The ethnic values, festivities and folklore of Cholistan

Three-day Cholistan Cultural Festival kicks off at Lok Virsa Complex in Islamabad.

ISLAMABAD: A three-day Cholistan Cultural Festival kicked off here at the Lok Virsa Complex on Saturday. The event is organised by National Institute of Folk and Traditional Heritage, popularly known as Lok Virsa to highlight the rich cultural values, folklore and festivities of the people of Cholistan. It will continue till November 1 from 11 am to 8 pm.

A large number of students from schools across Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Gujranwala attended the festival and praised the artists for their spectacular performances.

The festival featured various cultural activities, including artisans-at-work, craft bazaar, song and dance ensembles, folkloric performances, camel dances, camel hair cutting embellishment and traditional cuisine.

The festival opened with chadar poshi (honouring) ceremony of the master craftswoman Maloookan Mai who belongs to Hindu minority. She is a famous artisan in rilli making (patchwork) from Cholistan and has dedicated 30 years of her life to the profession.

Earlier addressing the ceremony, the guest of honour, Norwegian Ambassador to Pakistan Robert Kvile appreciated Lok Virsa Executive Director Kalid Javed and his team for organising the festival.

He said, “It is our objective to help preserve and strengthen Pakistan’s rich cultural heritage.”

The Lok Virsa ED said, “We have taken concrete measures to provide maximum cultural and entertainment activities to the people, who are suffering from a wave of extremism.”

These festivals are part of a series of events under which the institute has
given equal opportunities for the projection to all cultural entities of the country, he added.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Lajpat Ray, a stallholder from Tharparkar, Sindh, said he has been participating in such events for the past 25 years. He said such events are a source of enjoyment for people and “an opportunity for us to make a respectful living from our art.”

A camel trainer holding camel dance performances at the festival, Chaudhry Muhammad Hanif, told The Express Tribune that he was illiterate and had trained six camels. The owner of two camels Sohna and Pattasa boasted, “My camels can even diagnose diseases among people.”

Hanif said he has won many national and international awards in his field but the government has not recognised his status.

“People lust for wealth, but I only seek recognition,” said Hanif and challenged trainers across the globe to compete with him.

The ceremony followed with cultural performances by the Cholistani authentic folk singers, including Krishan Lal Bheel, Mai Noori and drumbeater Moon Bhagat (son of renowned folk artist Faqir Bhagat).

“People of Cholistan live a simple life. They sing and dance to compensate for the desolate wilderness around them,” said Javaid. Since the desert offers no colours, they wear vibrant combinations of warm colours and decorate mud houses
and domestic animals with these colours.

Camel is their only domestic animal and source of transportation, said Javaid. “Although snake charmers (jogis) are the real travellers of this lovely desert.” Women here mostly stitch different sorts of household fabrics including bed spreads, sheets, pillow covers. “Their handmade fabrics are so beautiful that instead of using them as bed spreads, people frame them and hang them on walls.”

Published in The Express Tribune, October 31^st, 2010.