Bangalore - an urban village for the Mizos

Scan the population from Mizoram that is now settled in Bangalore, and the large student population stands out the most — more than even the scores of call centre employees, hotel employees and techies who have found the good life in thriving Bangalore.

It comes as no wonder then that the Mizo Students’ Association, Bangalore, is different from the Bangalore Mizo Association. Student or not, the Mizos seem to have found a way to blend in with
the culture of the city. Even if, in the beginning, they found it a bit strange - as it happened to HT Sangliana, the celebrity icon from Mizoram in Bangalore.

“I just couldn’t handle the idli. I thought it was so insipid,” says the former top cop-turned-politician reminiscing his first few days in the city. He quickly breaks into a smile and adds, “I didn’t know that if you mix it with sambar and chutney it tastes so wonderful.” Sangliana is aware that he is the face of all Mizos in the city.

“Whenever Mizos come here, the locals ask them ‘Are you also a Mizo like Sangliana?”’ he says.

Mizos are often known to hang around with people from the north-east than mixing with the locals. Student of BCA,
Chanchinliana, explains, “I prefer to stay with them (people from the north-east) as the local culture is different and we don’t share the same thoughts as the locals.”

But there are enough examples of the healthy intermingling of the two cultures. SH Shivshankar, for instance, went ahead and tied the knot with Vanlalsiami, a native of Mizoram, who has now made Bangalore home. This Bangalore-based businessman says, “Mizos are brilliant and intelligent. They have a natural flair for creativity.”

Mizos have two major festivals - the Chapchar Kut in which the land is prepared for sowing in March, and Mim Kut to celebrate the harvest season in August-September.

There is not much scope for them to celebrate these traditional festivals in Bangalore, but they do keep alive the tradition of carol singing at Christmas time. “We go to Bangalore Raj Bhavan and sing carols during Christmas,” says Chanchinliana.

If there is one thing that will make the Mizos feel more at home, it is the allotment of a civic amenity site to construct the Mizoram House.

“For the past five-six years, there has been no response from the government. People come for treatment in hospitals like Kidwai and Narayana Hrudayalaya for cancer and heart ailments but have no place to stay in the city. Hotels are too expensive,” says Sangliana.

The hills of Chikmagalur and Madikeri remind most Mizos of home.  However, a tree in Lalbagh known as Zawng Prah (in Mizo) grows almost everywhere in hilly Mizoram.

“The beans of this tree are delicious. If Kannadigas get to know of it, they can make excellent sambar out of it,” smiles Sangliana.