Nooruz is the New Year by solar calendar in Central, South and SouthWest Asia countries. March 21 marks the start of the year in Kyrgyzstan. Nooruz meaning ‘new day’ when a variety of rituals, ceremonies and other cultural events take place. An important tradition practiced during this time is the gathering around ‘the Table’, decorated with objects that symbolize purity, brightness, livelihood and wealth, to enjoy a special meal with loved ones. New clothes are worn and visits given to relatives, particularly the elderly and neighbors. Gifts are exchanged, especially for children, featuring objects made by artisans. There are also street performances of music and dance, public rituals involving water and fire, traditional sports and the making of handicrafts. These practices support cultural diversity and tolerance and contribute to building community solidarity and peace.

Kyrgyzstan 2016

It is the New Year by solar calendar in Central, South and South-West Asia countries. According to sources, Navruz was one of the biggest festivities among Iranian and Turkic peoples. Mahmud al-Kashgari in his work called "Diwanu l-Lugat al-Turk" mentions about many folk songs, which were dedicated to Navruz. Also, the information about Navruz festivity can be found in such works as "The remaining traces of past centuries" (written by Abu Rayhan al-Biruni), "Navruzname" (by Omar Khayyam), and those written by Alisher Navoi, Zahir-ud-Din Muhammad Babur and other scholars. In the territory of Central Asia Navruz festivity was associated with the beginning of the New Year. As such, the preparations for it began several days ahead. Wheat was germinated and from its sprouts sumalak was cooked, dumplings with greens and samosas with mint were prepared. Also folk games were organized (such as horseracing, uloq, kurash, etc.), promenades were arranged, songs about spring were sung, terma and dostons were performed (by bakhshis). On the first day of Navruz children, living in rural areas, gathered in groups and sang songs dedicated to Navruz before the doors of houses. And the owner of the house, hearing these songs, came out, gave presents to children, and treated them with food. In their turn, children distributed one part of the food among widows and orphans living in the village. All these traditions and customs are still alive.

Afghanistan,Azerbaijan,India,Iraq,Iran,Kyrgyzstan,Kazakhstan,Pakistan,Tajikistan,Turkmenistan,Turkey,Uzbekistan 2016

The Kalbelias are an itinerant community who ascribe their origin to Guru Kanni Pavji (one of the masters of the mystical Nath Sect) who granted them the gift of handling snakes. In traditional rural society, Kalbelia men would carry cobras in cane baskets from door to door in the village while their women would sing and dance and beg for alms. In so doing, they passed on mythological stories that revered the cobra and advocated non-killing of the reptile. So, if a snake inadvertently entered a home, then a Kalbelia would be hastily summoned to catch and take the serpent away through non-violent means, such as music, without killing it. Kalbelias have traditionally been a fringe group existing at the periphery of the mainstream society. Largely, the Kalbelias live in spaces outside the village where they reside in makeshift camps called 'deras.' With their belongings on the back of donkeys, and with a few hunting dogs of the 'Lohari' breed, the Kalbelias used to move their 'deras' from one place to another in a circuitous route repeated over time. With the experience and received wisdom of generations, the Kalbelias have acquired a unique understanding of the local flora and fauna, and are aware of herbal remedies for various diseases. This is also an alternative source of income for them. With the Wildlife Act in place, the Kalbelias have moved away from their traditional profession of snake handling. Now, their performing arts are a major source of income for them. Fortunately, their art forms have received widespread recognition within and outside India, and their economic status has improved. However, performance opportunities are sporadic and the whole community is not involved in it on regular basis. Hence, many members of the community work in the fields, or graze cattle to sustain themselves. Nonetheless the entire community is today known for its performing art tradition. The Kalbelias have a great tradition of song and dance which is a strong marker of their identity. Women sing and dance while the men play on musical instruments. The music and dance of the Kalbelia have a distinct relation to their earlier profession as snake charmers. The Poongi is the traditional wind instrument that the Kalbelia men play to a specific tune to capture snakes. Nowadays, women dancers try to replicate the rhythmic movements of a serpent’s body through their dance. Poongi, a two feet long wind instrument used by Kalbelia musicians, is unique to them. They make the 'poongi,' from locally grown gourds that impart a plaintive tonality to their music. Giving rhythm to the 'poongi' is the 'khanjari' - a percussion instrument made of wood and hide. Besides these, there are other instruments including the 'ghuralio' – similar to the harp but unique to the Kalbelias. When the Kalbelias go around the village from door to door, they sing from their wide repertoire of songs about the rites of passage in life. It is noteworthy that the highly entertaining Kalbelia songs also disseminate mythological knowledge to the people through stories. They have many traditional dances like the 'Loor', which is performed during the festival of Holi. During this joyous festival of colours, groups of Kalbelias perform in village squares and streets while playing with colours with the community. Moving from house to house, the Kalbelia men play the one-sided drum called the 'chang' or the 'daph'. Most of the 'Loor' dance songs are full of fun and gaiety. 'Matku' is yet another traditional dance performed by the Kalbelias routinely. In this dance, the dancer's upper torso is used more actively with flowing hand gestures. The men are traditionally attired in colourful ‘safas’ or turbans, white 'kurtas' and 'dhotis' (shirt and unstitched lower garment) and embroidered footwear called ‘mojdies.’ The women’s traditional costumes consist of a ‘ghaghra’ (pleated skirt) and a ‘choli’ (full-sleeved upper garment) that comes down till the knee. The ‘ghaghra’ or the pleated skirt is enlarged manifold by using eleven meters of cloth. The ‘ghaghra’ along with the upper garment called ‘jhumpher’ is richly embroidered with mirror work and embellished with silver thread. Other significant features of their make-up are the use of traditional tattoo designs and ‘kajal’ or kohl. Over a period of time, the Kalbelias have improvised on their costumes and jewellery. They have begun using new make-up techniques and have added more instruments to their music. Similarly Kalbelia jewellery has also undergone creative modification. They also use an embroidered colourful waistband called ‘patto’ decorated with small mirrors and cowry shells. There are colourful bangles, and ‘phoondi’ - tassels worn by women. This creative process of change has made the Kalbelia dance more vibrant and vigorous in its steps. The dancers have added many acrobatic features into their dance, like bending backwards to pick up a ring from the ground with their eyelids, and so on. Dancers spin in circles with swirling skirts to the beat of a percussion instrument, taking the dance to a crescendo.

India 2010

Farmers’ dance of China’s Korean ethnic group is a performing art danced at seasonal rites and festivals. It is one of the most representative artistic performances of the Korean ethnic group. It is also a symbolic artistic form showing nationality identity. The team leader waves a flag reading “farming, the root of the world”. Players with musical instruments of suona horns, small gongs, bell-shaped gongs, long drums, round drums and hand drums will play the instruments while dancing. They are accompanied by masked or unmasked farcical clowning dancers. Farmers’ dance is usually acted out in villages and fields. Farmers’ dance is closely associated with farming sacrifice ceremony. Before acting out the dance, players will hold a ceremony treading God of Land and sacrificing, to show respect to nature and pray for happiness and luck. Since it is generated in farming activities, farmers’ dance imitates manual labor with shrugging acts and walking field ridges. Farmers’ dance is widely known in the Korean ethnic group. People largely learn basic dancing skills through family influences and neighborhood exchanges. But to master superb dancing skills and music performances, players have to formally acknowledge seniors as teachers. Farmers’ dance art has been inherited under the mouth-heart teaching method. Players of lofty skills are highly respected and enjoy unusual prestige in communities. This plays a crucial role in passing along the art for generations. To date, people of Korean nationality in Wangqing County, Antu County, Helong City, Longjing City, Huichun City, Tumen City and Yanji City under Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture, Wangqing County Farmers’ Dance Protection Development Association, China Korean Nationality Folk Protection Development Association, and 52 spreaders like Jin Mingchun are committing themselves to protecting and passing on farmers’ dance. The art has been handed down for six generations. Players spread from farmers to people of all walks in cities, enterprises and schools. Starting from the Korean Peninsula, farmers’ dance was introduced to China by Korean immigrants at the end of the 19th century. It has been innovated and improved in new environments by means of integrating agricultural production in high latitude areas and multi-ethnic group customs. Influenced by Han ethnic culture, “elephant caps” replace previous black cloth with red silk fabrics. Clustered waving belt is processed into two layers from the original single layer. “Elephant caps” are developed from original two varieties to current short, medium and long ones. Long “elephant cap” color belt is continually extended to amount to maximum 28 meters. Tossing “elephant cap” develops from “flat tossing” and “left-to-right tossing” to “vertical tossing” and “shaking dews”. Players also create “crossing circle skill” and “three-color-belt tossing skill”. As regards music, original four musical instruments are expanded to collaboration of wind instruments and stringed instruments. Women are admitted to play musical instruments, compared with previous whole-colored men players. All these contribute to cultivate Korean ethnic farmers’ dance of striking Chinese characteristics. Farmers’ dance is a product of arduous labor and wisdom of the Korean ethnic group over a long period of time. People of the Korean ethnic communities have realized it is their historic duty to carry forward farmers’ dance. So far, farmers’ dance groups of various sizes have spread all over villages of Korean ethnic groups. Most residential quarters and schools in Yanbian prefecture have also set up all sorts of farmers’ dance performance teams. Farmers’ dance teams, traditionally of 30 people each, will act on folk-custom festivals. One site will accommodate a number of teams at the same time. Farmers’ dance music, dance skills and players have been collected in Complete Works of China Folk Dance. Piao Yongguang, a famous scholar, has bought farmers’ dance into History of Korean Dance, furnishing theoretical basis for studying Korean history and ethnic features.

China 2009

"Tattoo" a tattoo on the body that uses a needle or a sharp metal with black or red ink to permanently mark on skin. In Cambodia, tattooing on the body is a popular tradition, especially among the army and martial arts practitioners. For them, this tattoo is not for decoration, but a combination of magic to protect themselves in battle. People who know how to get tattoos are usually shaman may be respected elders, or may even be monks who know how to teach magic from their fathers or teachers. Traditionally, almost 100% of the students (who come to get tattoos) are men. It is rare to see women getting tattoos, as mentioned above, most people who get tattoos likely are soldiers or martial art practitioners. Tattooing is done at a shaman's house or at a pagoda if the tattoo artist is a monk because there are altars in those places. They can get a tattoo on any day, but it is believed that getting a tattoo on a holy day or a full moon is even better. The sacrificial offerings for getting tattoos included chom, mlu, betel nut, cigarette, candle, incense sticks, flowers, perfume, white skirt, money, and so on. Before getting a tattoo, the student must state his/her intention to get the tattoo so that the shaman can decide which Balinese to cast. Most of the Balinese chosen for tattooing are self-defense devices, such as bullet-proofing armor, stealth, non-cutting, non-burning, anti-witchcraft, and anti-demon and charms or commercial charms which is Youn Moha Niyum, and so on. During the tattooing process, both the shaman and the student must meditate and concentrate to avoid making mistakes, otherwise, it will be difficult to erase. Not only that, students have to pray constantly to absorb Balinese. As for the shaman, he also recited the Bali word for tattoo. The ink used for the tattoo is extracted from battery ink (some burn car tyres or motorbike inner tubes to make charcoal) and mix it with wine or sugar cane juice. Tiger milk is even more special. The most advanced tattoo artist, would simply draw a line on your body and design the tattoo right away. But those who are not so good at it, need to draw the tattoo first before putting the prepared ink on the drawing. To prevent perspiration, they apply a small amount of powder over the tattoo site. In case the tattoo is complicated and cannot be completed in a day, they have to wait until the skin recover before the tattoo can be continued. After getting the tattoo, you have to recite the blessing immediately without any offerings, just light incense sticks to commemorate the shaman. But if the students want to prepare the offerings again, they can prepare a bowl of water scented with good smell flower or just with perfume smell is enough. There is no need to add any offerings more than this. After the blessing, the teacher should tell the students what to refrain from. That can vary from shaman to shaman. Some people are forbidden to eat taro, banana tree, dog meat or walk under cloth lines, under a house, or under a carambola tree. It is believed that if a student does not respect others, he or she may become insane. If so, they have to invite the tattoo shaman to come and pray for the student to recover. Nowadays, there is a new types of tattoos to beautify the body, not to protect oneself, and even women like to get tattoos. Such tendencies may be influenced by foreign factors. The tattoo is not a Roub Yant, it has all kinds of tattoos to suit your tastes. As for the tattoo, there is no need to pick a time, there is no need to prepare, there is no need to recite magic when getting a tattoo and there is no need to do anything.

The Pang A Peace Begging Ritual of the La Ha is a ritual to pray for peace, to thank the gods, and to thank the shaman for those who have been cured of illness (adopted children). The ceremony is held annually, in March of the solar calendar, when the Ban flowers and rice flowers are in full bloom, the rain has fallen and the bitter bamboo shoots have grown, or when the poinsettia flowers are in full bloom. In the Pang A Peace Begging Ritual, the Xang Bok tree is an indispensable decorative element, made from the hook tree and wild banana, placed in the middle of the house. The hook tree (lam la) symbolizes the black buffalo, the hook tree dies and turns into a black buffalo, the wild banana tree (lam toc) symbolizes the white buffalo, which are friends of farmers. On this occasion, adopted children from all over come to offer offerings to the gods, to repay the efforts of their adoptive fathers, to have fun together, and to exchange feelings. Depending on the family's conditions, the severity of the illness being cured, whether they are long-time or new adoptees, the adopted children prepare appropriate offerings. The scale of the Pang A Festival depends on each shaman. If the shaman is skilled, has many years of practice, and has many adopted children, the scale of the festival will be large. The rituals include: ancestral worship, worship for the homeowner's soul, worship to invite the gods to attend, worship to send the ancestors' souls to heaven, performing a performance describing a cured illness, plowing and harrowing... When the shaman finishes, his adopted children take turns placing the products they brought on the table for him to worship and invite the gods to come and receive blessings and bless his descendants with good health, good crops, and the growth of buffaloes, cows, pigs, chickens... Around the Xang Bok tree, there are scarf dances, sword dances, tang bu dances, rain-praying drum dances, penis dances (horns), con throwing competitions... The props for the dance include bu (bamboo tubes), cloth scarves, plows, harrows, swords, shields made of wood, bamboo... When the sound of the drums and gongs sounds, each person holds a piece of bamboo and starts dancing tang bu around the wooden board, they follow the rhythm of the drums, gongs and the rhythm of the bamboo tubes. After about 3-4 rounds, they howl together and then return, like that, the dance lasts about 1 hour. In the afternoon, the master continues to pray for his adopted children who come from far away and drink rice wine. The Pang A Peace Begging Ritual contains great humanistic values, with high educational value in the La Ha community in Muong La, Quynh Nhai, Thuan Chau districts, Son La province. The festival reminds descendants to remember the merits of the doctors who cured them of their illnesses, and reminds descendants to remember their roots.

The phrase in Dzongkha literally means ‘seated in the rows’ whereby participants are seated in rows at the ceremony, which is called zhugdre phunsun tshogpa. The zhugdre ceremony originates from the tantric teachings of Buddhism and has been adopted to be performed during happy and auspicious occasions. Phunsum tshogpa means grace, glory and wealth combined to represent the three essences of happiness. The ceremony begins with a general invocation to the higher beings that have helped shape the destiny of the kingdom and made it a land of peace and tranquility. Their powers and blessings are sought for the acquisition of the triple attributes of grace, glory and wealth. The ceremony is held during important functions to mark such occasions as promotion, marriages, visits of high dignitaries and consecration and inaugural functions for new buildings and enterprises. For the zhugdre ceremony, participants are seated in order of rank and seniority. The dignitary who is being honoured sits at the head of the row, usually facing all the participants. Once everyone is settled, different items of offerings are made first to the shrine and then to the dignitaries and participants. The first offering comprises the sweet root known in Bhutan as droem (in Sanskrit,kesar) and fragrant saffron water (drizang) and tea with saffron rice. This is followed by the offering of marchang and chagep (token money), and other food items such as zhugdre offering. Zhugdre begins with doma (betel nut) and paney (betel leaf ) and then a fruit that grows on a tree high up from the ground to signify the importance of the occasion. The number of items can range from 11 to 21 or as many as can be afforded in terms of time and resource, but they must end in an odd number and with a hard item such as walnut or chugo (dried cheese) to signify indestructibility by malignant spirits. Prayers are recited while the offerings are being distributed. In Bhutan, the beginning of zhugdre ceremony dates back to 1616 when Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, arriving from Tibet, was received with a zhugdre ceremony by Lam Druk Namgyal of the Obtsho family at a place called Lebnathang in Gasa District. Then at the consecration of Punakha Dzong, an elaborate zhugdre phunsum tshogpa was performed and the ceremony gained immense popularity thereafter. In order to receive what is being served during the occasion, participants are expected to bring their own phop (bowl) and torey (small piece of cloth, usually white, to receive food items) to the ceremony to receive what is being served during the occasion. The final stage of the zhugdre ceremony, known as trashi moelam, is a prayer for the good health, wellbeing and prosperity of the dignitaries and those present on the occasion. It is designed to help guests accumulate merits in order to attain the highest qualities of which man is capable, in this way benefiting not only those present on the occasion but also all sentient beings.

National Intangible Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea The term chiljang refers to the craftsman who creates lacquerware by applying lacquer -- or the refined sap of lacquer trees (Rhus verniciflua) -- to various objects. The first trace of lacquer use dates back to the third century BCE, but the earliest relics of lacquerware date back to the first century BCE. Lacquerware began to develop into an art form during the Nangnang (Lelang) Period and progressed further in the Silla Kingdom. In the Goryeo Dynasty, lacquered works were decorated with mother-of-pearl inlay, creating a new art form called najeon chilgi. In the Joseon Dynasty, lacquerware became more common, and many works were produced. The state compiled data on the distribution of lacquer trees nationwide and collected the sap from these trees. Lacquer craftsmen working in the capital and in the provinces were affiliated with their local government offices. The raw lacquer from the trees had to be refined before it could be used, and lacquer craftsmen would do the refining themselves. The refining process removes impurities and creates a fine particle liquid. Creating lacquer works is a long, laborious process. The item to be lacquered, called soji, had to be made of materials that are easy to work with and to paint, including wood, bamboo, cloth, paper, clay, and metal. First the object is smoothed down, and then the lacquer is built up in many coats, requiring lacquering, smoothing, and drying over and over again. Basically, the process is divided into three steps: chochil (first lacquering), jungchil (middle lacquering), and sangchil (final lacquering). After the final coat, the object is vigorously polished.

The Nang Hai Festival of the Tay people in Tien Thanh commune (Phuc Hoa-Cao Bang) is one of the traditional festivals of the Tay people with the wish for a new year of favorable weather, happiness, peace and to commemorate the merits of Princess Tiên Dao of the Mac dynasty. The Nang Hai Festival takes place over many days with many worshiping rituals and ceremonies. The Nang Hai Festival takes place in 3 parts: Hai welcoming ceremony, Hai praying ceremony and Hai seeing-off ceremony. The festival includes the moon welcoming ceremony (inviting Nang Hai - the moon lady down to earth), the farewell ceremony between Mother Moon and the Moon ladies and the farewell ceremony (on the 22nd day of the 3rd lunar month of even years). During the ceremony, the shaman wears a red shirt, a red hat, holds a pipe, shakes the dice and prays as if singing a prayer song in the Tay language right in front of the ancestral altar. Behind him are 14 girls holding paper fans, including: the two girls closest to the shaman sit cross-legged in a circle, symbolizing Nang Hai. The remaining 12 girls wore black indigo shirts and rough cloth shoes, lined up neatly in two rows right behind them, and an old woman called "Dẫn Lady" - who was knowledgeable about customs, sang well, and had a happy and peaceful family. At the beginning of the ceremony, the shaman read the prayer, then the 2 girls held fans and rotated them in a sitting position as if in a trance and sang. This was the ritual to invite the Lady to the mortal world. After the ritual to invite the Lady Hai to the mortal world took place in the house, the shaman led the Lady Hai and the 12 children of the Moon Mother to the village's shrine to report to the village's guardian spirit, praying to welcome the Moon Mother to the mortal world. When finished, the “Dẫn Lady” and the girls went to the outdoor sacrificial hut, where the “Dẫn Lady” and the Buddha performed the ceremony to worship the Moon Mother. The Buddha Dao prayed first, the “Dẫn Lady” sang later, and then the 12 children of the Moon Mother sang in unison following the “Dẫn Lady”. In particular, the harmonious and delicate combination of lyrics and songs with traditional dances of the Tay people in most spiritual activities creates an extremely attractive atmosphere. There are many fan dances used in the Nang Hai Festival such as: Sweeping dance rotating from right to left to start a ritual; Harvest dance; Boat rowing dance, etc. Each type of fan dance has the same rule that the dancer must go three times around the ceremony area. Inviting Mother Moon to the earth is a difficult and arduous journey. Only after singing the invitation for the third time will Mother Moon agree to accept the invitation to come down to earth to help people pray for a good harvest and blessings. After the dances and farewell songs, the boat carries the Moons and offerings to the Moons back to heaven. The festival includes sports activities, folk games, etc. The Nang Hai Festival not only has the meaning of praying for a good harvest, but also reflects the Tay people's custom of worshipping Mother, which was created from daily life and production, reflecting the thoughts and aspirations of the working people for a better life. The Nang Hai Festival is an indispensable part of the Tay people's culture in Tien Thanh commune, and is also a highlight in the cultural heritage of Cao Bang province. With such unique and special values, the Nang Hai Festival was recognized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2017.

The Lacquerware Making in Cát Đằng was born more than 600 years ago (from the end of the Tran Dynasty) associated with festivals to worship the village's ancestors (the founders are Mr. Ngô Đức Dũng and Mr. Ngô Ân Ba) and annual ceremonies taking place on January 14-16. Rich materials: wood, rattan, bamboo, reed... The main material is lacquer processed according to a secret recipe. It takes the craftsman a month or more to complete a product. Wooden objects for lacquer are not nailed but only use mortise and tenon joints with paint mixed with sawdust. Of all the stages, the most outstanding skills/techniques of the lacquer craft are the way of mixing paint, spraying paint, gilding gold, silver, inlaying, and drawing. These are also the most typical secrets of the Lacquerware Making in Cát Đằng. To make a product of the craft village, it is necessary to have the main materials such as: lacquer, tung oil, resin, sawdust, soil... Materials for making the core (vóc): wood, bamboo, rattan. Decorative materials: gold leaf, silver leaf, pearl shell, snail shell, egg shell, etc. Tools for making lacquer: beak, bucket, earthenware pot, etc. Tools for making lacquer: steel hair, sandpaper, whetstone, broom, curtain cloth, jackfruit leaves, xoan charcoal, tangled hair, paring knife, slotting knife, iron rod, etc. Decorative tools: cat hair pen, steel hair, slotting knife, etc. Currently, in addition to traditional lacquer materials, mainly industrial paints such as PU, cashew nuts, Japanese, etc. are used, and there are many other supporting tools such as: peeling machines, quilting machines, sharpening machines, sanding machines, paint sprayers, etc. to make bamboo patchwork products. The products of the craft village currently include two main product lines: Fine lines goods (worship items) and patchwork goods (handicrafts). Fine lines products are usually made from wood with two stages: making the frame (wooden blank, attaching, wrapping, tying, jamming, lining, giving, holding) and decorating (using silver leaf, gold leaf, mother-of-pearl, snail shell, eggshell... to inlay or paint on the product including the stages: gilding, covering. After each stage, it must be polished). Patchwork products are usually made from bamboo, rattan. To complete a patchwork lacquer product, in addition to the same process as patchwork, it must go through stages such as: soaking, drying, splitting, whittling, quilting, creating product blanks, bathing, shaving, smoothing, sanding the product, jamming, sanding, drying the product, spraying paint, and painting. Today, on the basis of inheriting the traditional Lacquerware Making craft, Cat Dang artisans have been creating and absorbing new techniques and new materials to create a variety of products to serve the needs of religious activities, decoration and consumption such as thrones, chairs, palanquins, statues, paintings, betel boxes, engagement trays, gilded lacquerware decorated at relics, tables and chairs, mother-of-pearl inlaid mahogany beds, vases, lampshades, pen holders, trays, bowls... with many rich and diverse designs, suitable for the needs of the domestic and export markets. The development of Lacquerware Making in Cát Đằng contributes to solving employment, improving local social life, building a rich and beautiful homeland. At the same time, it has gradually introduced traditional values, the quintessence of Vietnamese culture in general and Cat Dang locality in particular to the world. With the historical, cultural, artistic, usage and economic values of the heritage, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism recognized "Lacquerware Making in Cát Đằng" as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2017.

Disclaimer : ‘Bioscope, A Cinema with Solo Performance’ is not an element officially designated by the government of Bangladesh and thus tentatively named by ichLinks secretariat to introduce the cultural expression with the name indicated above. We welcome your valuable comments and feedback about ‘Bioscope, A Cinema with Solo Performance’ and its information presented on this page. A bioscope is a box made of either wood or corrugated board in which one can load movie films, paintings, and still photographs on twin rotors. The twin rotors are made capable of rotating from the top with the help of a steering handle. Slides are fixed onto a cloth that functions as a screen. The cloth is attached to two sides of the box and hung on the handle. When the handle is turned, the slides appear in the screen one after the other to viewers that watch them through lenses in the bioscope. Bioscopes help to travel through the rural areas of Bangladesh and enjoy its old traditions anytime and anywhere. Bioscopes used to be a popular form of entertainment for rural residents before the radio, television, and computers were introduced to Bangladesh. Everyone enjoyed looking through bioscopes regardless of age. When a bioscope man showed images accompanied by stories, people felt as though they were watching movies. Bioscopes had social and cultural implications in the lives of those living in the rural areas. Gathering around a bioscope operator, people shared their joys and sorrows, building close relationships and confidence among one another. However, due to the development of modern technology as well as the arrival of new means of communication, bioscopes are now on the verge of extinction.

Mongolian nomads have come to now and still producing various felt crafts such as ger canvas, felt-door of ger, floor cover, mat, saddle-cloth, saddle-rug, winter and summer socks, stockings, bag for new born lambs, bag for summoning prosperity, bag for cup, felt-boots, and so on. It is vital and practical in that the felt is used as a covering for the ger which can withstand the harsh weather conditions of Mongolia’s landscape and as material for devjee (mattress) olbog (cushions) or gifts for guests. Nowadays, various felt-made household needs, traditional felt crafts and souvenirs are being produced widely and becoming popular among foreign tourists.