Touphema, Feb. 26: She came to buy jewellery all the way from Austria ? only to find the better bargain is back home. Brigitta Prokoff, a jewellery collector from Vienna, has always taken a special interest in the gem-studded ornaments of Nagaland.
However, only when she and her friends visited the state in the hope of finding exquisite and original Naga jewellery, they realised that the best of the genre is available back home.
?I found that the best and the original has been taken away by the dealers to either Delhi or Austria,? she said. Naga jewellery, a typical combination of gems and traditional style, has been in demand at home and abroad. Decades ago, the Myanmarese used to trade salt and tea for Naga gems from the Konyak tribe in present Mon district. The trade in jewellery might have stopped, but not the demand.
The Austrians are yet to visit other districts of the state in search of the treasure they came looking for. Prokoff and her three of her partners see huge tourism potentiality in Nagaland. ?The festivals and culture shows are a huge draw,? said Gerald Brandstetter, a market surveyor and adman in Vienna.
His friend Klaus Fessel, also into market analysis, said Nagaland, well known for its jewellery abroad, also has potential to become a niche tourism hub. The four Austrians are one of the few distinguished guests who stayed back at the Touphema tourist village for the night today. They had come especially to attend the harvest festival of the Angamis, called Sekrenyi.
Nagaland governor Shyamal Datta, too, attended the tribal festival. It was his first participation in any tribal carnival during his two years stint in the state.
Chief minister Neiphiu Rio acted as the Pou, or ?Sekrenyi Father?, during the grand function at his native village. The women of the tribe also participated in a big way for the first time. Dances were performed by Sema and Rengma tribal troupes.
The entire Tenyimia area or the region surrounding Kohima and Phek districts is in a celebratory mood. Sekrenyi is celebrated with feasts and dances during the intervening ?rest period? between harvesting and sowing. A function was also held at the historic Chedema village, erstwhile fort of the Naga National Council during the 50s and 60s.