Guwahati: The 100 Drums Wangala Festival entered the Guinness World Records on Saturday after 1,000 traditional drummers and 3,000 dancers performed at the Garo Heritage Village in Chibragre, near Tura. The record was achieved during the Golden Jubilee edition of Meghalaya’s annual celebration of Garo culture.

The performance took place on November 14, the concluding day of the four-day festival, which began on November 11.

Union Tourism and Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said the Centre was ready to work with the Meghalaya government to develop the Garo Hills as a major tourist destination.

Addressing the closing ceremony, he said Wangala could become a prominent cultural attraction in the Northeast and cited Nagaland’s Hornbill Festival as an example of how indigenous celebrations can draw visitors from across India and abroad.

Shekhawat said promoting Wangala could introduce Garo culture to a wider audience while creating livelihood opportunities for local residents. He identified tourism, hospitality, handicrafts and entrepreneurship as sectors that could benefit, particularly among the younger generation.

The Golden Jubilee performance also fulfilled a vision of Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma’s late father, former Lok Sabha Speaker Purno A. Sangma.

During the festival’s inauguration on November 11, Conrad Sangma recalled his father’s wish to expand the event into a much larger celebration featuring 1,000 drums. Saturday’s performance fulfilled that ambition.

More than 300 stalls at the festival displayed Garo cuisine, handloom products, handicrafts, traditional jewellery and other locally made goods.

The four-day programme also featured folk performances, traditional dances, indigenous games and competitions.

The festival was first organised in December 1976 at Asananggre in the then West Garo Hills district. Since then, it has grown into one of Meghalaya’s major celebrations of indigenous culture.

Wangala is traditionally celebrated after the harvest to express gratitude to Misi Saljong, the deity of fertility and prosperity.