KARACHI – More colour was added to the Hamara Karachi Festival 2011 as Indonesian artistes graced the cultural evening of the festival on Sunday at the Jehangir Kothari Park to perform four traditional dances before an audience of more than 2,000 people.
The Indonesian troupe performed the Blantek, Badindin, Tanjung Katung, and Poco-Poco dances, with the Blantek dance from Jakarta selected as the opening dance. This was followed by the performances of Pakistani artistes, with Amjad Rana performing the Candle dance, Sheema Kirmani doing Kathak, and Sattar Sheikh singing a song.
The festival, organised on an annual basis by the Hamara Karachi Foundation, is aimed at bringing together the people of Karachi through cultural and social events, peace and solidarity walks, interfaith dialogue, and cultural evenings among others.
Hamara Karachi Foundation President Nasreen Jalil, speaking at the conclusion of the event, expressed her gratitude to the Indonesian Consulate in Karachi for the performance, and said that the consulate is one of the few foreign missions in Karachi that has regularly been participating in the annual Hamara Karachi Festival ever since its inception in 2007.
The Indonesian consul-general, in his remarks, stated that Pakistan is a close friend of Indonesia, and bilateral relations have been established since long. Indonesia has some similarities with Pakistan, including being a state with a Muslim majority, and thus, it will continue to show solidarity with the people of Pakistan.
Indonesion participation in the Hamara Karachi Festival is but one manifestation of this cooperation, he said. The diplomat further added that the Indonesian Consulate in Karachi will continue to promote culture, arts and tourism in Pakistan, and convey a message of peace, tolerance and harmony through these performances so that a positive image of Indonesia is created and enhanced in Sindh in particular and Pakistan in general.
