Ao morung at Kisama recorded massive footfall during Hornbill Festival 2025, selling over 1,000 plates daily with food and local brew in high demand.
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KOHIMA — The Ao morung at Kisama witnessed a heavy rush throughout this year’s Hornbill Festival, with reports stating that the kitchen prepared food for more than 1,000 people daily.
Their local brew was also in high demand, selling about 1,000 litres a day.
The morung remained packed almost all day, and during peak hours, visitors had to stand and wait for their turn to sit and eat.
Chuba Ozukum, convenor of the management committee at Ao morung kitchen, told Eastern Mirror that a week before the festival they had slaughtered four pigs and smoked the meat, but the stock ran out within four days.
Also read: From Bangalore to England: Visitors share why Hornbill Festival impressed them
They then had to slaughter another three pigs for smoking. He added that they have also slaughtered around 10 pigs weighing over 100 kg each for the fresh pork menu.
While some morungs said that they sold about 300-400 plates of rice a day and others only about 100 plates, Ozukum shared that the Ao morung sold around 600 plates on normal days and more than 1,000 plates during weekends.
He informed that this year the Jangpetkong range—comprising nine villages—was managing the Ao morung, with around 45 volunteers on busy days and about 30 on other days.
Ozukum expressed satisfaction with the food sales and attributed the high footfall to both quality and quantity.
He said that last year, a plate of rice cost INR 450, but this year the committee decided to lower it to INR 400. The Tourism department later directed them to reduce it further to INR 350, but he maintained that quality and quantity were not compromised.
Each thali included two chutneys, one vegetable, and one main dish. They also offered a buffet at INR 500.
Initially, buffet tickets were printed only for their range members, but due to public demand, they opened the buffet to other customers as well. The buffet included four main dishes—smoked pork, fresh pork, smoked eel and chicken—along with several side dishes.
According to Ozukum, this variety has kept customers satisfied and returning.
Customer service
Ozukum said that all volunteers were college students, and before the festival they held a series of meetings to brief the students on how to serve and maintain proper behaviour. “We are very satisfied with the services they are providing,” he said.
Regarding the food, he said that they have not received any negative feedback so far. International tourists, in particular, have shared positive remarks.
He added that the local brew served at the Ao morung was different from what is available in Kohima.
The brewers were brought directly from the village, ensuring an authentic taste. They served sticky rice and tapioca-based drinks, selling nearly 1,000 litres on peak days and about 600 litres on regular days.
The stalls opened at 9 am and food served until 10.30 pm, though the morung remained open throughout the night.
Best morung
The Ao morung was also adjudged the ‘Best Morung 2025’ at the 26th edition of the Hornbill Festival. The Pochury and Kuki morungs were declared first and second runners-up, respectively.
The winners received cash prizes of INR 50,000, INR 30,000 and INR 20,000, along with certificates. All participating cultural troupes were also presented with cash awards and certificates.
The prizes were handed out by Sivasubramanian Ramann, chairperson of Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority and the chief guest of the ceremony.