North East Festival will start new era of communication about North East Region

New Delhi, 5th November, 2014:

The four-day Festival kicks off in the capital from tomorrow (7th-10th Nov)
o 'Insurgence to Resurgence' is the theme of the festival theme this year; aims to attract investment and tourism promotion
o Bigger and better than before, the four day carnival to focus on the opportunities in the 8 North Eastern states and will include IT & ITES, Agri- Food Processing, Tourism, Handloom & Handicraft
o Music, dance, fashion, food, exhibition of art, photography, film, discussions and much more
o Felicitation of sports icons from the North East who have brought glory for the country
o Volunteers have gone door to door to various areas of Delhi to invite Delhiites to the festival
o A quiz competition ‘Know Your North East’ is organized as an awareness drive in JNU & DU

After a hugely successful inaugural last year, the second edition of the North East Festival is back in a brand new avatar in the capital. Being held from 7th to 10th November 2014 at IGNCA, Janpath, New Delhi, this year’s edition of the festival will be focused on the various business and investment opportunities that the region presents, apart from showcasing the multifarious culture and rich heritage of the North Eastern states.

North East Festival is organised by the reputed socio-cultural trust, Trend MMS, in association with North East Community of Delhi, Ministry of Home Affairs, Govt. of India, Ministry of DoNER, Govt. of India and IGNCA. . North East Festival has recently become the part of prestigious Delhi international art festival.

Around 30 bands will perform day and night and enthral the audience in the entire festival. Some of them are Guwahati Lights, Akhu- Imphal Talkies, Yesterdrive, Chethuwang, Vinyl Record, Soulmate and The Local Train, Foot Wings, Stuti Choudhury, Minutes of Decay and Mayukh Hazarika, Tetseo Sisters, Guru Rewben Mashangva, Frisky Pints, Bluestring Parth, Zubeen Garg, Jeli Kayi, Emielyn D. Das, Aborginals Project, Brahmaputra Boys, Late Too Soon, Simanta Sekhar, Girish & the Chornicles, MSonic and Bollywood singer Ash King.

Everyday there will be ethnic Dance by artistes from various States of North East India and Sangeet Natak Akademi.

In the inaugural session, medal winning athletes from the North East who have brought glory for the country in the recent CWG & Asian Games will be felicitated under NEC Chairman’s Sports Awards for Excellence in International & National Sports meets, including Mary Kom, Sarita Devi, Devendro etc.

The “North East Festival”, has become a brand which is synonymous with the unification of the various stakeholders of North East under one dynamic platform.The event is expected to be attended more than one lakh people, top North East icons like MC Mary Kom, Adil Hussain, Everester Anshu Jemsenpa etc., Policymakers of the country, Chief Ministers of various North Eastern States, top bureaucrats, intellectuals, students, Investors, Tour operators, among others. Hon’ble PM is invited to inaugurate the Festival which is also expected to be attended by many senior union cabinet Ministers including Mr Rajnath Singh, Mr VK Singh, Mrs Smriti Irani, Mr Nitin Gadkari, Mr Piyush Goyal, Mr Kiren Rijiju, Mr Sarbananda Sonowal, Mr Jewel Oram.

Speaking about this year’s edition, Shyamkanu Mahanta, Organiser in Chief, North East Festival said, “This year, the theme is Insurgence to Resurgence” with focus on highlighting the positive stories of entrepreneurship and development. Apart from the Carnival, Exhibition Cum Sale showcasing unique artisans and weavers of the region, organic fruits and vegetables would be presented. The objective is to present people of Delhi to understand North East India in one platform, to encourage tourism to NER.”

Mr. Mahanta informed there would be serious discussion on critical issues of the region. To attract investment in ITES Sector in association with Ministry of IT, Govt of India a Seminar is organised with investors to explore investments in the ITES sector in the North East. A session on Education is expected to be chaired by Union HRD Minister would discuss about ways of introducing subjects from North East in the School College curriculum to create awareness about the region.”

“This year our focus is on what we could contribute to our region beyond the festival, be it skill & entrepreneurship development, investment and tourism promotion etc.”, Mr Mahanta added.

Discussion Sessions:

Alienation feeling in the North East & Implementation of Bezbaruah Committee Recommendation: Two discussion sessions Alienation feeling in the North East & Implementation of Bezbaruah Committee Recommendation will be held with the help of North East Community of Delhi.

Agro – Food Processing Sectors in North East Region: North East India is very resourceful in nature and its soil is very fertile which definitely provides possibility of Agro – Food Processing Sectors in North East Region.

Entrepreneurship and Investments in the North East: A session on Entrepreneurship and Investments in the North East will be held on 8th November.

To inculcate and promote entrepreneurship in the youth of North East region North East Festival has tied up with Startup Weekend- a global grassroots movement of active and empowered entrepreneurs who are learning the basics of founding startups and launching successful ventures.

Insurgence to Resurgence: At a time when business communities show reluctance citing reason of insurgence to go and invest in the North East inspite of the plentiful opportunities the region provides, the reality is different. Many insurgent groups recently joined hands with the government in the peace talk process. It is time to communicate to the world that North East is no more an insurgents’ place and people of all the eight states will welcome all the positive steps be it investment in the region or any contribution towards its economy.

Ex-ULFA leader Mr Arabinda Rajkhowa who is also actively working on the peace process along with other leaders like Dilip Nunisa, Ex-Chairman, DHD will join a discussion session “Insurgence to Resurgence.”

North East in Education: When there is a racial discrimination happens towards North Easterner or a blooper happens about North East by govt agencies or ignorance shown about North East, people are disheartened and blame them of racism and ignorance. To counter this it is very necessary that people are well educated about their fellow brothers and sisters from their childhood. North East Festival is creating a platform to discuss inclusion of contents of North East which can be systematically included in the curriculum which will help people understand from their childhood about one India and its diversity.

A session “Integrating North East India through Education” will be held on 9th November where top officials of HRD ministry will be present.

Sports and North East India: Hon’ble Minister, Mr. Sarbananda Sonowal, Minister of Sports & Youth Affairs, Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, Govt. of India will chair a discussion session on Sports and North East India.

In the sports scenario, North East India’s contribution is enormous to the nation. Building adequate infrastructure and other support will optimize the potentials of all the sportspersons and motivate people to play more.

Tourism and North East India: North East India has the potential to be the top after-sought destinations for tourists in India. A discussion session among the tour operators of India and policy makers how to include North East in their itinerary and promote its tourism.

The Carnival:

Music & Dance: Around 30 bands will perform day and night and enthral audience in the entire festival. Some of them are Guwahati Lights, Akhu- Imphal Talkies, Yesterdrive, Chethuwang, Vinyl Record, Soulmate and The Local Train, Foot Wings, Stuti Choudhury, Minutes of Decay and Mayukh Hazarika, Tetseo Sisters, Guru Rewben Mashangva, Frisky Pints, Bluestring Parth, Zubeen Garg, Jeli Kayi, Emielyn D. Das, Aborginals Project, Brahmaputra Boys, Late Too Soon, Simanta Sekhar, Girish & the Chornicles, MSonic and Bollywood singer Ash King.

Everyday there will be ethnic Dance by artistes from various States of North East India and Sangeet Natak Akademi.

Fashion: North East is famous for its fashion. On 8th & 9th fashionistas will see the fashionable side of North East. A mix of established and gen-next designers based out North East will fire the stage with their haute couture. The designers who will showcase their creations include Dhiraj Deka, (Assam), Garima Saikia Garg (Assam), Yana Nogba (Arunachal Pradesh), L.D.Rosylyn Konshai (Manipur), and some gen-next designers like Arita Kashyap (Assam), Ephica lyngoh (Meghalaya), Manhira Christina (Nagaland), Pushpa Chaube (Meghalaya), Rinzing c Bhutia (Sikkim), Neikupe (Nagaland), hottimwon Kapai (Manipur), Payal Oshan Goswami (Assam), Bithunglo (Nagaland), Lalremsiami (Mizoram).

Food: The North East Festival will present best of North Eastern food. It’s food hub will see reputed names famous for its ethnic and authentic food like Rosang Cafe(North East Food), Dzukou tribal kitchen- (Naga Food ), Nagaland Kitchen (Naga Food), Tribal Taste (Arunachali Food), R&R kitchen-Ro Hmar (Flavours of Manipur), The Cousine Boulevard (best of Assamese and NER cuisines) etc.

On the sidelines, Sanghita Singh’s book “The Seven Sisters, Kitchen Tales from the North East" will be launched.

Photography and Painting Exhibition: Vikramjit Kakati is curating the Photography Exhibition where there will be more than 150 photographs related to North East from 100 photographers from and outside North East will be exhibited. Some photography clubs have joined hands with the North East Festival in this exhibition such as Faridabad Photography Club, Ghaziabad Photography Club, Immagine, Kerala (India Waved in Frames ), Manipur Photography Club, Mizo Photographers' Society, Noida Photography Club, Photo Musings Colour Lab, Photographic Society of Assam, hotography Club of Assam, Photography Club of Tripura, Photography Naga, Tinsukia Photographic Society. On the sidelines North East Festival organised a Photography Contest on the subject ‘North East’.

Bikramaditya Choudhury is the curator of Painting Exhibition. Works of 38 young artists have been selected and will be showcased in the festival. The main aim of the painting exhibition is to promote as many young artists as possible.

Film Festival: To promote upcoming filmmakers and film making in North East a Film Festival has been organised on 8th November.

Quiz: To create awareness about North East among the people North East Community in Delhi will host a quiz in Delhi University, JNU named “Know Your North East” on 6th November.

The festival will see exhibitions of Agri & Food Processing Exhibition cum Sale – Organic Farming, Floriculture, Exhibition cum sale of Handloom & handicrafts. People from 8 states will play various indigenous games as well.

Highlights:
State kiosks wherein each states of North East India will highlight its resources, projects
Agri & Food Processing Exhibition cum Sale – Organic Farming, Floriculture
Exhibition cum sale of Handloom & handicrafts
Tour Operators Meet
Ethnic food festival – showcasing the best delectable cuisines from the entire region
Photography exhibition showcasing the vibrant culture, tribes and important landmarks of the region. Art Exhibition showcasing top artistes of North East both modern and traditional art forms
Film Festival of North East to promote young upcoming flimmakers
Traditional Sports of North East
Fashion show displaying the rich ethnic fabric collections by top North East designers.
Cultural programs in evening – musical performance by popular musicians from the North-East Region like Zubin Garg, Tetseo Sisters, Guru Reuban Masangva, Imphal Talkies, Soulmate, Girish the Chronicle, Vinyl Records etc. Bollywood singer – Ash King
Day time Carnival – Tribal dance from various tribes of North East, Musical performance around 30 talented musical bands of the region
Round-table discussions on issues of security of North Eastern people in Delhi, IT& ITES opportunities, Educaton, Sports, Agriculture Food Processing, Tourism,with participation from all major stakeholders of the region and the policymakers of the country