Lok Mela: Day two showcases colours of Sindh

Sindh Pavilion will also hold a cultural night on April 18.

Cultural pavilions set up by different provinces became major attractions of the Folk Festival of Pakistan on its second day.

While visiting the festival grounds, one can see aesthetically designed pavilion depicting rich culture and traditional architecture of the land of sufi saints – Sindh province.

The event is being organised by the National Institute of Folk and Traditional Heritage (Lok Virsa), said a press release.

Sindh is famous for a wide range of folk crafts like lacquer art, farasi weaving, blue pottery, Sindhi embroidery, Ajrak, block printing, traditional carpet weaving, appliqué work, tie-dye, khes weaving, wood works, Thari embroidery and several others, which all have been showcased here.

The artisans who were seen displaying their craftsmanship included Faqeer Muhammad, Khadim Hussain, Abdul Hayee, Arbab and Rafique, Soleman, Bharat, Naeem, Qadir Bukhsh jani in blue pottery, Siani, Safia and Zahid in Khes weaving, Parri, Zaheeran and Abdul Ghafoor, Krishan Lal, Khan Chand, Bhawan, Naseem Sultan, Gheno, Krishan and Bhano and Ghulam Ahmed.

Prominent among the artisans was Parri, an established but poor master craftswoman in farasi weaving (traditional rug) from Badin. The 70-year-old has expertise in the art of weaving since her childhood. As the tradition of weaving runs in her family, she attained mastery in this field from her mother and other members of the family. ‘farasi’ is a part of the traditional weaving of rugs with goat hair, camel hair and mixed yarn.

These are woven in warp and weft on horizontal looms generally portraying geometric patterns. The availability of raw materials and a burgeoning demand of the local market are greatly responsible for the sustenance of this craft. Tharparkar and Jacobabad are the major centres of farasi weaving.

Parri has trained a number of women students in her native town. She has been attending various festivals and exhibitions organized locally as well as at federal level. She has been participating in Lok Mela for the last 25 years and receiving cash awards and certificates.

Artists, musicians and folk dance groups from Sindh include Ahmed Ali (singer/harmonium player), Jansar Sano (singer), Sattar Jogi (murli/ been nawaz), Arbab (Alghoza player), Chaandi Faqeer & party (Khapri dance group), Sain Dad & party (matka dance group), Niaz Muhammad & party (shehnai), Ajmal & party (folk dance group), Vishno Mal & party (firework dance group), Agha & party (Sindhi dance group) and Khuda Bukhsh & party (folk dancers).

The other features of the Sindh pavilion include a book stall arranged by Sindh cultural department, Thari embroidery display, Sindhi bangles, traditional cuisine – Sindhi falooda, Shikarpuri achar, Sindhi Biryani and Larkana Maiva among others.

The pavilion will hold a cultural night on April 18 at 8pm at Lok Virsa Open Air Theatre which will be featuring artists such as Aman Mughal, Marwal Koro, Mahtab Kanwal, Kumber Brohi and others.

The 10-day Lok Mela will continue till Sunday April 20. The festival timings are 11am till 10pm.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 13^th, 2014.