First ever SAARC cultural festival in Delhi to start tomorrow

New Delhi, Nov 29 (UNI) If you are looking forward to weeks packed with great music, delicious food, fashion, photos and textile and handicraft exhibits from various South Asian nations, then Delhi is the place to be.

The national capital is organising the first-ever cultural festival of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) from November 30 to December nine with an aim to enhance people-to-people connectivity.

The ten-day cultural extravaganza will kick start tomorrow with a three-day music band festival where popular bands from the South Asian region like 'Strings' from Pakistan and 'Indian Ocean' and composer group 'Shankar Ehsaan Loy' from India would perform on a common platform at Central Park in Connaught Place.

Other components of the event include the SAARC folklore festival, food festival, fashion show, car rally, photo exhibition and sales outlet of regional textiles and handicrafts.

The event is being organised by The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) in collaboration with the External Affairs Ministry and other partners.

'' The main aim of the festival is to enhance connectivity, ties and shared legacy of the countries. The festival seeks to promote the spirit of unity among the masses. There is a whole range of events from a fashion show, food festival and photo exhibition to the SAARC folklore festival and exhibition of handicrafts and textiles from the eight nations. The special focus would be on involving the youth for this,'' ICCR Director-General Pavan Kumar Verma said yesterday while briefing mediapersons about the various facets of the festival.

The SAARC folklore festival, organised in the Indira Gandhi Centre for the Arts from December 5 to 8, will bring together 100 folk artistes from all SAARC countries. The performances will feature the best of folk arts in the region spread over the city, especially on university campuses, schools and colleges, to acquaint young people with these traditions.

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