Posted on 12 May 2026:

Women’s Harvest Songs of Sikkim: Dr. Bilambita Banisudha’s Ethnographic Study

In the verdant valleys of Sikkim, where the rhythm of cultivation meets the cadence of song, Dr. Bilambita Banisudha, PhD—luminary of Hindustani Classical and Semi-Classical music, Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Music at Sikkim University—undertakes a profound analytical journey into the voices of women who sing the harvest. 

Supported by the Indian Council of Social Science Research, her study embraces the Lepcha, Khas, Limbu, Bhutia, and Nepali traditions, where songs of labour and devotion, migration and resilience echo the intimate bond between people and nature.

These melodies that, in villages across India from Suggi Haadu to Kumi and Moatsu festival songs, endure as living oral scriptures of agrarian wisdom, binding communities in rhythm and reverence, and celebrating the eternal dialogue between toil and transcendence.

The project, commenced on 19 March 2025, unfolds as a luminous exploration of women’s musical traditions across Sikkim. Rooted in cultivation and harvest seasons, these songs—woven with themes of labour, devotion, celebration, migration, resilience and the tender bond between people and nature—continue to preserve collective memory, cultural identity, and indigenous wisdom through oral transmission across generations.

“At the heart of these traditions stand women, the custodians of Sikkim’s intangible heritage. Through festivals, agricultural rituals, family gatherings, and community celebrations, they sustain folk repertoires that carry stories of everyday life and cultural continuity. Their voices embody resilience and devotion, ensuring that the rhythms of the fields remain inseparable from the rhythms of society,” says Dr. Bilambita Banisudha, renowned musician and Principal Investigator of the Projector.

Extensive fieldwork across Mangsila, Sang Khola, Danak, Namthang, and Rumtek brought researchers into close dialogue with local communities, women singers, elders, and tradition bearers. Audio‑visual documentation enriched the study, capturing nearly fifty traditional folk songs tied to harvest rituals and women’s participation in agrarian culture. These recordings illuminate the musical heritage and lived experiences of rural Himalayan societies, while visits to the Tribal Research Institute, the Sikkim State Central Library, and the Language Departments of Sikkim University strengthened the academic foundation of the work.

The project has already contributed significantly to scholarly discourse. 

A paper titled “Khas Women’s Harvest Folk Songs: Identity and Labour in Sikkim” appeared in the International Journal of Human Research and Social Science Studies, while “Harvesting Melodies: An Ethnographic Study of Khas Folk Songs” was presented at a national conference organised by the Vyanjana Arts & Culture Society with support from the Ministry of Culture.

Guided by Dr. Bilambita Banisudha as Principal Investigator, with Research Associates Dr. Subham Peter Gazmer and Kritika Sharma, this study stands as a testament to the enduring power of women’s voices—songs that bind toil with transcendence, and memory with melody.