Friday, 15 April 2022 | PNS | Dehradun
The silver jubilee edition of Virasat Art and Heritage Festival is all set to commence from today in Dehradun. This two-week long festival is being organised at Dr B R Ambedkar Stadium on Kaulagarh Road at 7 PM from April 15 to 29 by Rural Entrepreneurship for Art and Cultural Heritage (REACH), an organisation known for conducting cultural programmes across the state. The festival will showcase handicrafts, different cuisines, classical and folk music and dance performances, concerts, art and craft workshops, vintage and classic car and bike rallies, photography competition and quiz events among other attractions.
The senior members of REACH including Rajiv Kumar Singh and Lokesh Ohri stated in a Press conference here on Thursday that the festival will be celebrated among the public after two years owing to Covid-19 pandemic. Talking about how the festival is different this time than the past editions, Singh said that the soul of the festival is the same which is to celebrate diversity and culture but there is certainly a shift in emphasis to attract more people from the young generation to the festival. People will also witness several musical fusion performances from young bands that will certainly help the younger generation to connect with the culture and the festival. Several young talented people who are well-known in their groups but are not recognised enough on public platforms will also get a chance to perform in the festival, stated Singh. He said that several famous personalities like Padma Bhushan awardee Parveen Sultana, Ghazal singer Talat Aziz, Langa Manganiyar and Sufi singers and the Wadali brothers will also perform in this silver jubilee edition of the festival. He said that the festival has always received a great response over the years and at the time when it is said that artforms like folk songs and Ghazals are losing their charm, the public has always loved such performances in Virasat. Ohri said that the festival has played an important role in preserving and reviving various traditions of the state belonging to music, dance, crafts, painting, theatre, storytelling and traditional cuisine among others and will continue to be in the future too.
