First-ever Sindhi cultural festival concludes

ISLAMABAD: The first-ever Sindhi cultural festival featuring traditional handicraft, cuisine and vibrant folk musicians concluded successfully at Lok Virsa on Monday.

The four-day festival was organised by the National Institute of Folk and Traditional Heritage in collaboration with the Department of Culture, Government of Sindh. It was part of a series of events organised at Lok Virsa to give residents of the twin cities an opportunity to gain awareness about the rich heritage of the country’s four provinces.

Rural musicians, folk dance groups, and other artisans attired in traditional, colourful costumes had come to the capital city from the remotest parts of Sindh.

The newly-appointed Federal Minister for Culture Pir Aftab Hussain Shah Jilani formally inaugurated the festival on June 4. On the concluding day, he said, “Sindh is a land of Sufi saints such as Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, Sachal Sarmast and Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, who have contributed immensely towards the cultural heritage of the province, apart from spreading the message of love, peace, harmony and brotherhood through their teachings and poetry.”

An exotic craft bazaar had also been set up with traditionally decorated pavilions where public organisations and NGOs displayed their items. Some 40 artisans-at-work exhibited various crafts, including Sindhi ajrak, the most popular item at the stalls. Ajrak is a block-printed cloth which is mixed with a number of dyes and involves a time consuming technique of 16 steps using 27 chemicals.

Other crafts included block printing, Sindhi embroidery with colorful motifsttired in traditional colourful costumes, traditional shoe making, woodwork, blue pottery from Hala, kashi work (embroidery), durree (floor rug), Thari embroidery using star shaped designs and Kohistan mirror embroidery.

There were folk songs and dances at the festival as well, followed by a special Sindhi musical night at Lok Virsa’s open air theatre. Renowned artist Taj Mastani performed at the musical night, while other folk musicians performed acts including Mai Dhai - a unique style accompanied by a large dholak and Sanam Marvi.

There was also a presentation of poetry of known Sufi saints, and performance by rural musicians- Jeram Jogi, Ghaus Bux Brohi, Akber Khamisoo, Urs Bhatti and others playing traditional instruments such as murli, flute and alghoza.

The food stalls were a big hit as well. “There is a lot of variety in terms of food items,” said Saima Hussain, a visitor. “I came for Ajrak though, because it represents the culture very well and such items cannot be found at local shops.”

Families, groups of friends and students were spotted shopping to their heart’s content, along with snacking on mouth watering Sindhi delicacies.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Executive Director Lok Virsa Khalid Javed said, “Previously, a big mela used to take place where all the provinces displayed their items, but due to security concerns, we had to divide the events according to separate provinces.”

The next festival under this series will present the cultural tradition of the people of Punjab and will be held from June 10-13, he said.

Published  in the Express Tribune, June 8^th, 2010.