Over the weekend the Cultural Village Foundation — Katara — in cooperation with the Embassy of India hosted an Indian Festival, ‘A Passage to India’, which was visited by thousands of people who were enamoured by the cultural programmes and traditional Indian food. Over two days, people had a sense of India through the various events and activities presented in the festival.
The event has been organised by the Indian Cultural Centre (ICC) in association with Katara.
Katara General Manager Dr Khalid Ibrahim Al Sulaiti and Indian Ambassador Sanjiv Arora jointly cut a ribbon at the 10m high replica of the India Gate to mark the opening of the festival.
Opposite of Katara Amphitheatre, there were 40 stalls that exhibited different products and services to the visitors of the Cultural Village. There were a wide range of handicrafts, clothes, tasty Indian food, and a henna tattoo stall which was highly valued by young girls, which is considered a sign of joy, celebration, and style in India.
One of the stalls represented Karnataka State, where different Sari designs and stunning photography of India were displayed. Ponjaya stall exhibited portraits and other products of painting on glass and silk which summons the journeys of silk and spices to India.
The traditional clothes of India in bright colours, reflected the culture and heritage of India. There were also portraits of Yoga, which is not only a sport to Indians, but also a means to mind-clarity and relaxation.
The traditional Indian food items were the main crowd-puller of the festival. Some of available dishes were masala dosa, tandori chicken, jalebi, hyderabadi biryani, naan, kebabs, puri and chicken yikka.
The Indian community members were present in large numbers wearing their their traditional clothes and the whole scenario looked like a slice of life from Mumbai, New Delhi or Kerala.
Various folkloric shows
People were entertained with folkloric shows and various Indian dances at the Katara Amphitheatre. In India, dancing is correlated with happy occasions and official celebrations and has social significance. Each dance conveys a specific story, and each state has special dances, clothes, and music.
The Indian gate
One of the main attraction of the festival was a 10m model of the Indian gate; which is a national edifice and a massive war monument in the heart of New Delhi, India. It was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and was built between 1921 and 1931 with a shape of triumphal arch. The gate was built to commemorate the 90.000 Indian soldiers in the British-Indian army, who sacrificed their lives in World War I and the Afghan War for the Indian Empire.
The Peninsula
