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| Rang ghar. Asia's biggest pavilion, Sibsagar, Assam. allaboutassam.in |
Rang Ghar, a beautiful historical site of Assam state, NE India has a unique place in the cultural and sports history of this state. .Located in Sibsagar town, it is said to be the first and the biggest Pavilion of Asia and it was in Sivasagar, where some historical sports events had taken place. It is also the oldest surviving amphitheaters in Asia. This red-colored two-story structure and the adjoining place were built by two of the great Ahom kings to stage many sports and cultural events in a year. The two rulers were Swargadeo Rudra Singha (construction year: 1696-1714} and his successor to the throne Swargadeo Pramatta Singha {construction year: 1744-1751}. Located in Sibsagar, the site is about 3.9 km away from the railway station. and 3.2 km from ASTC. It lies northeast of the Rangpur Palace, a seven-story royal complex comprising the Talatal Ghar and the Kareng Ghar. The spectators in the way past included invariably Ahom nobles and gentlemen and the most sought sports event were buffalo-fights. and wrestling.
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| Historical Rang ghar- for culture and sports events. allaboutassam.in |
Swargadeo Rudra Singha built the pavilion with wood and bamboo easily available in the jungles of Assam and was not built to last longer. Unlike other parts of India, except Kerala, the NE part of Assam receives lots of rain during the Monsoon seasons. Because of vagaries of weather and perpetual wet conditions, the pavilion became damaged far beyond redemption. Ruler Pramatta Singha who succeeded his father after his death resolved to have a better pavilion built that could withstand the unfriendly weather condition existing there. He preferred brick-stone masonry to tackle the rain and wet conditions so that the structure could be durable and stay safe for a long time.
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| Asia's first pavilion, Sibsagar, Assam allaboutassam.in |
The purpose of the pavilion was to encourage entertainments for the people by way of conducting sports and cultural events. Such public entertainments would promote harmony among the people of different communities besides offering them an opportunity to take respite from the monotonous and mundane life. The roof of the Rang Ghar resembles like an inverted royal Ahom long boat and the base of the monument has a series of arched entrances. Atop the roof sits one can see a a decorative pair of carved stone crocodiles.
The structure needs periodic repairs as many of the arched entrances have just retained the brick frame work, etc. But the sculptural adornments here and there are faded away and the remnants are visible in many places. As for brick-building, the structure is made of well-fired bricks and the mortar - a paste-like stuff was prepared from powdered rice, eggs pulse called Maati Maah and a fish named Borali Mach in Assamese. To plaster the outer and inner surfaces, they used well-ground lime/sand mortar. With a view to keeping inside cool, a special powder was coated on the inner wall surface of Rang Ghar.
The adjoining field, known as Rupohi Pothar, would become a beehive of activities on the days of cultural and sports events, including elephant and bull-fights, wrestling, etc., during the Ahom rule. This way Rang Ghar- the sports pavilion spread the message of mass entertainments that kept the people in good spirits and subtly promoted cultural and native sports.
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| location map, Sibsagar, Assam, Maps of India.com |
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| Information board, Rang Ghar, Assam. allaboutassam.in |
Tit-bits:
As for the Ahom dynasty, it was in 1228 Tai prince named Chaolung Sukapha entered the Brahmaputra River’s valley from south China and established the rule along with his 9000 companions. Roughly 600 years later, the kingdom failed to survive. The reasons attributed were political and religious issues. The natives of Assam followed Neo -Vaishnavism (of Hinduism). On the contrary, the Ahoms and others from the north followed old Hinduism. The natives called Moamorias, were in large numbers and challenged the supremacy of Ahom reign. When the ruler tried hard to retard the expansion of Neo-Vaishnavism by interfering in their religious rituals, violent protests erupted between the two communities. Started in 1769, the rebellion by the natives lasted for more than 35 years. At one stage, the Ahom rulers could no longer fight against the powerful natives and, at last, the kingdom had begun to slide downhill. Burmese invasion and economic crises further affected the declining kingdom.
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