‘Ras Banaras Sanskriti Mahotsav concludes

Speed Post News Network

New Delhi : ‘Ras Banaras – Swachhagrah – Bapu ko Kaaryaanjali’, a diversified cultural festival organized by the Ministry of Culture (MoC) at ‘Maanmandir’ and ‘Assi Ghat’ of Varanasi concluded on February 22, 2018, evening.

The festival witnessed folk dance and songs, food & shopping delights in full swing. The event connected country’s youth to various facets of the country’s rich and vibrant culture besides giving a message of cleanliness to the people of Varansi. School-children affiliated to MoC steered The Swachhta drive through exhibitions, songs, puppetry, nukkad nataks and folk dances, according to a PIB release.

Present on the second day of the festival, the Minister of State for Culture (Independent Charge) and Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Dr Mahesh Sharma said, “Our Prime Minister has made the country realize Gandhiji’s dream of clean India. We all have to bring change similar in scale to India’s freedom movement and have to take action for creating a culture of cleanliness.”

Speaking on Culture ministry’s efforts to spread awareness on cleanliness, the Minister said, “Varanasi has undergone a sea change in maintaining cleanliness in the past 3 years. People have become more aware about cleanliness. Cultural platforms and Sanskriti Mahotsavs, like this, are an effective means to further spread the message of cleanliness among people.” He urged the audience present there to strive for a plastic free Varanasi to further conserve River Ganga.

The second day of the Mahotsav covered a profusion of art forms from classical, folk music, dance and visual arts. Malini Awasthi performed thumri while classical singer Shruti Sadolikar mesmerized the audience with a classical song, in the dance segment. Vishal Krishna and troupe gave performance of Kathhak at Manmandir Ghat.

The 2 day event witnessed shopping journey experienced by the people of Varanasi in the Craft Market organized by NCZCC on Assi Ghat, which included a melange of colourful and traditional handicraft and textiles from Varanasi and other parts of the country besides folk performances by folk singers and dancers from different states with a special focus on Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya, the states paired with Uttar Pradesh under the ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’ matrix. A small food corner was also set to bring out the aroma of Varanasi and tribal cuisine from Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya.

The Mahotsav showcased a curtain raiser exhibition on Varanasi curated by the National Archives at Manmandir Ghat while a painting and terracotta-sculpture workshops was conducted with the students of Interpretation Centres by National Gallery of Modern Art in partnership with the Fine Arts School of BHU.