SONGKRAN FESTIVAL: Things we have in common with Thai people as Nigerians – Daisy Danjuma

*As investigation shows ‘Water fights at Songkran festival an escalation of tradition’

*Songkran is pan-traditional new year, reason it is really beautiful – Tukie, Foreign Investor in Nigeria

*I wish Thai people happy stay in Nigeria and more celebrations – Remi Agbowu

By BASHIR ADEFAKA

“Like you know, we are headquarters of hospitability. They (in Thailand) love to celebrate, Nigerians do that as well. We have a lot of things in common. Whichever way the Europeans tend to class us, we are all happy together,” Daisy Danjuma said.

Songkran water fights are rooted in traditions of Thailand. It is the reason nobody takes offence when the water warfare is celebrated and water is splashed on others, as part of Songkran festival by way for male and female citizens anywhere they converge to celebrate their country in parts of the world take.

That exactly happened as witnessed at the occasion, where the Thai Community in Nigeria marked 2024 New Year celebration of the Asian country in Victoria Island, Lagos while joining the home government, brothers and sisters, who kick-started the three-day event of the new year celebration on Saturday 13th April 2024.

READ ALSO Faces as Thai Community in Nigeria marks Songkran Water Festival in Lagos 2024

Tagged “Songkran Water Warfare Festival” and organised by Orchid House Thai Restaurant in partnership with Thailand Community in Nigeria, the Thai New Year celebrations were ostensibly orchestrated to foster cordiality of relationship within Thai people and with their friends in host countries.

The festival also sought to promote the values including but not ended with ‘food and culture’ of the Thai people of this world. This was with splashes of water that was not meant to disrespect but strictly showcase patriotism to the great Asian nation even in a ritual manner on the other land.

That, precisely, was achieved at the Orchid House Thai Restaurant, the venue chosen by the Thai Community in Victoria Island, Lagos for the all-important festival.

A deeper interrogation of the Thailand’s Songkran, including its origins, where to celebrate, why it is celebrated in April and why there are water fights during the Songkran festival, has also been revealed.

First, it was said that Songkran, known in English word as Thai New Year, is Thailand’s biggest and most important annual festival. Bangkok is the capital and most populous city of the country that is also known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep.

It has further been revealed that it is traditionally celebrated for three days starting from the first full moon in April, simply because the country runs on what is described as the lunisolar Theravada Buddhist calendar.

The DEFENDER reports that the name ‘Songkran’ comes from an ancient Sanskrit word meaning to ‘enter’ or ‘pass into’ and refers to the movement of the zodiac.

The investigation also revealed that these days, the festival has a set start date of 13th April and that the water fights that have become synonymous with the Songkran are an escalation of tradition.

The first day of the festival is traditionally marked with spring cleaning and a water pouring ceremony. During this first day (13th April) of celebration, scented water is poured onto sacred Buddha images in temples. This symbolically represents purification – or the washing away of the previous year to welcome the New Year.

On the second day (14th April), young people pay respect to their elders by pouring scented water over their hands and feet in return for blessings and floral garlands, and offerings are made to monks and temples. The festival also marks the start of the rainy season – and one of the hottest times of the year in Thailand. Outside of the temples, these elements have metamorphosed into giant water fights involving super soakers, buckets of ice water, loud music and street parties.

There is another aspect of the festival where revellers also ‘bless’ one another by putting ‘din sor pong’, a limestone-derived cooling talcum powder paste, on each other’s faces. This has been banned in recent years as some people smear it in other’s eyes and mouths, or occasionally even use it as an excuse for inappropriate touching, but it’s still a regular feature of the festival and is generally used respectfully as it was seen in the Lagos celebration on Saturday, with various pop-up stages showcasing traditional dancing and live music.

Nattanee Booncharoen ‘Madam Tukie’, Chief Executive Officer of Orchid House Thai Restaurant, who led the celebration in Lagos, had said on tge eve of the event on Friday 12th April 2024, during an interview with The DEFENDER, things to expect on Saturday 13th April.

The apparently clear-minded foreign investor said the Thai people are such hospitable persons that have also found in their Nigerian hosts the hospitality by which they have thrived, “especially for the 30 years I have lived in Nigeria”.

She said, “People call me Tukie. I have been in Nigeria for about 30 years now and had been in import business until the Naira fell to N300 per a Dollar and I stopped to import. Now I do restaurant by name Orchid House Thai Restaurant. The first restaurant I do is in Apapa, the second one in Victoria Island and the third one in Ikeja.

“This festival event we want to do is called Songkran Water Festival. If you look everywhere in Facebook or the news; CNN, everywhere they talk about Songkran in Thailand now because Songkran is like a pan-traditional new year. We will be there to make fun and in-between the events we have our traditional people come to attend and mix together. That is why Songkran is really beautiful.”

She explained the place of ‘food and culture’, she said, “What we want to do is to hold Songkran Water Festival in Nigeria also but, when the people we have invited come, we will showcase the food to let them taste our original Thai food on ground here in Nigeria.”

Is it a way of selling Thailand’s culture to Nigeria’s consciousness? Tukie said, “This year we make big because we join hands together with Thai Community. We have small Thai Community here in Nigeria but we are really proud to be seen. So, we join hands together and we want to make this festival exactly like it is done in Thailand much as we can.

“That is why you should come and you will see our traditional people, you will see our ‘fighting war’ and you will see what we are doing and you will see what the Thai food tastes like.”

The DEFENDER reports that the Thailand’s New Year marked with Songkran Water Festival in Nigeria on Saturday was not just about Tukie the CEO of Orchid House Thai Restaurant but about where Tukie is coming from to happen to Nigeria and what it is that Thai people and Nigerians do together that promote diplomacy. Adding to this Tukie said more.

“We are talking here about Thai food, about Thai culture, that is very important focus to us. And the special thing is that, UNESCO gave us certificate this year about our water festival. That is what makes us to celebrate this year more than every other year we have done.

“That is why we Thai people, mainly here in Lagos, want to do this also to promote our Songkran. If you Google on the internet, you will find out that over 20 million people globally focus now on Thailand. We have run it here in Nigeria for four years now, even next year we will make it bigger.”

On what has been the attraction of the Federal Government of Nigeria to activities, according to her, of the tiny Thailand in Nigeria, Tukie jokingly responded.

“I do not know what the future holds but the way we do this, we are happy to do. We are really proud to show our culture. But for the impact of the Nigerian government? The government of Nigeria and that of Thailand have been in good relations over a long time especially about agriculture talking about rice, farming equipment and Thailand government has made people to come and do the work here.”

According to her, “People know about Thai food, which is ranked among the top 10 in the world about four or five of them. The people know how delicious Thai food is.

About future of the festival here in Nigeria, she said, “In the future, we want to turn this street to these colours (Thai colours) with every restaurant attracted here to join us to make it bigger in the future, coming up maybe next year or two years, all this street will be full with people. That is what we are planning. This year, we want to make people to see what are doing and what we can do.”

Explaining the water fight in the festival, she said, “The water washes away the bad luck for last year and makes you come free for the new year. It is like a culture where you pour water on your people with similar meaning like that. But this one we do for long, long years back in Thailand.”

At the main event on Saturday in Lagos, guests from Nigerian elitic class and members of the diplomatic corps were sighted with Wife of Lieutenant General Theophilous Yakubu Danguma, former of Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff and Minister of Defence, Senator Daisy Danjuma and veteran journalist, Mrs Remi Agbowu.

Speaking with journalists, Senator Daisy Danjuma bared her mind on why she made herself physically present at the Thailand New Year event marked in Lagos.

“I am here to come and celebrate with my Thai friends. It is very important day for them, their New Year,” she said.

Asked by a journalist who insinuated a surprise that she was present because she (the journalist) said learned people tend to forget about culture, the former Edo State Senator corrected her.

She said, “I would disagree with you. When people are learned, they are learned all round. They like culture and they love culture and tradition as well. So, I happen to belong to one or that profession and I have come to celebrate here with my friends because today is a New Year for the Thai people and I think it is a thing of joy for one person, it is a thing of joy for all friends too.

“So, we all celebrate our own independence, they celebrate with us, therefore we, friends, should celebrate with them as well.

“We have a large community of Thai people in Nigeria, Asian people generally, and since it is their day, you can see everywhere is bright with multiple colours, we are all having fun. It is a great day for them and for us as well who are their friends.”

On relationship with Thai people Danjuma said, “We have, I think the relationship is very cordial and we have a few things in common; they love pepper, we love pepper a lot and they are very hospital people. Like you know, we are headquarters of hospitability. They love to celebrate, Nigerians do that as well. We have a lot of things in common. Whichever way the Europeans tend to class us, we are all happy together.

“I wish them a very joyous celebration. We are all here to celebrate with them and it’s been fun. You can see for yourselves that everybody is happy and I wish them all the best wishes for and a stronger bond for both countries; Nigeria and Thailand.

As for Remi Agbowu, “I wish them all the best and I wish happy stay in Nigeria and more celebrations.”