Dr. Fauzia Saeed, Samina Pirzada, Khuwaja Najam ul Hassan Resham Waseem and other prominent personalities express their views on storytelling.
Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) Two days Greatness in Diversity Festival ends with an aim to create cultural harmony amongst provinces and promote Pakistan’s rich cultural heritage on international level. Closing ceremony was held in a local hotel. Artists, cultural activists and writers associated with music, dance and drama attended the seminar and shared their experiences.
The event was organized by the Interactive Resource Centre, a non-governmental organization, with the support of the US Embassy in Pakistan. Oscar award winner Sharmeen Obaid Chonoy was the keynote speaker and senator Krishna Kumari were the special guest. Cultural Affair officer US embassy Mr. Stephen Valen were also present at the occasion. Conference was also attended by prominent personalities like Noor Ul Huda Shah, Owais Tauheed, Aijaz Gul, Abdullah Baluch, Asim Tiwana and Ishaq Sameho who shared their views on folk storytelling.
The second day of the conference was started with the welcome address delivered by Dr. Fausia Saeed who said the festival aimed to revitalize and strengthen the folk traditions with a series of training sessions conducted by culture and heritage management experts, practitioners and opinion makers.
“Such festivals enhance mutual bonding and the process of understanding as participants share the best available cultural practices,” she said. IRC head Mohammad Waseem welcomed the participants in his inaugurating remarks on the first day of the seminar, while Bushra Sadiq, an artist from Punjab, performed ‘Heer’.
Speaking at the occasion through a video link Dr. Paul Taylor said that Pakistan has divine potential to work in culture and to preserve its rich heritage. He also provided the audience with guidelines how to get US donors on preserving the cultural heritage.
Later in the evening, Khumariyaan, a Peshawar and Islamabad-based music quartet, enthralled the audience with its performance.
