FOLKUS – LOOKING BACK
SANJAY DE

Folkus, the first-ever folk & tribal art gallery of north-east India, was opened on 6th December, 2017 at Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Road in Silchar, Assam. Sandipan Dutta Purkayastha, Pranab Seal and Ritam Chakraborty are the three persons who have started the initiative. The gallery was formally inaugurated in the evening with the lighting of lamp by S. Lakshmanan, IAS, Deputy Commissioner of district Cachar assisted by other invited luminaries like veteran professor & folk researcher Dr. Amalendu Bhattacharjee, Editor of Bengali newspaper Dainik Samayik Prasanga Taimur Raza Choudhury, President of Barak Upatyaka Bongo Sahitya o Sanskriti Sammiloni Prof. Saurindra Bhattacharjee and Lead banker Tridev Choudhury. Inaugurating the gallery, Chief Guest Lakshmanan highly praised the initiative undertaken in the remote corner of the country. He applauded especially the name chosen for the arcade as to him this incorporates the integral feel for the diverse folk heritage of us. He termed the gallery as one significant step forward towards establishing a museum in the city in near future. Dr. Amalendu Bhattacharjee elucidated the rich variety of our folk and traditional heritage and stressed on the need to boost up its popularity amongst the new generation. The folk-research prodigy also urged to choose the folk utility articles as decor item for gift in any personal event and festivities. Other guests too appreciated the endeavour and expressed robust hope for the art-hub to become an important centre for folk and tribal crafts to thrive on trade and popularity.