Award ceremony: Call for promoting indigenous culture

Balochistan CM appreciates artists, folk singers, artisans for preserving traditional arts.

ISLAMABAD: Balochistan Chief Minister Abdul Malik Baloch said, “No nation can afford to progress in industry, science and technology at the cost of its cultural values.”

He was addressing an award ceremony for artisans participating at the Folk Festival of Pakistan titled “Lok Mela-2015” here at the National Institute of Folk and Traditional Heritage, popularly known as Lok Virsa.

The ongoing 10-day long Lok Mela is pulling visitors in large numbers.

The festival boasts a number of attractions including exhibitions on dying crafts of Pakistan, provincial and regional cultural pavilions, folkloric song and dance performances, cultural evenings, a craft bazaar, public sector and NGO stalls and theatre performances.

Appreciating Lok Virsa for organising event Dr Baloch said that the festival had provided an opportunity to all provinces and regions to showcase indigenous folk culture at the national level.

Documenting, preserving and disseminating the tangible and intangible cultural heritage of Pakistan is a great service to the nation, he said, adding culture was the path that leads to national integration, provincial solidarity, religious harmony, love, peace and brotherhood.

Cash awards were given to Imdad Ali Wighio, master artisan of block making belonging from the remote district of Mitiari, Sindh. Two other artisans Rehmat Wali in wood work and Sarfraz Hussain in Khes weaving were also awarded cash prizes.

The winning artisans from other provinces and regions who received cash awards included Rana Begum in carpet weaving from Gilgit-Baltistan, Manzoor Ahmad in leather embroidery, Aqsa and Shakar Bibi in embroidery from Balochistan, Muhammad Khalil in Peshawari Karakuli, Wahab Khan in Swati shawl and Rushma in lacquer work from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Lekh Raj in glass work, Ghani Bakhsh Dadu in clay work and Naseem Sultan in hurmich embroidery from Sindh.

Similarly, Kaneez Fatima (basket weaving), Riaz Ahmad (lacquer work), Lala Ramzan (Khussa making) from Punjab, Fatima (embroidery), Irum Bibi (thread making) from Chitral/Kalash and Gul-e-Zehra (embroidery) from Azad Kashmir were also given cash prizes.

A  number of exotic cultural and musical performances were also presented during the award ceremony, which were greatly enjoyed by the audience. A large number of art, craft and music lovers, cultural personalities, media persons and general public attended the event.

In her address at the event, Lok Virsa Executive Director Dr Fouzia Saeed thanked all provincial governments, in particular their cultural departments, art councils, artisans, folk artists and musicians as well as other institutions involved for their cooperation in organising the event.

The Mela will continue with all its festivities and attractions till Sunday, April 12, 2015.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 9^th, 2015.