Sama Chakeva

Another prominent folklore is a part of one of the most well-known festivals in the Mithila region of Bihar. Sama and Chakeva are the ideal siblings in the story, where the brother goes to an extreme extent to save his sister. This festival is celebrated to honour the presence of a brother in his sister’s life and the lifelong bond they share. This festival generally starts on the seventh day of Kartik, as stated in the Hindu calendar, and ends on Kartik Purnima. As part of the Sama-Chakeva festival, sisters in groups bring the soil dug by their brothers from the fields and hills near settlements and make various types of artistic idols and images of Sama and Chakeva (in the form of birds) from it, later painting them with various colours and, after completing rituals on Purnima, submerging them in rivers.It has another important significance as well, because migratory birds from the Himalayas are seen in the plain region. They symbolise Sama and Chakeva.The locals sing, dance, and retell the folklore, wishing good health and well-being to their brothers and sisters.