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    Tattooing and North East India:

For generation has been an expression, portrayal or a visual representation of one’s creativity and ideas. For centuries it is been a creation that stimulates an individual’s thoughts, emotions, beliefs or ideas through the senses .For many this has been an objective to provide an aesthetic view and for others it has been a celebration of life. Art has always been dominating around the globe and has always portrayed different ethnic cultures and indigenous tribes and people for many like us in the Northeast India; it has also been about our own distinct identity. There are different forms of Art and each Art has its own way of portraying ideas and through different mediums and to generalize creativity under a small sphere would itself be a crime, creativity as many say it has no boundaries. Tattoo, which to many maybe fashion but as a matter of fact, is a unique form of art, which has been practiced for centuries all over the globe. For the Tribes of Amazon to our very own Northeast Tattoo has also been an expression of our lives society and culture. Today it has become a trend and is seen as a fashion, but for centuries it has always been more than what ‘meets the eye’.

 

In recent times Traditional Tattoo Art was followed and adopted by people in the region to mark out, or identify a territory. Since then tattoo in this region is evolving and still act as a catalyst in describing the people of the region. Not to left behind be Shillong and Nagaland. Shillong a.k.a Rock Capital of India has been a domain of different genres of Art, and as such the art of tattoo is one amongst many. Many youth in the region are picking up this art form and for some it has been fashion, art and for some a source of living.

 

Manipur has a vast history of tattoo art as these tattoos described the headhunters in the region. In olden days taking a head was believed to increase the fertility of the crops and the more number of heads a warrior took the more the number of tattoos he sported. Today this is not being practiced and traditional tattoos are losing its touch. The culture of tattoo art is also evolving and promising in other states in the region like Assam, Mizoram, Tripura and Sikkim. Assam has been a hub of different religion, tribes and people. Art here reflects a lot about people their culture, living style and above all people’s opinion. In Mizoram, Tattoos or, patterns drawn up on skin are widely prevalent among, bikers and outlaws have now become a popular body decoration for the youth in Mizoram. Sikkim boasts of a rich culture of handicrafts. The art of tattoo in this region has not yet reached its peak, but amongst many potential young tattoo artists its future seems to be bright. Adding more various tattoo studios are emerging to promote this art form in the region. Raphael Tattoos in Shillong, Black Magic Tattoo and Piercing Studio in Nagaland, HeadHunters Ink in Guwahati are a few.

 

North East has the potential of young talents in every field, but all they need is a better platform and a right way to tap them. North East is known for its diverse tradition and culture and has so much to offer. The potential of youth here in the region is very vast. If given a better platform they can bring laurels, name and fame to the country. Taking a reference many youth in the region are coming forth in adopting this cool and “Y” generation form of art to make a change. The North East region overall has done better in music art and sports scenario and with such potential youth in the region, why not a new form of Art a.k.a Tattoo Art be a favourite amongst many.

 

 

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