Meghalaya: Wangala festival enters Guinness World Records with 1,000 drums
The Hundred Drums Wangala Festival Committee earned a title for the largest Wangala dance during its golden jubilee celebrations in West Garo Hills.
The Hundred Drums Wangala Festival Committee, India, earned a Guinness World Records title for the largest Wangala dance on Saturday at the Garo Heritage Village in Chibragre, Meghalaya. According to ANI, over 1,000 traditional Dama players performed in the Rhythm of Thousand Drums alongside women dancers and warriors to secure the record.
Guinness World Records adjudicator Richard Williams Stenning from the United Kingdom announced the record at the venue. The performance included more than 3,500 dancers at the Wangala Playground in Tura, according to the Deccan Herald.
The golden jubilee event was attended by Union Minister of Culture and Tourism Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma. The Chief Minister noted that the festival, which began in 1976 with 20 drums, has now reached 1,000 drums, fulfilling a vision of the late P. A.
Sangma.
The festival is a post-harvest celebration of gratitude to nature for a bountiful harvest. The State Government provided Rs 6 crore for the organisation of the festival, with Rs 36.65 lakh sanctioned for the Guinness World Records application, adjudication, and logistics.
A dance competition was also held during the celebrations. Chidaogre was declared the winner and received Rs 2 lakh, while Gondenggre was the first runner-up with Rs 1.5 lakh, and Sadolbra was the second runner-up with Rs 1 lakh.