482/2026-2027

24th October, 2026: The Living Museum at Zokhua (Mizo Typical Village), Falkawn, organised every Saturday by the Art & Culture Department, has completed one year. It is the first and only Living Museum of its kind in India.

Today, Director of Information & Public Relations, Pi Mina Zoliani Joute; Deputy Secretary of the Art & Culture Department, Pi Lalengvari, and other officials visited the Living Museum.

To mark the completion of one year, a brief cake-cutting ceremony was held, with tourists visiting the site also invited to participate in the celebration.

The Living Museum has attracted considerable interest from visitors both within and outside Mizoram, particularly tourists from abroad. Zokhua, Falkawn (Mizo Typical Village), was established in 1992 and developed as a mini live museum, designed to recreate a traditional Mizo village as it existed during the time of the ancestors.

The first live demonstration of traditional Mizo life was organised in 2011 under the name Mizo Nun Kutpui. In 2023, in connection with India's hosting of the G20 Summit, a three-day live demonstration of traditional Mizo life was organised for summit delegates and as part of the Chapchar Kut celebrations. The programme was named Zonun Kutpui. Subsequently, two-day demonstrations of traditional Mizo life were organised in connection with Chapchar Kut in 2024, 2025 and 2026.

With the objective of enabling younger generations and children to experience Mizo traditions and customs firsthand, helping students better understand topics covered in their textbooks, and allowing the growing number of tourists to gain a deeper appreciation of Mizo culture, the Art & Culture Department launched the weekly Living Museum programme on Saturday, October 25, 2025.

Since its launch, the Living Museum has received more than 9,600 visitors, approximately half of whom are tourists from outside Mizoram.

The Living Museum is open every Saturday, with an entry fee of ₹200. A 50 per cent concession is available for students of Government Middle Schools and below. The programme is conducted in two sessions: the first from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and the second from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

The programme showcases various aspects of traditional Mizo life, including live demonstrations of Mizo village life, traditional dances, folk songs, indigenous games, traditional cuisine and traditional costumes. Visitors can also purchase traditional Mizo attire to take home.

The Living Museum is organised under the initiative of the Art & Culture Department in close collaboration with various non-governmental organisations in Falkawn, including the Young Mizo Association (YMA), the Mizoram Upa Pawl (MUP) and the Mizoram Hmeichhe Insuihkhawm Pawl (MHIP).

Mizoram is the first state in India to establish a Living Museum of this kind. The Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India, has highly appreciated Mizoram's initiative and has issued communications encouraging other States and Union Territories to develop similar Living Museums to preserve and promote their respective cultural heritage.