Indian Heritage & Culture
Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav 2021
- 01 Mar 2021
- 5 min read
Why in News
The third and final leg of 11th edition of the Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav 2021 took place at Murshidabad, West Bengal.
- Various colourful performances were given by the local artists, including ‘Baul Gaan’, ‘Alkup Gaan’, ‘Leto gaan’, ‘Jhumuriya’ and Ranpa folk dances.
Key Points
- Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav is the flagship festival of the Ministry of Culture.
- It has been organized since 2015 with the active participation of Seven Zonal Culture Centres.
- It was started with an intention to exhibit the rich cultural heritage of the country in all its rich and varied dimensions namely, Handicrafts, Cuisine, Painting, Sculpture and Performing Arts- Folk, Tribal, Classical and Contemporary- all at one place.
- Significance:
- It has been playing a pivotal role to take the vibrant culture of India out to the masses instead of confining it to auditoria and galleries.
- It has been instrumental in showcasing folk and tribal art, dance, music, cuisines & culture of one state in other states reinforcing the cherished goal of “Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat”.
- It also provides an effective platform to the artists and artisans to support their livelihood.
- It reconnects the people (especially the youth) with their indigenous culture, its multifaceted nature, magnificence, and historical importance in the context of ‘India as a Nation’ over the millennia.
- Till date, Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsavs have been held at various places such as Delhi, Varanasi, Bengaluru, Tawang, Gujarat, Karnataka, Tehri and Madhya Pradesh.
Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat
- It was launched in 2015 to promote engagement amongst the people of different States/UTs so as to enhance mutual understanding and bonding between people of diverse cultures, thereby securing stronger unity and integrity of India.
- It is an initiative of the Ministry of Education.
- The broad objectives of the initiative are as follows:
- To CELEBRATE the Unity in Diversity of our nation and to maintain and strengthen the fabric of traditionally existing emotional bonds between the people,
- To PROMOTE the spirit of national integration through a deep and structured engagement between all Indian states and Union Territories through a year-long planned engagement between states,
- To SHOWCASE the rich heritage and culture, customs and traditions of different states for enabling people to understand and appreciate the diversity that is India, thus fostering a sense of common identity,
- To ESTABLISH long-term engagements, and
- To CREATE an environment which promotes learning between states by sharing best practices and experiences.
- Every State and UT in the country would be paired with another State/UT for a time period, during which they would carry out a structured engagement with one another in the spheres of language, literature, cuisine, festivals, cultural events, tourism etc
Zonal Cultural Centres
- The centres aim to strengthen the ancient roots of Indian Culture and evolve and enrich composite National Culture.
- There are seven Zonal Cultural Centres (ZCC) in India.
- Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre Kolkata, North Central Zone Cultural Centre Allahabad, North east Zone Cultural centre Dimapur, North Zone Cultural centre Patiala, South Central Zone Cultural Centre Nagpur, South Zone Cultural Centre Thanjavur, West Zone Cultural Centre Udaipur
- These ZCCs organize various cultural activities and programmes all over the country on a regular basis.
- Other schemes of ZCCs - Award to Young Talented Artists, Guru Shishya Parampara, Theatre Rejuvenation, Shilpgram, Octave and National Cultural Exchange Programme (NCEP).
