Vietnamese tourists visit mysterious village in India, are invited by poor family for a meal 'to remember for life'

A simple but warm and sincere meal at a poor family in Kongthong village (India) became a special memory in Khoai Lang Thang's journey to explore the world.

At the end of July, Mr. Dinh Vo Hoai Phuong (from Ben Tre ), known to many as Khoai Lang Thang, owner of a YouTube channel with nearly 3 million followers, went on a backpacking trip to India.

On his third return to the country, he visited Kongthong, a village nestled in dense forests in the East Hills of Meghalaya state in northeastern India.

Located in the highlands with the highest rainfall in the world , Kongthong is covered in fog all year round. Mr. Phuong and his companions had to drive for more than 3 hours in thick fog, through many landslides to reach the village.

"Kongthong is not only a village with a special climate of India - cool and poetic, but also has a unique culture. The people's lives are not yet full but they are warm, generous, and willing to invite me to enjoy the best food they have," Mr. Phuong shared with VietNamNet reporter.

Each person's name is a 30-60 second melody.

Kongthong is known as the “whistling village”. The people are mainly Khasi people, who live by farming, hunting and calling each other by whistling.

This made the Vietnamese male tourist curious to find out more. He and his friend parked their car at the entrance of the village and walked in to visit. They tried asking the names of the children in the village. Even though they were very young, the children still remembered clearly the whistles of their names as well as those of their friends.

The children knew by heart how to whistle their names and those of their friends.

A young man named Salam enthusiastically invited Mr. Phuong to visit his home. Here, he heard an explanation about this special custom.

When a child is born, the mother will create a whistled melody for the child, called jingrwai lawbei . This is the “name” that will follow the child for life. The melody is often inspired by natural sounds such as rain, wind, waterfalls, birds chirping… and cannot be the same as anyone, including the deceased.

A name is usually 30-60 seconds long. In addition, each person has a “short name” of about 5-6 seconds long, used for intimate family calls.

Strange naming in Kongthong village. Video : Khoai Lang Thang

People believe that whistling helps to avoid being eavesdropped on by ghosts and ghosts. Others explain that people often go into the forest to find food. In caves and ravines, they use whistling and howling to call each other more easily.

The Vietnamese male tourist was surprised to learn that the village has more than 600 people and each person has a different, unique whistle name.

Touching meal in poor family

Not only did the Salam family invite Mr. Phuong to visit their home and learn about the special way of calling names, they also invited two Vietnamese guests to dinner. With the desire to learn about the life and cuisine of the Kongthong people, Mr. Phuong happily agreed.

Mr. Phuong planned to go around the village to buy some food to cook dinner with Salam’s family. However, because it was late afternoon, the only meat stall in the village was out of stock.

When he entered Salam’s kitchen, he was surprised to see that the family’s rice bowl was almost empty. Salam nevertheless cooked a full pot of rice, carefully skimming off the top part – which was tough and less tasty – to save for himself, leaving the better part for the guests.

Salam's family's rice bowl is almost empty.

While Salam was cooking, Phuong talked and learned that in Kongthong, meat was very expensive. Salam's family usually only ate meat once a week. They also ate fish, but very little because they had to go to the market and it was expensive. The main meal consisted of simply stir-fried cabbage.

But when two guests came, Salam prepared more dishes. He sautéed cabbage and made a stew of shallots, chilies, turmeric, potatoes, and red lentils for his guests. He also carefully peeled three eggs to make a similar dish of egg and tomato sauce.

When the rice and food were divided into bowls, Mr. Phuong was surprised because the family of nearly 10 people only shared 3 bowls of rice. Salam said that his mother and everyone else were not hungry yet. They still wanted to wait for the other members to come home to eat.

But according to Mr. Phuong, because the amount of food was too little, this family gave it to the guests. "When eating, I felt warm and close, but of course I also felt guilty when the family gave me rice and eggs.

Salam lied that he was full and left the egg for me. That meal was really touching. It was probably one of the most memorable meals and special encounters in my journey of wandering and exploring the world," Phuong confided.

Indian family gives their little food to two Vietnamese guests. Video: Khoai Lang Thang

Salam kept urging Phuong to eat more to have enough energy to travel far. Seeing that his bowl of rice was almost empty, the young man immediately scooped another spoonful of hot rice. "Eat more. Don't be shy." The bowl of rice was simple but Phuong found it very delicious.

Kind Indian boy Salam (pink shirt)

The video of the meal posted on TikTok has attracted more than 15 million views. Many people were moved by the sincerity and hospitality of the Salam family. They commented that although the house was small and lacking in facilities, it was neat and clean, with kitchen utensils polished to a shine – showing respect for guests.

Before leaving the village, Mr. Phuong and his companion stopped by the grocery store to buy eggs and some gifts for the Salam family as a thank you.

"When the host enthusiastically invites me to a meal, I believe that the more I eat, the happier they are. I want them to see that I don't criticize the food they cook and don't waste it. The gift I gave Salam's family was not to buy a meal but to show my affection, respect and gratitude," the Vietnamese tourist shared.

Mr. Phuong really hopes to have the opportunity to return to Kongthong to meet Salam's family.

At the age of 70, Ms. Tran Xuan Chau brought a long dress, a rice cooker and the eager spirit of youth to conquer Ladakh (India), overcoming the cold, altitude and many "first time" experiences.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/khoai-lang-thang-den-lang-bi-an-o-an-do-duoc-gia-dinh-ngheo-moi-bua-an-nho-doi-2441882.html