Bah Phrang Roy inspires youth representatives at NEHU

FROM OUR STAFF CORRESPONDENT

SHILLONG, Sept 1: “Am short…am fat…am sexy”...was my response for an interview at a spot United tions interview” shared Bah Phrang Roy, words that got him the job and also broke the ice with 50 young minds from various departments of NEHU. Phrang Roy was the former vice president of IFAD Intertiol, a body under the United tions.

The session was organized by the Department of Sociology, NEHU and chaired by Dr AK Nongkynrih, professor of Sociology. The session was organized to update the students that come from various parts of not just Meghalaya, but all the North East of India. Sharing his journey from the North East hills of Shillong to the high offices of the United tions, Bah Phrang said, “If you remember your culture it will take you a long way. It is important not to compete in areas of general competition as the resource and facilities for the cosmopolitan players are more but to push forward in the areas of our own mastery ...knowledge, systems and land.” With these he brought forward the opportunity that the Intertiol Mei-Ramew 2015 brings in sharing the essence of the wild edibles, insects as protein rich food and more. These are becoming fashioble intertiolly but are old traditiol culiry delights in the North-East of India. He added, “Let’s reclaim NEHU as a tribal university welcoming intertiol universities, who the IMR 2015 will bring, to our cultures, identities, knowledge and abilities. These will truly open doors for intertiol exchange.”

Dr AK Nongkynrih shared the opportunity that the event offered for the students to become ambassadors of their culture, carriers of stories of their farms, food and flavours by becoming delegates. The students received this enthusiastically, as they exchanged views on the possibilities of performing their traditiol dance as a form if rration, share the global platform of the food festival to present food stalls catering to flavours from their tribe and also tuning their tongues at other stalls of other intertiol and tiol cuisines.

The students also explored the idea of finding key people from their tribes who inspire them with their cooking to showcase the flavours the region. These would be stepping-stones for entrepreneurs and their livelihoods as they will share the catering space with chefs of North Korea who are experts in fermented foods, a segment the North East too is rich in. There will be opportunity to learn from butchers from North American who can share significant knowledge in best cuts, hygiene training and glamorized presentation to compete against the market forces of unhealthy fast foods. Bah Phrang commented that the future we want is sustaible and also rooted in landscape, culture and must be taken into our own hands to shape our own future.

The discussions also covered the attempts to seek out unrepresented tribal committees from the treasure of almost 248 tribes that the state offers. The student representation is important as there will be youth sessions at the IMR 2015 and the true translation of events call for the “Future we want!”.