BUISU

 The word buisu derived from the Tripuri root word bisi meaning year. Buisu literally means New Year eve. It is the junction of end of the old year and beginning of the New Year. In one words it means New Year celebration.

In the past en Tripuri people used to do jhum or huk cultivation, almost every thing required for house hold or in other words almost all the need of man used to be produced from huk and jungle. Naturally they would then depend on huk and huk used to be their life. That is why Tripuri would have to observe when the year would begin and when it would end, as any change in timing for any part of jhum activity would result a bad consequences and ultimately a disastrous impact in the family. For example, if one was not sure of the time when to search jungle for jhum field in time, then naturally he would not find good piece of forest, as other would take all the best and most suitable jungle.

Similarly if one is not aware of time to cut the selected jungle for jhum, he will not be able to finish in time and the cut jungle would not dry up for burning to make it a jhum field. In the same reason if a man is not sure when to burn the cut jungle he will not be able to clean it in time for sowing seeds. And if one is not sure when the new year has come then he will not be able to sow seeds of paddy, cotton, and all other agricultural products of jhum and ultimately he will be left poor and had beg.

That is why the importance of New Year was very important, so they would have to know exactly when the New Year had began and they would all celebrate with pomp and show, the beginning of New Year, that is Buisu.

Buisu falls on the last day of chaitra of Indian religious calendar, which falls on 13^th of April in Gregorian  and on 14^th in the leap year. The festival of buisu is celebrated in two days, first day is hari buisu meaning buisu for animals, and second day is maha buisu or grand buisu.

 On the hari buisu, before the day break, young children would go to jungle, to collect wild flowers for the domestic animals. Tripuri considers domestic animals as representative of gods, because of whom they are able to do all the house hold and agricultural work.

After collecting various wild flowers from jungle, they will make a garland as much is required. Then they will bathe all the domestic animals, in the pond or any other streams. Then they will put a tilak on their fore head, put the garland on the neck of cows, goats etc. if they had horn, they would decorate the horn also with garlands, and do salutation. They would also put garland on the dogs, cats etc. this day the domestic animals are given good foods, and they are let loose to go to jungle.

 Maha buisu:

The preparation for buisu starts day before actual buisu. The women folk are the main initiator of buisu. They would weave Rignai, Risa, and Rituku for them as well any other female member of the family, and dhuti of male members and son-in-law. It would take months together, to weave large number of cloths for the family. They do white wash and cleaning of house, all the broken and nonuse able article of house would be thrown away. They would husk guria paddy into rice for making various kind of cake, that is awan. The women will grind the rice to flour for cakes. They would go to near by jungle to collect special kind of leaves called lairu to prepare Awan Bangwi. They would also have to prepare Chuwan and Bwtwk, a kind or rice bear for the festivals.

On the buisu day, mothers will wake up early in the morning even before the cock crow, prepare various kinds of cakes, they will cook various types of delicious dishes and get ready well before the lunch time party.

Some would do the lampra puja in the early morning for the welfare of the family. They invite to various friends, relatives, near and dear ones. The woman who had been married off this year are specially invited to come and attend this day. The son-in-laws are treated like VIP guest in the home. The brothers and sisters in law would make fun and demand from their brother in law. In the noon time they will gather in a particular home, bring their own contribution of share like cakes, sweets, bwtwk, and dishes.

They will have a grand feast, dine, drink, dance, and sing all through the day and night. For them buisu comes ones in a year, who know whether they will see again this day or not, so just enjoy the day. They want to forget last year's bad things, they would say good bye to the last year, so they will wait till the mid night to well come new Tripuri year, they would pass the new year so that the year ahead brings all the happiness, success, and yielding form the jhum. The very next day is beginning of Lord Goria seven days festivals. So the importance of buisu is very much in the life of Tripura people since the ancient times.