As pa 00 me, which featured traditional dance and music of indigenous communities of Nepal and north-east India, was part of the two-week-long nationwide cultural fest being held to mark the celebrations of the 68th Republic Day of India. The Dharan leg of the fest was inaugurated by Physical Infrastructure and Transport minister Sitaram Meheta and political secretary of Indian Embassy S Gopal Krishanan.

 The festival is being organised by the Indian Culture Centre to promote the culture and folk art of both Nepal and India.  At the event, troupes from two north-eastern states, Mizoram and Assam, performed various traditional folk songs and dances alongside Nepali artists. The performers from Mizoram performed folk dances associated with Solakiya and Pawi communities, while artists from Assam performed folk dances of the Biyu and Lewatan communities. The performances for north-eastern artists were coordinated by Lal Machuwana of Lily Veng Cultural and Drama Club.

Likewise, the Nepali artists from Garima Dance Centre performed various traditional dances from Chanbrung of Limbu community alomg with Raute and Kumari dances.

The local coordinator, as well as the chairperson of Nepal India Friendship Assocation Sunsari, Mukul Kayastha said during the event, “Even though Nepal and India are two different countries, they have similar respect for each other’s culture and tradition. We aim to promote this shared belief about each other’s culture and tradition through this event.”

The event was a part of two-week long cultural event being held in

various cities across the countries. The Indian artists will be travelling to Birjung on January 24, Dolakha on January 25 and Sindhupalchowk on January 27, before the celebrations culminate in the Capital.