, he had got the teaching and guidance from Ch. Hera a renowned folk tale narrator of that time.

Gradually he learnt the traditional culture of Meitei folk tales from late Pandit Kh Deva Singh of Thongjao, late P Mohan of Yairipok Poirou Khongjil, Late Madhov Pandit of Toubungkhok. From the knowledge thus gained Lukhoi became a folk tale narrator from the tender age of twelve.

His name spread far and wide because Manipur has got few talent as folk narrator compared with Wari Leeba tradition of Mahabharat and Ramayan in Vaishnav religion.

Thus he got the opportunity to visit every nook and corner of Manipur. Not only this he had visited Meitei inhabited areas of Assam, Tripura and even Bangladesh.

In recognition of his contribution, the Anji Cultural Academy, Imphal conferred 'Anji Cultural Award' in the year 2003. In the same year he received Khumanthem Kaomacha Memorial Gold Medal from Manipuri Sahitya Parishad, Imphal.

He started writing scripts for stage play and Shumang Leela from 1980.

In one of his plays, it might be his first, named 'Eegi Nong' the Manipur Government had banned the play on the charge that it instigated the arms movement in Manipur.

Chana Lukhoi got behind bars for many days. Even while he was in prison he completed the play 'Nongankhidraba Ahing'.

He has written more than 200 Shumang Leela scripts. He has won best script writer award for more than 17 times and second best on more than eight times.

He had even got both best and second best script writer award for more than five times. This shows that he has been in the top as a playwright for the last 25 years.

'Sana-patki Thariktha'
'Chaina-pung'
'Hingnabagi Dabi'
'Leishabigi Machado'
'Keishamthong Thoibi'
'Love 2000'
'Shabi Shanou Express'

are some of the famous plays written by him.

From 10 years back, he had been an approved script writer of AIR Imphal and contributed many plays and serials for the listeners. He has also contributed many departmental plays for Family Welfare Department, Science and Technology Department, MACS etc.

Last but not the least he is an article contributor to many vernacular dailies and journals. He is a columnist of the Manipuri edition of this paper (The Sangai Express) under the title 'Chentharakliba Eechel' which appears every Friday.

His hobby is reading journals, novels, gardening and farming. He loves to spend free hours with small kids of his own and his locality. Support of the family is immense in his writing specially from his wife, sons and daughters.

As a renowned traditional folk tale narrator and writer, Chana Lukhoi is now doing research works in traditional and cultural heritage of Manipur.

At fifty plus he is still going strong. The man from the east has already conquered the hearts of Shumang Leela lover by his beautifully penned scripts and will be in the business for many years to come.

The Sangai Express provided this article. This article was webcasted on December 06th, 2006

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