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festivals
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TSAGAAN SAR: LUNAR NEW YEAR FESTIVALLunar month festival of the Mongols or holiday celebration of the first day of “White Moon” or “White Month” symbolizes the departure of winter and welcoming the spring of the new year. This festival and its rituals and traditions are unique and naturally accorded with a specific lifestyle of Mongolian nomadic culture. Therefore, during this festival, there are no gatherings of masses on the street to participate in folk parades and street carnivals as in urban cities and villages.Year2020NationSouth Korea
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Bangla New Year Welcomed with Mangal ShovajatraIn the morning of 14 April Bangladesh ushered in Bangla New Year 1425 on Pahela Baishakh, the first day of the Bangla calendar, by bringing out Mangal Shovajatra, a UNESCO inscribed ICH element.\n\nClad in colorful punjabis and saris, people from all levels of society took part in Mangal Shovajatra parades hoping rid themselves of past evils and begin a better future.\n\nThe biggest and most attractive Mangal Shovajatra parade was at the Dhaka University in the capital city Dhaka. Hundreds of people carried student and faculty artworks representing evil and good. Similar processions were brought out in all districts.\n\nMoreover, Baishakhi Mela (fair) displaying traditional food and artwork, cultural programs, and other events were held across the country.\n\nAt sunrise, thousands of people gathered at Ramna Batamul, the main venue of the Dhaka celebrations, where Chhayanaut, a cultural organization, has been holding an annual music soiree since 1965 to welcome the Bangla New Year.\n\nOther government and private cultural organizations held Pahela Baishakh celebration programs that included traditional music and performances along with recitations, contemporary songs, and dance.\n\nOn 14 April, the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy held special programs at its open field in the afternoon and at the National Theatre Hall in the evening. The programs featured lathi khela (tricks with sticks), songs, dance, and acrobatics. The academy also held programs, in association with different organizations, at Mirpur, Uttara, and Old Dhaka in the morning.\n\nIn such events traditional troupes from Manikganj, Chapai Nawabganj, and other places displayed lathi khela and presented different folk music genres like gambhira. Renowned singers, dancers, and recitation artistes also performed at the program organized by the academy.\n\nAt the Bangbandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka, over one thousand singers performed in a chorus in an open-air concert organized by the Shurer Dhara music school.\n\nThe Bangla Academy welcomed Bangla New Year through a program featuring a discussion and cultural show at Rabindra Chattar. The Bangla Academy also organized a five-day folklore workshop for folklore experts from Bangladesh, India, and the USA.\n\nBangladesh Small & Cottage Industries Corporation in association with Bangla Academy organized a ten-day Baishakhi fair featuring traditional sweets, books, craft items, and other culture events.\n\nSammilita Sangskritik Jote held a cultural program at Dhanmondi’s Rabindra Sarobar.\n\nThe Bangla year with its first month, Baishakh, was introduced during the rule of Mughal Emperor Akbar the Great (1542–c. 1605).\n\nThe day is a public holiday. All radio and TV channels air special programs while newspapers publish special supplements.\n\nWhile Bengalis celebrate Pahela Baishakh, the hill communities of the Chittagong Hill Tracts celebrated Baisabi. Baisabi is a term formed by the first syllables of the Baisuk Tripura festival, Marma’s Sangrain, and the Biju Chakma festival or Tanchangya’s Bisu.\n\nPhoto : People from all levels of society participate at the Mangal Shovajatra parade on 14 April welcoming the Bangla New Year © Snaul Haque/ New AgeYear2018NationBangladesh
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Dance of Fools: The Awa Dance Festival in Tokushima, JapanThe Awa Dance Festival, also known as the Awa Odori Dance Festival, is the largest traditional festival in Tokushima Prefecture, Japan, and has over four hundred years of history. It is held in mid-August every year. Awa is the old administration name for Tokushima, and odori means dance. As a folk dance in the region, Awa odori originated from a Buddhist practice. It is generally believed that a collective dance style was added to a priestly dance to honor the spirits of ancestors, leading to today’s Awa odori.\n\nThe Awa Dance Festival is held as part of the Obon Festival, a major Japanese holiday. This year, festival will be held for four days, from 12 to 15 August. The main celebration starts around 6:00 p.m. in city centers and continues until 10:30 p.m. People dance in parks and stage areas and parade through the streets. Large crowds come from around the country to see and enjoy Awa Odori, which is also called “dance of fools” after old Tokushima saying:\n\nThe dancing fool and the watching fool are both fools, so why not dance?\n\nAt this time of year, over a thousand groups of choreographed dancers (ren) from around Japan register for the festival. Other non-ren dancers also gather to present voluntary performances. Spectators are also free to join the festivities. As such, Awa Odori can be better enjoyed through collective dance steps. Typically, men dance in a powerful style while women dance in a more graceful fashion.\n\nTo spur the excitement, ren dancers play hayashi, an essential part of the festival, with traditional musical instruments, such as with flutes, drums, kane gongs, and three-stringed shamisen lutes. This combination of flute and percussion instruments is called norimono. The kane player leads the group; flutes produce melody; drums provide a rhythmic base, signaling the start of the festival.\n\nDuring the festival, visitors can enjoy Awa Odori performances on stages in city centers. The Awa Odori Kaikan is one of the main indoor stages, where outstanding groups present Awa Odori demonstrations. The most notable feature of the festival is that it encourages all people, not just ren dancers, to participate in the festival; people voluntarily establish and join related associations and promote the festival themselves, which have led to the festival’s success. To take part in the festival and have a chance to dance on stage, one can join the Niwaka Ren to learn choreography.\n\nPhoto : Group of female dancers at the Awa Odori Matsuri in Tokushima. CCBY3.0 Stemu2000 (Wikimedia Commons)Year2018NationJapan
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Communities Connecting Heritage: From West Bengal to WashingtonCultural exchange promotes cultural diversity and contributes to cultural sustainability. This was the key learning from the Communities Connecting Heritage (CCH) program supported by the US Department of State and administered by World Learning. Learning Together for a Brighter Future was a collaboration under this program, between banglanatak dot com, an Indian social enterprise working on culture and development, and the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage (CFCH) in Washington DC. Around twenty young cultural professionals from the USA and thirty-one young tradition bearers from the state of West Bengal in eastern India had varied exchanges on art, music, food, lifestyle, and globalization as well as the use of social media in popular culture. The Indian participants included traditional storytellers or patuas, who paint stories on long scrolls and sing them; artists practicing the ancient dokra metal craft; Baul folk singers; and theatre artists. There were also in-person visits to West Bengal and Washington DC by a five-member delegation from each side. The youngsters not only shared photos and videos explaining their culture but also discussed cultural sustainability; virtual workshops were held to develop skills in interviewing and recording, and effective storytelling. Finally, the Indian and American participants paired up to write blogs on shared interests and experiences; the subjects varied from discovering common concerns on raising a child to managing heritage sites. Commonalities were also found in the traditions, for example food items like sopapilla and luchi, and painting traditions like patachitra and retablo.\n\nDuring the CFCH delegation’s tour of West Bengal in February 2018, the Americans met the artists at the World Peace Music Festival Sur Jahan in Kolkata, visited cultural and heritage landmarks, and learned about community-based cultural industries. They also participated in a round table on heritage education for youth and an exhibition titled Through the Eyes of Young Americans that summed up their experience. From June to July 2018, the Indian delegation visited Washington DC. The city’s vivid cosmopolitan character, a mind-boggling array of cuisines, and a stunning nightlife mesmerized them. Engagement of community and the larger public in a weekend drum circle, weekly jazz concerts, DC Alley Museum, and the Smithsonian Folklife Festival left a deep impression. The patuas painted a scroll on the story of rights campaigns at the National Mall; the audience loved it and the song narrating the story. On 13 August 2018, a webinar was held to share the participants’ experiences and insights. As the program drew to a close, it had succeeded in bringing the multicultural roots and ethos of America to the young Indians’ hearts and sensitized the young Americans about Bengal’s cultural traditions. For detailed information, please check the webinar below and the event’s blog.\n\nPhoto 1 : Learning scroll painting at Patua village ⓒ banglanatakdotcom\nPhoto 2 : Bauls discussing music on the move with Catalonian musicians ⓒ banglanatakdotcom\nPhoto 3 : Indian team at the Lincoln Memorial in the USA ⓒ banglanatakdotcomYear2018NationIndia
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Nepali Women and the Teej FestivalHindu Nepali women celebrate a huge festival—one of the biggest occasions in Nepal—known as teej. It takes place on the third day of Shuklapaksha in Bhadra (normally in August or early September). The mythical explanation of teej purports that Hamalay’s daughter Goddess Parvati went through a rigorous fasting for 108 years known as hari talika teej with the desire to have Lord Shiva as her husband. Having witnessed the willingness of the Goddess to be with him, Lord Shiva accepted her as his wife. Goddess Parvati’s spirit, devotion, and strong intention generally compose the story upon which teej festival is grounded. Inevitably, Nepalese women have come to see teej as a venue for them to show their devotion to their significant other. If unmarried, they celebrate teej as a symbolic prayer to someday have a good husband.\n\nIn a highly male-dominated society such as that of Nepal, this kind of festival rings the idea of female subjugation and puts women empowerment in question. Does teej, a Nepali heritage as it is, survive a misogynistic culture? How do women (re)create themselves in a festival created by men for men? To put these inquires in context, it should be noted that Nepali women have historically been regarded as inferior objects. In the old days, if married, women would not be allowed to visit their hometown; they would not be given easy access to basic needs of living such as communication and transportation. teej is, again, a festival created by men symbolically for men, but it also is, and absolutely a venue for women. Nepali women use this opportunity to be with others to share their sorrow, happiness, and other deep emotions in togetherness. It has been reported that women use Teej as an assembly to collect funds for women-centered causes, taking advantage of the big occasion to raise development issues.\n\nteej remains as an important festival in Nepal, a surviving cultural vein of the South Asian nation. It honors Nepalese folk life, folk songs, and ancient Nepali music. Wearing red attire with fancy ornaments, participating in singing, dancing, and eating dar (a particular food in Teej) are the main activities in the festival. These days, both women and men observe the festival, recognizing its cultural value\n\nPhoto : CONTRIBUTED BY ANIL GANDHARBAYear2017NationNepal
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Vietnam’s Cultural Heritage Day, 23 NovemberCultural heritage in Vietnam is a valuable property of the Vietnamese people and the foundation for national traditions that have formed over many generations. With more than 40,000 cultural heritage elements and sites, Vietnam has highly respected treasures to be introduced to the rest of the world whenever possible. Taking care of cultural heritage means regarding what the past, present, and imaginable future have engendered to improve national identity.\n\nAfter Vietnam’s independence in 1945, and on behalf of provisional government of Democratic Republic of Vietnam, President Ho Chi Minh signed Decree No 65 on 23 November 1945. The decree formally mandates conserving antique vestiges, or what will later be known as cultural heritage. Based on the concept of conservation and to promote tradition and Vietnamese cultural heritage, the Prime Minister approved Decision No 36/2005/QD-TTg on 24 January 2005 to officially set 23 November as Vietnam’s Cultural Heritage Day. The November holiday is festive with many educational events that explain what it means to be responsible for protecting cultural heritage and why it is important to do so.\n\nTo celebrate this year’s Cultural Heritage Day, events are being prepared by relevant institutions. In the Ho Guom Cultural Information Centre, a photo exhibition on Vietnamese heritage will be held, featuring the winning photos of the 2017 Vietnam Heritage Photo Awards. The exhibition will take place in front of the center in Hanoi and will then move to other cities through March 2018. In the Vietnam Exhibition Centre for Culture and Arts,Green Heritage Culture and Tourism Week will be organized under the theme “The Convergence of Human and Nature”, gathering nationwide communities together to exchange and introduce their lasting cultural values.Year2017NationViet Nam
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Tihar Festival in NepalTihar (also known as Deepawali, Diwali, or Yamapanchak) is the most celebrated festival in Nepal. It takes place on Kartik Krishna Pakshya (early or end of November) every year. The five-day-long festival is observed with various activities—the longest of which is the successive worship activities of animals.\n\nOn the first day of the festival, Kaag Tihar (crow worship) is celebrated by offering sweets and foods to birds, especially crows. In Hindu mythology, crows are considered the messenger of Yama (lord of death). As the cawing of the crows symbolizes misfortune, the devotees feed crows to avert grief and death they may cause. On the second day of the festival, Kukur Tihar (worship of dog) is celebrated by offering garlands, tika (red-colored paste), and delicious food to dogs. Dogs occupy a special place in Hindu mythology. As mentioned in the Hindu epic, Mahabharata, Bhairava, a fierce manifestation of Lord Shiva, had a dog as a vahana (vehicle). Yama, the god of death, is believed to own two guard dogs, each with four eyes. The dogs are said to watch over the gates of Naraka, the Hindu concept of hell. In the morning of the third day, Gai Tihar (worship of the cow) is celebrated by offering flower garland, tika, food, and grass to the cow. In Hinduism, cow signifies wealth and prosperity. In the evening, Laxmi, the goddess of wealth, is thanked for all the benefits families may have received by lighting diyo (oil lamps) or candles on doorways and windows; this gesture also welcomes prosperity and well-being. On the fourth day, Goru Tihar (worship of ox) is observed in similar way. Ox is regarded as the closest and most important animal as it assists Nepalese farmers to plough their land for farming. The fifth and the most notable day of the festival is Bhai Tika or Kija Puja. It is observed by sisters applying tika on the forehead of their brothers to ensure long life and prosperity. The Bhai Tika follows a traditional ritual in which brothers sit on the floor and sisters circle brothers three times, dripping the undefiled water (pure; not drunk by anyone) on the floor from a copper pitcher. Then sisters break the walnut with the stone which is placed on the middle area of the main door of the house, wishing that they could alleviate their brothers’ grief.\n\nAnother distinctive feature of Tihar is deusi or vailo, the traditional songs that are sung during the festival. Vaili, a group of people with musical instruments visit houses one by one to sing and dance mainly in the night. The host families highly appreciate the visit of Vaili to their homes and offer rice, fruits, roti (home-made round bread), and some money. A traditional oil lamp on a brass plate or on nanglo (a flat round woven tray made up of bamboo) is lit in the presence of Vaili. It is believed that Vaili blessings bring happiness and prosperity to the family.\n\nTihar is considered a culturally essential festival in Nepal as it preserves Nepalese traditional beliefs, recognizing not just the importance of human prosperity but also the significance of animals in the life of Nepalese cultural heritage.\n\nPhoto : Tihar © Anil GandharbaYear2017NationNepal
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Humor and Commemoration in the Newar Community of NepalThe Newar community of Nepal celebrates a festival known as Sa Paru (Procession of Cows or Festival of Cows) every year on the first day of the waning moon of Bhadra (between August and September). It fell on 27 August this year. On this day, people take cows to the streets for a procession throughout the ancient city. They also take young boys dressed as gods, carrying traditional musical instruments. Others join the procession with incense sticks. Two important components of the festival are entertainment value and religious piety. This is why people make sure the festival is a fun event and at the same time a space where they can demonstrate kindness to each other by giving and sharing water, juice, or milk.\n\nThe ancient tales regarding the origin of this festival date back to the seventeenth century, the time of death of the young son of King Pratap Malla. Seeing the queen inconsolable, the king started a procession of his kingdom’s common subjects who had lost their loved ones the same year. This was the king’s way of showing the queen that she was not alone in experiencing the pain of losing someone important; that other people, rich and poor, are equally vulnerable to loss and suffering. Even though the king of Kathmandu is believed to have started this procession, other cities like Bhaktapur and Patan also celebrate the festival. Without a doubt, it is also celebrated in other cities throughout the country where the Newars of Kathmandu Valley migrated and settled.\n\nA distinctive aspect of the festival is that humor has an oddly thematic attribute about it. People go on the streets dressed as various funny characters; some men are even dressed as women. This humor tendency of the festival is known as khyalaa. A reading of this in the context of the festival could be that humor may help people go through the sometimes intoxicating process of mourning and commemoration; that laughing about loss could be a way to deliver oneself from the pain. Furthermore, the humor tendency of the festival also serves as grounds for local actors to organize street plays satirizing the government. During times of strict political regulation and censorship, this festival provided artists with the freedom to express their dissatisfaction, giving the general public a chance to feel that their sentiments are still relevant. In contemporary times, these street plays are not as common as they were, but some villages and towns in Kathmandu Valley like Pyang Gau and Kirtipur continue the street plays. Now the dynamics and operation of plays during the festival are changing; most are commercially organized in public venues and theaters. At any rate, the festival is remembered as a spectacular union of humor and commemoration.\n\nPhoto 1 : Family members of the decreased person participating in the processions. The men in white dress are sons of the decreased family and its custom that the sons wear the white dress for the whole year if their parents die. The kids in the flashy dress are the children of that family. © Monalisa Maharjan\nPhoto 2 : Participants in the procession © Monalisa MaharjanYear2018NationNepal
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Aama ko mukh herne din in Nepal: Day to See Mother’s FaceMany countries all over the world celebrate Mother’s Day, which is a way to thank mothers and show respect for her unconditional love. This day of celebration is new in many countries. But in Nepal this special day has a special traditional significance that goes beyond the physical presence of mothers in the world, so calling this day just mother’s day doesn’t do justice for the significance it carries to the people of Nepal. This day is known as aama ko mukh herne din in Nepali, which could be literally translated as “the day to see mother’s face.”\n\nThis day is celebrated on new moon day in the month of Baisakh (first month of Nepali Calendar). This year its fall on 4 May 2019. People pay gratitude to their mother by presenting her with fruits, sweets, and gifts. Especially, daughters who are married and are far the parents go to visit their mothers on this special day and makes the special preparations for the visits. Likewise, there is also a day for father, which is celebrated on new moon day of Bhadra (fifth month of Nepali Calendar).\n\nParents hold a high status in the family and are respected and given the status almost equivalent to a god. So even when they pass on, they will still have a place in daily life and festivities. So on this day, the people who have lost their mother go to temples and holy sites in the morning to donate rice, fruit, and money to the priests and beggars. People believe that the parents who have died will receive the offerings made to priests and others. People also take holy dips in rivers and holy ponds. Ancient beliefs indicate that people could see the reflection of their deceased mother in the water. They also perform a special ritual known as shradha on the riverbanks in the name of the deceased mother.\n\nA few days before aama ko mukh herne din, the streets and markets are busy with people buying things for their mother, creating a vibrant and festive atmosphere with fruit sellers and sweet shops making special arrangements.\n\nPhoto 1 : People taking a holy dip in the matatirtha (holy place) on aama ko mukh herne din ⓒ Monalisa Maharjan\nPhoto 2 : Sweet shops in Kathmandu busy making traditional sweets ⓒ Monalisa MaharjanYear2019NationNepal
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Jeju Fire Festival Reenacts Old Pastoral TraditionsThe twenty-second Jeju Fire Festival will run for four days from 7 to 10 March 2019 at places across Jeju, including Jeju City Hall Square and Saebyeol Oreum in Aewol-eup.\n\nThis year, the festival has the theme “Light up the world with wildfire and dreams.” The first day will begin with a torch lighting ritual at Samseonghyeol. The torch will be conveyed along a route from Samseonghyeol to the KAL intersection, Gwangyang intersection, and Jeju City Hall Square. In addition to the torch ceremony, various events will be held at the city hall, including writing wishes on paper and a music concert.\n\nThe second day will see a number of programs taking place, including a prayer ritual for the prosperity and development of the Jeju city, a sheaf making contest, and diverse cultural and media art performances staged by delegates from other countries. There also will be a large full moon ceremony where visitors can wish upon the moon, which will be followed by putting the torch to a field, a torchlight parade, and a sheaf burning event.\n\nOn the third day, various traditional cultures of the island will attract visitors. One of them is majoje, a ritual of praying for the health of horses, which is representative of the pastoral culture of the island. Others include neokdungbegi, the traditional yutnori (board game) of Jeju, and deumdol-deulgi (stone lifting), a coming of age ceremony of the residents. A forum on how to develop the festival is scheduled as well. In addition, there will be a burning of a pig sheaf to hail the year of the pig according to the Chinese zodiac. Then, the oreum will be set alight, which is the highlight of the festival, to pray for good fortune in the new year.\n\nEven during the 1970s, farming households in Jeju raised a couple of cows to plow the land and carry the harvest from the fields to their homes or village market. In the off-season, farmers in each town took turns to manage the fields for their livestock. They set the pastures alight to get rid of old grass and harmful pests between late winter and early spring, so their livestock could graze fresh quality grass. The fields were set alight all over the hilly areas, and it created a spectacular sight. The Jeju Fire Festival is a modern interpretation of the ancient pastoral traditions of the island.\n\nPhoto : Jeju Fire Festival ⓒ Jeju CityYear2019NationSouth Korea
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Singapore’s Hungry Ghost FestivalThe seventh month of the lunar calendar is regarded as a month in which the gates of heaven and hell are opened so that ghosts and spirits, including deceased ancestors, can come back to visit the living in China and other Asian countries with Chinese migrants, such as Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Indonesia. The fifteenth day of the month is called Zhongyuan Jie (中元節) in China, Baekjung (百中) in Korea, Obon (お盆) in Japan, and the Hungry Ghost Festival in other countries. The day’s story origin derives from an old Buddhist tale about Mu Lian.1.\nMu Lian, one of Buddha’s disciples, converted to Buddhism after losing his parents at a young age. As his longing for his mother grew stronger, his clairvoyance found her suffering from ravenous appetites that could not be satisfied in hell. He tried to offer food to his mother, but the food burned into ashes when it touched her mouth. Mu Lian asked Buddha about how he could relieve his mother’s suffering. When he prepared food offerings as directed by Buddha, his mother was saved from suffering. This tale developed into a Buddhist ritual2. to offer food for ancestors and was combined with Taoist tradition to celebrate Zhongyuan Jie. At Zhongyuan Jie, people hold memorial services for ancestors and other spirits.\n\nIn Singapore, people prepare ritualistic food offerings and burn incense and joss paper in front of their apartments, stores, or companies for their ancestors’ visiting spirits. They murmur prayers while burning joss paper and go round in a circle with nobody else getting inside. Some even burn miniature paper houses, cars, and smartphones. Unlike most countries that hold traditional rites, the city-state celebrates Zhongyuan Jie in a more modern way. A getai3. is held at vacant lots or parking lots during the Ghost Festival. Getai performances were usually of Chinese operas or puppet shows in the past. Now they have evolved into various forms, including songs, dances, and stand-up comedy. A getai performance usually begins with jokes and comedy, using various languages such as Mandarin, Hokkien (a Southern Min Chinese dialect originating from Fujian Province), English, Malay, and Indian. The first row is left empty so that the spirits can sit and enjoy the performance comfortably. Although getai performances have been modernized, all the songs and dances serve the same purpose of consoling dead souls and pleasing the king of the underworld.\n\nDuring the festival, evil spirits come out with ancestral spirits. There are taboos to protect innocent people from evil spirits, such as going home late and swimming so as not to be pulled by water ghosts. People are also recommended not doing new things, like a trip, wedding, or risky movements, to avoid curses from evil spirits. They should spend their time in a more religious and controlled way than usual.\n\nSingaporean authorities have made various social and cultural efforts to preserve the Ghost Festival and pass it on to future generations. Singapore’s Taoist and Buddhist Federations have encouraged devotees to burn offerings responsibly as Nanyang Technological University scientists found that concentrations of small pollutant particles increased by 60 percent during the Hungry Ghost Festival, saying that it is not a case of “the more the merrier” since it is sincerity that counts. Singapore has grown based on coexistence and harmony among various peoples. As such, it emphasizes respect for different cultures even when enjoying a festival, highlighting that such celebrations should not be limited to a certain group. Collective efforts at all levels of society have made the Hungry Ghost Festival open to all people in Singapore. This festival provides lessons on how to discuss and resolve social issues and ethnic conflicts amid the progress of globalization.\n\nPhoto : Hungry ghost prayer table CCBYSA3.0 Mezanurrahman (Wikimedia)Year2018NationSingapore
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The Spectacular Durga Puja of West BengalDurga Puja sits at the core of Bengali identity in India. It is also the biggest annual festival in the Indian state of West Bengal. Held in autumn, between September and October, Durga Puja is essentially a Hindu religious event, but the celebrations transcend all barriers of religion and creed, generating a night-long carnival of the masses for four to five days.\n\nThe phenomenon of Community Durga Puja, organized by residents of different localities, adds a unique social dimension to the festival. There are thousands of committees which organize Community Durga Puja across West Bengal. Teeming crowds zigzag their way through a maze of roads, streets, and lanes in the city of Kolkata all through the night. They come in droves—in cars, in taxis, and on foot—to catch glimpses of the idols, lights, themes, and the pavilions housing the deities called pandals. Over the years, the social-liberal polity of Bengal has accommodated a vast range of socio-cultural themes as well as various folk art and craft forms in the design of the idols, pandals, and illumination at the community Durga Pujas. The entire city of Kolkata becomes a public art space.\n\nThe photograph shows a pavilion celebrating intangible cultural heritage in the festival this year, held from September 26 to September 30. This Community Puja titled ‘Swarna Chitra’ is named after the leading woman scroll painter Swarna Chitrakar. Swarna is an exponent of Patachitra, a traditional storytelling art form of West Bengal where the artist sings the story while unfurling the scroll.\n\nPhoto : © banglanatak dot comYear2017NationIndia