The incessant rain coupled with gusty winds dampened the festival spirits on the seventh and eighth day of the ongoing 24th Hornbill Festival at the Naga Heritage village, Kisama here.
The unseasonal downpour, which began on Wednesday night, continued till late Friday evening casting a freezing spell on festival goers and also on the people of Kohima most of whom chose to remain indoors. There was also a visible drop in the number of foreign and domestic tourists at Kisama.
Although the traditional troupes presented their cultural items as scheduled, a few festival goers holding umbrellas had to watch standing because of the downpour. Owing to the rain, many of the vendors reported a drop in their sales.
A local entrepreneur, Akhriebou, who is running a food stall, said they were hoping for better sales as they had already lost two days.
Another vendor, Leno, running a millet food and drinks stall, said she was yet to recover her capital as the sale was low.
Meanwhile, the ongoing Kohima night carnival in the heart of Kohima town also witnessed a hiccup as there was a significant drop of vendors and revellers. The carnival resumed on Friday with full fervour as there was a respite in the rainfall.
Temperature in the State capital also dropped from an average of 28 degree Celsius in the beginning of the month to a chilling 14 degrees on Thursday and Friday while the night time temperature dropped to 11 degrees.