Manipur is a state in Northeast India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. It is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west. It also borders two regions of Myanmar, Sagaing Region to the east and Chin State to the south. The state covers an area of 22,327 square kilometres (8,621 sq mi). Meitei language is the most widely spoken language and is also the official language of the state, spoken natively by the Meiteis and as a lingua franca by the Nagas, Kukis, Zomis and other smaller communities, who speak a variety of Sino-Tibetan languages. Manipur has been at the crossroads of Asian economic and cultural exchange for more than 2,500 years. It connects the Indian subcontinent and Central Asia to Southeast Asia, East Asia, Siberia, regions in the Arctic, Micronesia and Polynesia enabling migration of people, cultures and religions.
Imphal is the capital city of the Indian state of Manipur. The metropolitan centre of the city contains the ruins of Kangla Palace, the royal seat of the former Kingdom of Manipur, surrounded by a moat. Spread over parts of the districts of Imphal West and Imphal East, the former contains the majority of the city's area and population. Imphal is part of the Smart Cities Mission under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
India is the birthplace of modern polo. The modern game of polo is derived from Manipur, where the game was known as 'Sagol Kangjei', 'Kanjai-bazee', or 'Pulu'. It was the anglicised form of the last, referring to the wooden ball that was used, which was adopted by the sport in its slow spread to the west.
NEROCA FC is an Indian professional football club based in Imphal, Manipur, that competes in the I-League. The club made its I-League 2nd Division debut in the 2015–16 season. The club won the 2016–17 I-League 2nd Division and secured promotion to the I-League. NEROCA is the only club from Northeast India to reach the final of the coveted Durand Cup. The club also competes in the Manipur State League.
Rajkumar Jhalajit Singh was an Indian writer, historian, Gandhian and academic. He was known for his book, "A Short History of Manipur", which was banned from publishing or selling by his own family members, because the book misleads the readers that the Manipuris are the descendants of Arjuna of the Mahabharata.
The Cinema of Manipur is the film industry based in Manipur, India. It includes not only Meitei language movies but all the films made in different languages of the different communities in Manipur. The Manipuri film industry was born when Matamgi Manipur was released on 9 April 1972. Before this, there were many attempts to make a film in the state, the most significant being Mainu Pemcha in 1948 which was left incomplete due to various problems.
Robert Naorem is an Indian fashion entrepreneur, designer and makeup artist from Manipur, India. He is known for his contribution towards the handloom and textile of Manipur.
Kshetrimayum Indira Devi, known as Chirom Indira, is an Indian entrepreneur, designer, and social worker.
Churachand Singh Trophy, also known as the Churachand Singh Invitation Trophy, is an annual Indian football tournament held in Manipur and organized by All Manipur Football Association (A.M.F.A). The tournament was first started in 1950 and is named after Manipur's Maharaja Churachand Singh. Apart from some top clubs from Manipur, clubs from neighbouring states also have participated.
Lourembam Bino Devi is a practitioner and a popularizer of the appliqué art of Manipur called Leeba in the Meitei language. The Leeba art is used in creating Monmai which is a decorative circular appliqué art piece used in covering both ends of the traditional Manipuri bolster pillow. In the olden days, Leeba was practiced at "Phiribi Loishang", which is a house for maintaining clothes worn by the deities and royals. The apparels used by the royals, including shoes, were mostly designed using the Leeba technique. Bino Devi has devoted her life to practice this art form and to revive it by trying to transmit her skills to younger generation of interested women. She has been providing this training in collaboration with the Heritage Foundation of Mankind, a Non-Governmantal Organization located in Imphal. She has also conducted several workshops at Imphal and at various other places in India.
Daughters of the Polo God is a 2018 Indian Meitei-English bilingual documentary film directed by Roopa Baruah and edited by Hemanti Sarkar. It is based on the story of girls and horses empowering each other. It is about saving the endangered Meitei horse and empowering women in the sport of polo simultaneously.
Miss Meetei Chanu or Miss Meitei Chanu is an annual beauty pageant that is run by the Manipur based Lainingthou Sanamahi Sana Pung (LSSP). The event aims to make Meitei women understand the culture and tradition of Sanamahism. It is one of the most watched beauty pageants in North East India. It co-exists with Miss Manipur, Femina Miss India Manipur and Miss Kangleipak.
Manipur International Polo or Manipur Polo International is an annual international polo sports competition organised in Imphal, the capital city of Manipur. The main venue is Imphal Polo Ground, the oldest pologround in the world. It is organized under the aegis of the Manipur Horse Riding and Polo Association (MHRPA) in the aim to popularize the game across India and the world. Several nations including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Haiti, India, Kenya, Mongolia, Morocco, Poland, South Africa, Thailand, United Kingdom, Uruguay and United States participate in the championship competing with the team of players from Manipur. Notably, team for India is named "INDIA-A" team and team for Manipur is named "INDIA-B" team.
Meitei Language Day, also known as Manipuri Language Day, is observed annually on 20 August. It is a commemoration of the day on which Meitei language was included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India and made one of the languages with official status in India on the 20th August, 1992.
Directorate of Language Planning and Implementation (DLPI) is a directorate of the Government of Manipur in charge of the language planning and the implementation of policies of Meitei language as well as other indigenous vernaculars of Manipur.
The social movement of Meitei language to achieve the officially recognised status of the "Classical language of India" is advocated by various literary, political, social associations and organisations as well as notable individual personalities of Bangladesh, Myanmar, Northeast India.
The social movement of Meitei language to be included as an associate official language of the Government of Assam is advocated by several literary, political, social associations and organisations as well as notable individual personalities of Northeast India.
The Manipur Olympic Games 2022, also known as the 2nd Manipur Olympic Games, is a multi-sport event, held in Manipur, Northeast India. The previous event, which was also the first event, was organised in the year 1988. After a long gap of 34 years, the 2nd edition of the Manipur Olympic Games was organised in the year 2022.
