The Rush Mela festival is one of the largest tourist attractions of the Sundarbans.
Every year about 40,000 to 50,000 tourists visit the Sundarbans. The visitors visit Sundarbans not only keen to see its natural beauty, but also experience the Rush Mela festival.
Rush Mela is jointly organised by the forest department and the local community. Among the groups of various different occupations, fishermen are the largest group who organise this festival. Tourists enjoy the local food and different crafts at the festival. They want to learn more about the ethnic community, their crafts and culture, their food and more, to link their heritage with the Sundarbans.
Holy baths, the ceremony of worship and drama are highlights of the tourist attraction in the Sundarbans during Rush Mela. However, tourists are not able to always enjoy the full festival due to the limited schedules of the luxury cruises. Tourists want an extended schedule and also a travel route to go to the villages of the ethnic community and witness their lifestyle.
Tourists are impressed with the security arrangements of the local community since the festival goes on for whole night. During the night, kirton (religious folk songs), render tales about the Hindu gods and goddess (Radha and Krishna) and Muslim legendary figures Gazi and Kalu. At the Rush Mela there is a unique solidarity between Hindu and Muslim worshippers since the Gazi and Kalu are revered equally as Radha and Krishna. The kirton mainly tells how the gods and goddess save the Sundarbans from any threat which is very important for safeguarding the livelihood of Sundarbans community.
The Rush Mela festival gives a political power to the community. It empowers the community. The local people are economically empowered through the festival by selling different items including fabric, handicrafts and dried fish. Dried fish is on huge demand among tourists at the Rush Mela. The dried fish at the Rush Mela is good because fishermen catch the fish from the sea and dry these at the Dublar Char where the festival takes place. The local community are psychologically empowered too when people buy the dried fish and appreciate. This enhances the remote community’s social bonding.
The remote community finds themselves highlighted in the media which connects them with the mainland community. During the Rush Mela the local ethnic groups invite relatives to visit their homes and exchange gifts. Hindu fishermen invite the Muslim neighbors which increases social solidarity. The most spectacular thing about the Rush Mela is that there are no racist or communal attacks in the community while they celebrate the festival.
Since Rush Mela has immense empowerment potential for the local community, it should be declared an Intangible Cultural Heritage. In UNESCO usually this inscription process for tangible and intangible cultural heritage is separate. However, the government and UNESCO can take initiative to inscribe Rush Mela festival to brand the destination of the Sundarbans World Heritage site.
* Shahida Khanom, Griffith University, Australia