Save the date: Shandur Polo Festival set to go ahead

Event was cancelled due to floods in 2015

PESHAWAR: The celebrated Shandur Polo Festival is set to start from July 29 with arch-rivals Gilgit and Chitral perched to take each other on during the three-day event at the world’s highest polo ground.

Both sides will participate, said officials of Tourism Corporation Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa during the launch of a song specially composed for the festival.

Though it is an annual event, it was cancelled last year due to floods that triggered infrastructural damage. In 2014, players from G-B refused to participate due to differences with the people of Chitral over the ownership of the Shandur Pass. In 2016, there was a possibility of conflict as well. However, the Frontier Corps was making efforts to make the event possible.

The thrilling polo festival, which dates back to 1936, is not only enjoyed by locals, but also inland and foreign visitors.

“Besides the game, it is also an opportunity to show the world our cultural traditions,” TCKP Managing Director Mushtaq Ahmad said at a news conference in Peshawar.

This festival, now a global spectacle, attracts thousands of local and foreign tourists and is traditionally played between the teams of Gilgit and Chitral from July 7 to July 9. There is a slight change in schedule this year, however, as matches will be played from July 29 to 31.

The Frontier Corps played an important role to make the event possible, said CM’s Adviser Abdul Moneem. The security for the event will be provided by the Chitral Scouts.

The managing director added that to solve the dispute over ownership of the pass, the government has formed a commission. He believed this was a small matter and should not prove to be a hurdle in the way of the polo festival’s future.

During a briefing, Mushtaq Ahmad unveiled a song specially prepared for the event. The song is sung by a Pashto artist, Zeek Afridi, and the famous Chitrali singer, Mehtab Ziyab.

The song is in Urdu with some lyrics in Chitrali. It is written by Sami and Hanif Raza.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 27^th, 2016.