From January 9 to 16, 2026, a NEILAC team travelled to Bana, Arunachal Pradesh, to undertake fieldwork and documentation during the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the Sarok Festival. Staying in Bana, the team combined language documentation and field research with participation in the festival and direct engagement with the Aka community of Bichom District. The team documented traditional rituals, festival events, language use, and other cultural practices, providing an opportunity to engage with the Aka community within an important cultural celebration. A key outcome of the visit was the release of the first-ever written textbook, Ungamegü Kako, and Baroli, a children’s cartoon song, as resources for language learning and creative engagement among Aka children. The field visit thus brought together documentation, community participation, education, and creative resources in support of the Aka language and culture.
