Guwahati | The traditional Bagurumba dance of the Bodo community will take centre-stage here on Saturday, with over 10,000 artistes set to participate in a grand performance in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Modi, who will arrive in Assam on a two-day visit on Saturday evening, said the programme celebrates Bodo culture and reaffirmed the government's commitment to fulfilling the aspirations of the community.
"This programme celebrates the great Bodo culture. The NDA Government at the Centre and in Assam are working extensively to fulfil the vision of Bodofa Upendranath Brahma," the prime minister said in a post on X on Friday.
Brahma, a revered leader of the Bodo community, died of a terminal illness in 1990 at the age of 34 and was posthumously honoured with the title ‘Bodofa' (guardian of the Bodos).
Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya and Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, among others, will accompany Modi in witnessing the recital.
Titled 'Bagurumba Dwhou 2026', the performance will be held at the Arjun Bhogeswar Baruah Stadium in the city's Sarusajai area.
Over 10,000 artistes, including around 8,000 dancers from 81 assembly constituencies across 23 districts, will participate in the event.
Final rehearsals were held on Friday evening, with the chief minister reviewing them.
Sarma said about 20,000 people will be accommodated inside the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in the sports complex, where the performance will take place.
Others with passes will be able to view the recital at holding areas inside the sports complex on LED screens, especially put up for the purpose, he said.
"The pride of our state is connected with the performance. We seek the cooperation of everyone," the CM said.
Bagurumba, a folk dance of the Bodo community -- one of Assam's largest indigenous groups -- is deeply rooted in nature and symbolises blooming flowers and harmony between human life and the natural world.
Performed traditionally by women, with men accompanying them as musicians, the dance features graceful movements imitating butterflies, birds, leaves and flowers.
The Guwahati presentation incorporates the word ‘dwhou', meaning wave in the Bodo language, and will be accompanied by songs in Bodo and traditional instruments such as kham, serja, sifung, jatha and japshring, several of which carry Geographical Indication tags.
Closely associated with festivals like Bwisagu, the Bodo New Year, and Domasi, Bagurumba represents peace, fertility, joy and collective harmony.
Preparations involved several Bodo organisations, with 25 experts training 400 master trainers in Guwahati, who then coached the artistes in their respective districts.
The state government has organised similar large-scale performances of Bihu and Jhumoir dances over the past two years.
