The Kohima Night Carnival which commenced on the first day of the 23rd edition of Hornbill Festival came to an end on 10 December along with the conclusion of the festival.

Nagaland Tribune spoke to the president of the Kohima Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), Kezhazer Angami, and the general secretary, Kaihrii Henry Chisiitemei, on the 2022 edition of the night carnival and their plans for the next edition.

KCCI president Kezhazer Angami said the team would like to make this event be more self-sustainable instead of being dependent solely on the government or the grant from the aid fund which, he pointed out, has dropped rather than increased.

The government should know that the night carnival is one of the most integral parts of the Hornbill festival and they should encourage the KCCI to make it more glamorous and captivating, Angami stated. “If we can be self-dependent, then the government can utilise the fund meant for us to promote other channels during Hornbill.”

Angami said the team is looking forward to improving the Night Carnival in the next edition by giving opportunities to churches, different tribal bodies, student bodies, Self-Help Groups, craft persons and entrepreneurs to promote Naga handicrafts and local artists, instead of individuals.

“We target to accommodate all community that deals with tribal speciality and cuisines,” he added.

Pointing out that most of the items sold this year were from mainland India, the KCCI president said locals would be given the priority in the next edition of Night Carnival.

“By taking a step ahead, we want to enlarge the opportunity. Next year, we want all the Naga tribes to be present here with their traditional food and items, especially our artisans and craftsman.”

Angami said there are many people who haven’t tasted the specialty of all the tribes. He also stressed that the focus on tribal cuisines and food was not only for Nagas alone but meant for tourists as well.

“We want this to be a destination where they come and have a taste of what Naga speciality is,” he said.

Angami said new and interesting ingredients will be added in the next edition. “Participants will be encouraged to come in full attire on the first day not just to add glamour to the night carnival but also to promote our culture enhancing our show,” he said.

When asked about the 2022 Night Carnival, the KCCI president said it had gone “gracefully and in a very satisfying manner.” He said there had been no reports of disruptions “created by the visitors” and the response of both the participants and visitors were “very positive from the start” which, he added, had been a source of great encouragement for the organisers.

KCCI general secretary Kaihrii Henry Chisiitemei said there were less visitors on the initial nights but eventually, the night carnival started to pick up a large crowd.

Although the number of participants was less compared to the previous year, about 130 stalls registered for this year’s edition, he added.

He also informed that the Food Court in this year’s edition were categorised into regular, semi premium and premium.

The organising team also prepared a surprise for the vendors by extending the time by a stretch of an hour and also giving out awards for the best stall, most innovative stall, best decoration and best photography in order to encourage the vendors. The winners got the privilege of direct registration in the next edition.

The participants of this year’s Night Carnival were mostly local entrepreneurs, self-help groups and student’s body.

Border Security Force (BSF) Brass band, Woodland and Faith Harvest Nagamese Fellowship also performed on the final night of the Carnival.