THAZING LAP
The Thazing Lap festival is an important Kut (festival) celebrated by the Vaiphei tribe. It is a festival that is exclusive to the Vaipheis as there is no evidence of kindred tribes having a similar festival. ‘Thazing’ in Vaiphei means Autumn while ‘Lap’ means ‘celebration’. So literally, Thazing lap kut roughly means the festival that is celebrated in the Autumn season(August, September and October).
The Thazing Lap is essentially a recreational post sowing festival that takes place after the entire sowing process including weeding, clearing and burning of fields, transplanting and sowing of paddy etc is completed during the Muktha(July) or the summer monsoon season. After the tiring sowing season is over, Vaipheis engage in recreation and festivities that stretch into the Autumn season which is called thazing-tha (August to October).
The antecedents or origin of the Thazing Lap festival is traced back to a period in Vaiphei history when various Vaiphei clansinhabited a settlement called Khawvaiphei, believed to be located in present day Chin hills, Burma (Myanmar). Its celebration as a major festival of the Khuavaiphei settlers can be found from around the year 1560.
Originally, the Thazing Lap festival was not an annual festival. Year long Meticulous planning and preparations seems to have taken place in the years the Thazing lap kut wasto be celebrated.
