Bengali New Year – Apr. 14: Pohela Boishakh Celebration Ideas

Entry #2273, April 7, 2013

Pohela Boishakh is the first day of Bengali New Year. The day is celebrated on April 14 in Bangladesh and in West Bengal of India. Apart from that, the Bengali communities in some other Indian states including Odisha, Tripura, Jharkhand, and Assam also observe this day.

Mongol Shovajatra on Pohela Boishakh.

Image via: News2d

‘Pohela Boishakh’ is a mark of cultural unity in Bangladesh. Irrespective of religious, ethnic, or other identities, every Bengali celebrates this day by taking part in Mongol Shovajatra (a kind of festive rally), going to Boishakhi Mela(a fair displaying things representing the rural roots of the country), eating Panta-Ilish(watered rice with fried Hilsha fish), and participating in different cultural activities. However, the trend of exchanging gifts has also become rife in these days. Check out the following gift ideas for Pohela Boishakh:

Gifts for Office Staff

If you are the owner of a company, giving gifts to your staff on Pohela Boishakh is a great way to establish a friendly working environment and improving your relation with them. You can make a gift basket by stuffing a bamboo-made basket with one or two pieces of clay-made toys, a replica of spinning wheel, a jar of honey collected from the forests of the Sundarbans, ripe tamarind, hand-made fans, a catapult, some amlas, etc. All of these things are very Bengali in nature and remind every Bangladeshi of his or her roots.

Clay-made toys – a very traditional Pohela Boishakh gift item.

Image via: Flickr

Gifts for Guests

A tradition of Pohela Boishakh is to give gifts to the guests who will come to your house on that day. Just a little bit of your care is enough to make the gift a memorable one for your guests. Clay-, wood-, bamboo-, and fiber-made things are deeply related to Bengali tradition. So, you can give them clay-made horse, elephant, tortoise, flower vase, pitcher; wooden key ring; bamboo-made or wooden jewelry items; fiber-made hanger or mattress; or hand-made fans. Give children small replicas of boats, palanquin, tabor, dhol, etc. If you have time and are willing to take some extra pain, make them flower vase or picture frame from paper grind.

Gifts for Dear Ones

The gifts for your special ones should be special in nature too. You can give them wooden jewelry box containing wooden or fiber-made bracelets, wooden bangles, wooden earrings, etc. Otherwise, you can prepare some special foods related to this festival and give them by stuffing in a small paper or bamboo basket. Food items that represent Bengali culture are puffed rice, fried corns, flattened rice, and different types of sweetmeats mainly made of coconut, meshed rice, and date juice. To add more Bengali flavor, you can wrap each item with leaves of jackfruit or banana.

A coconut-made sweetmeat.

Image via: Mimpi Dreams

This festival holds the essence of Bengali culture. It gives people a chance to come closer through remembering the roots of Bengali tradition. Just take care that the gifts must reflect the essence of Bengali culture and tradition. Enjoy the great festival!

Shuvo Noboborsho (Happy New Year)!

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