Metros, Money & Marijuana- Assamese Youth’s New Ideal
Few decades earlier the world knew Assamese youths as milestones of revolution or with thoughts of social changes. By history, world knows Assamese youths as Patriotic and devoted for Society & Motherland. And now, change itself changed it’s way & impact. Assamese youths were really fed up with Gun Fights, Battles, Bloodshed & decade old patriotism, in last 10 years. It is no more strange that Assamese youths now a days feel shame for their historical identity. Their historical identity stood as the barrier in their wings of hope, so they had to be changed, as change is always call of nature.
Kimanor score korili (How much did you score of!) – asked Arnab, 23 working in an MNC. His friend Biman, aged 22 years, student of Delhi University replied “Just 100 rupees worth poo, Rizla and few cigarettes.” Here comes some of the new ideal, thoughts & identity of Assamese youth.
If you happen to be someone not younger than thirties you might be wondering what the above means. I assure you, every young one from Assam who is studying or working in metros or big cities outside the state knows exactly what it means. Poo (or Japoo) is the Assamese youth’s popular code-word for Ganja, Rizla is the smoking paper used to roll a joint of Ganja and the most comically, to score here means to buy and bring some stuff from the peddler! Just being an onlooker into the lives of the youth from Assam and Northeastern states putting up in the metros or reputed educational destinations will prove the large pioneers of Marijuana (ganja) culture amongst them. And this number is increasing at an alarming rate. Be it be a guy or girl, student or young professional, the affinity to ganja has almost become a syndrome for majority of non-resident Assamese youths, so much so that a good party or weekend definition for many is incomplete without few rounds of Ganja joints passed from one other. Better still, the stuff has to be of good quality, – Manala Cream (The famous Hashish from Manali), Black Parvati (Black Hashish that comes from Parvati valley of the Himalayas), Manipuri Ganja, etc are reputed to be the most popular ones. The popular way of smoking up too seems to have changed, with joints made from Smoking papers (e.g. Rizla, OCB, etc) taking over traditional Chillums and various new styles of smoking getting into practice. Bottles half filled with water, called Bongs (something similar to traditional hookahs) are used to intake high amount of liquefied ganja-smoke. Even water buckets (yes, the ones used for bathing!) are used for higher amount of smoke intake, calling it Smoke on the Water!
An obvious question so far would be, – How is an illegal thing so widely available? To answer this, a small investigation from Times of Assam reveals a few of the popular locations for Assamese youths where Ganja is purchased. It’s evident that the Illegal part is only in papers and books, not in practice.
- Mumbai: Turbhe Market (Navi Mumbai),Panvel (Near ONGC Colony where huge number of Assamese live), Vashi Sector 11, Goregaon East (Near HUB mall), Ghatkopar (Near Railway Station), Andheri (Even Home delivery by agents available)
- Delhi: Near Jantar Mantar, Near Jawaharlal Univesity campus, Ashram,Lajpat Nagar, Munirka, North campus
- Gurgaon: Kapashera border (market behind Police station), Sector 22
- Nagpur: Ambazari Hilltop, Hingna Road (Behind Hingna Police station), Wardha Road (Behind South Point school), Raju Nagar (Near some premier Engineering colleges)
- Chennai: Near SRM University, Taramani, Adayar
- Bangalore: Hosur Road, near Majestic Cinema Market
To analyze the root cause of the increasing love for Ganja, we had approached various circles of Assamese youth who are deeply addicted. Following are the three basic reasons why our youth take to smoking ganja:
- Better than Alcohol: Ganja has always been defined as a happy drugs, i.e. something which does not cause you to get violent, cry out with emotion or kill someone in a drunken state. Unlike alcohol, the smoker does not walk zigzag, speaks with twisted tongue or smells foul at all. Moreover it’s cheaper than alcohol. While it would take some thousand grands for a few friends to get drunk in a party, the same high can be obtained by all of them in probably just few joints worth fifty or hundred of ganja. And better still,– there are no hangovers next morning!
- Rock n Roll Culture: The youth of Assams (especially Guwahati) and Northeastern states have a high inclination towards rock music, preferring rock over traditional Bollywood or Indian music (In the race to be different than others) and most of the bands which they prefer are somehow associated with ganja smoking. Be it be the classics of Pink Floyd, Nirvana, Doors or Bob Marley, there is a reputation state where most devoted followers of their music preaches to enjoy them when one is high on Ganja. In fact the psychedelic music by the most popular band, Pink Floyd has been so associated with Marijuana that followers actually claim “You won’t understand Pink Floyd till you are high”. Needless to say, we have a lot of us who now understands Floyd more and more!
- Dekhak Dekhi (Seeing others): This is probably the truest reason why there are hardly any non smokers of Marijuana nowadays. “Everyone does, why not me” is always the state of a young mind exposed to the dirty secrets of life, and needless to say, this is the most dangerous of all reasons.
Without diving into the actual medical terminologies, we all claim that Marijuana or Ganja addiction is bad for health. There are innumerable theories and reasons stating the adverse effects of this soft drug, but say that to a pioneer of ganja and you will be shocked to hear some surprising replies. There are big statements from these passionate followers of a forbidden drug claiming that Marijuana actually has several medical benefits including Cancer Treatment, Seizures, Glaucoma, Migraines, Alzheimer’s etc. In fact many of them cite examples of countries where Marijuana is legalized (Netherlands for example) or where doctors advise patients to smoke it in some instances. No wonder whether Marijuana should be legalized is a debatable issue, if not now then in future. The government can never have an answer if we ask them why alcohol or smoking tobacco is not made illegal when ganja smoking or cultivation is illegal or why drugs like Zyprexa are legal for medical treatment when it is known to cause pancreatic damage called Ketosis, which then destroys in a chain reaction the kidneys, liver, etc. For the youth of a country who idolizes America or the west more than anything, it would not be surprising if our youth of tomorrow comes to demand legalization of marijuana or ganja. The demand is already strongly on in several western nations, including the USA. In our part of the world, it has reasons to get all the stronger, with religion favoring the phenomenon Lord Shiva. There were recent reports in Assamese print and tele-media which reported high cultivation of ganja in the riverbanks of Brahmaputra by illegal migrants. If inclinations to ganja in our youth continue to increase in this alarming rate, there would not be a day far off when politics too will have a new ball (called Legalization of ganja) in our courtyard to play around with. Besides, Ganja is strictly non-capitalistic commodity too, for a matter of fact!
Angaraag Mahanta, no wonder, is the new youth sensation of Assam, bringing in a new revolution in the music industry like a fresh breath of air. Being the youth icon of Assam, he bears enormous responsibility on his shoulders to lead our youth in the right direction. However his songs Banao Banao and Keep Rolling which are phenomenally popular among the youth (made available through internet uploads) speaks about smoking and promoting ganja. Whether he prefers smoking it or not is a personal choice, whether you like the song or not is personal as well. But whether the message conveyed through the two songs is a good one, is really a question. We don’t want to say to our youth Paharoon mein so weed hai, Keep rolling (A stanza from the Song Keep Rolling). Do we? To have a better answer, we would only appeal to the wiser ones, in the same way Angaraag appeals to the almighty Gunee janako disha dikha deh oh mere parmatma (Show the way to the wise, o’ Almighty).
That was a very welcome article, that indeed was very much necessary. Being an assamese myself and living among one of the groups in a place which the author has mentioned in the article, i indeed agree to almost everything what he said, including the fact that singers must also be very careful when they come up with a song which glorifies GANJA or POO, as the author mentioned.
While saying that, we must also remember that, INDIA is a democratic country and everybody has his share of 'freedom of speech or expression', and going by that, he has the right to sing any song provided its not anti-national, offensive or derogatory, for that matter. So, the responsibility rests on the person who listens to the song whether to follow what a particular singer says or to just enjoy his song and music and get going. So, as a matter of fact, it is we, the people, who should be more careful, or alert, for that matter, to not get driven away by the song or the music or whatsoever.
Personally speaking, i used to have POO when i was doing my graduation, and somehow, i was having a lot of it. But now, as responsibilities have crept up and there is this pressure of getting into a good job and stuff, i am not indulged in all those stuff and i am happy with my life. But, while saying this, i must say that i enjoyed each and every moment of those days and that life. And nothing can be traded for it. The feeling that i had then cudn't be described in pen and paper or on this screen for that matter. That was a wonderful feeling, very different, bizzare in some occasions, even fearful and depressed in some, bt mostly, HAPPY, VERY HAPPY and VERY VERY HAPPY ones. I would like to call those days 'HAPPY DAYS OF MY LIFE' and as i already said, i wouldn't trade them for anything. And ya, one thing i would like to say is that, i got into smoking very late (according to the usual age youngsters get into it) – around when i was 20, and that also beacuse of the same reason the author mentioned 'DEKHAK DEKHI' or by getting influenced by my friends, and when, now, i have come to say this, that its past now, i don't regret it at all. It was all for the good. And i must say it was a real learning experience.
Finally, i would like to say that, 'JUST LIKE THERE IS NO ONE WHO IS UNIVERSALLY BEAUTIFUL OR UNIVERSALLY UGLY, as 'beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder', similarly, 'THERE IS NOTHING WHICH IS UNIVERSALLY GOOD OR BAD, IT VERY WELL LIES IN THE EYES OF THE BEHOLDER'. If u feel its bad, then its bad for u, if u feel its good, so be it. There is no justification whatsoever. Everybody must know for themselves what is good or bad, plus INDIA is emerging as a developed nation very soon and we must expect some kind of MATURITY from the developed countrymen, that atleast they know what they are doing and when to stop whatever they are doing if they feel that its WRONG!!!
Why drink n die wen u can smoke n fly!as somebody said that the assamese youths r shame of their historical identity bt let me remind u one thing that lord shiva itself smoked ganja so from the past only this has started
Even i used to do japoo. But the fact of the matter is it is increasing at an alarming rate. Our youths are going on a path from where social revolution is distant dream and it will remain a dream forever. Mr.Baruah even i feel that those days for me were golden days but it has come to pass. It is time to wake up if we ever want to see "Xonor Axom".
the whole article is welcome except these few lines," It is no more strange that Assamese youths now a days feel shame for their historical identity. Their historical identity stood as the barrier in their wings of hope, so they had to be changed, as change is always call of nature".
This article is an interesting read.its is 100% true with the statistics. What i found disappointing here is the way smoking pot has been portrayed as a social taboo. I have been smoking marijuana for quite a long time now and I have whatsoever no shame in admitting it. It is something that should be left alone entirely to the people who smoke it as much as it is left alone for tobacco and alcohol users. Marijuana is banned by the law. And why is that so? Because it can be grown and made anywhere leaving no source of income for the govt., whereas drugs like tobacco and alcohol with even worse withdrawal symptoms and tolerance levels are marketed freely in society,allowing the govt. to earn billions in revenues.this is the fact.it has nothing to do with idolising the west or america.
secondly,it is less likely that a marijuana smoker would end up in a road accident or domestic violence,given its symptoms.as for the rock n roll culture as mentioned in your article,it is a lot better if the streets of assam would sink into a musical atmosphere than political rallies and bloodshed.no one,however patriotic he may be,would want the latter.it would be wrong to say that our youth is ashamed of our history.
thirdly,as against the popular myth that marijuana is the 'gateway drug',research shows that it is less likely for pot smokers to switch to harder drugs,like morphs and opioids.
and as for angarag mahanta,he should be judged purely on the basis of his creativity and musicianship.there are a few musicians and artists,i think most of them know them,who often create nuisance on stage under the influence of alcohol,and yet,they are excused of it being as a part of their personal problem.
i am stating all the above points not because i smoke pot myself,but judging things based purely on facts.the rising marijuana population just shows that the youth are more radical in their thinking as opposed to popular myths that 'poo' is a dangerous drug,and which literally has very less evidence in the statement.i am,by no means,justifying the fact that our youth is increasingly getting inclined to marijuana,but,it should be left alone entirely to the people who use it,instead of creating hype and making it appear as a social taboo.it is funny on how an article titled 'metros,money,and marijuana' shifts its attention only to the latter half of the story.
Regards-
Shaunak Bordoloi
Haryana
I have stayed in almost all the metros….and i can say u have the right information…But in this little journey through my life among various people…I have never met a single Oxomiya who are ashamed of their historical identity(or whatsoever)…Infact I raise my head high everytime i speak of my motherland…I spent 15 years of my 25 years life in Oxom and never in any way have seen any bloodshed, battle…or whatever…And I plan to spend rest of my life here….even if I rot to death. and speaking about addiction to drugs..they will just get over it eventually (or i hope they do).
P.S.: I am proud to be an Oxomiya::. Joi Aii Oxom.
I have been smoking ganja for the past five years..i admit that it is nice to listen to pink floyd,porcupine tree,bob marley etc after smoking poo..but it is wrong to state that it has become a culture amongst the youth.
I have been smoking marijuana since 3 years, not reagularly but just a type of weekend smoker. Yes, marijuana can cure cancer, epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, etc. You all can check out all the documentaries on marijuana. You will get to know everything you want to know. There are many deaths because of alcohol and tobacco but we have never heard of anyone get overdosed of weed and die because the simple reason is that its natural, pure and healthy. Its improves creativity, brings concentration, etc. It is likely for a drunk person to meet with an accident but we have never heard of stoned people meet with an accident. There a no deaths till now because of marijuana. The people when they get drunk act ase a nuisance and almost everytime gets into some fights but here are the stoners, they just sit in a corner listening to pink floyd or or any type of psytrance. I’m not saying these things because i love and support weed but because it is really a good thing. Weed can make us see the world in a very different way, infact in a beautiful way. If marijuna gets legalized worldwide and, each and every people start smoking it then the earth will be a much better and peaceful place to live in. There will be no wars and people will be happy.
Marijuana smoking is increasing at an “alarming rate” sounds simplistic. India’s intimate cultural connection with the cannabis plant goes back at least two to three thousand years. It has a glorious mention in the Attarva Veda. The way you have spoken about cannabis here reeks of judgment and lack of information. And if Papon choose to smoke and sing about it, it is his choice. We never seem to police songs about alcohol. There is enough evidence across the globe to show that cannabis has been made illegal because of the failed War on Drugs led by America, which forced the Indian government to make it illegal in 1985. Before that the ‘Indian Hemp And Drug Commission Report’ of 1885 (I think) which clearly says that cannabis’ connect with the culture and its spirituality, besides its health benefits makes it necessary to let people use it.Please read up more before making a judgement or moralising about it. Just for starters, Sir Richard Branson supports marijuana and wants it regularised. I am surprised that Assamese people, who have some of the finest of cannabis growing, go all moral on it and say it is bad. I guess we are okay with alcoholism and violence, but not with something calmer. Also, your point about Assamese youth being influenced by the West is a little strange. It does not mean these are spoilt or bad kids. They just like different things. Besides, it is in better taste to listen to, say, Pink Floyd than some lame popular Assamese songs you get hear all around. Also, Pink Floyd’s music is described as ‘psychedelic’. It was made in the 70s, when LSD (a psychedelic drug which is pretty much safe) was the drug of choice for the Flower generation. Anyway, I will end here. I just want the writer to go a little deeper into the subject. One should not write after having already decided that cannabis smoking is growing “alarmingly”. That’s biased approach. By the way, Assamese youth are proud and doing well in various parts of India. Some of us are global and do not identify with cultural constructs.
I accept everything but i have a question.
How can anyone say marijuana plantation is illegal when it naturally grows in its native place. Its like throwing someone out of his own house.
For me , its not about legalizing its about peep shouldn’t care about stoners.
stoners are peaceful. Let them remain peaceful.
And most importantly as long as a drug doesn’t harm you and cause deaths, treat that as something legal
#peace