Multicultural Minister Joins Bangla New Year 1419 Celebration in Canberra
Bangladesh High Commission, Canberra; Press Release (Revised) (17 April 2012)
Minister for Multicultural Affairs of ACT Government Ms Joy Burch MLA joined the celebration of Bangla New Year 1419 jointly organized by the Bangladesh High Commission in Canberra and Bangladeshi Seniors Club, Canberra Inc at the premises of Bangladesh High Commission on 14 April 2012. She moved around and visited all the stalls, enjoyed traditional foods and cultural program. She expressed her satisfaction for arranging the day long event and thanked the High Commission as well as Bangladeshi Seniors Club, Canberra for their initiatives and commented that this type of events would definitely promote multiculturalism in Australia. Foreign diplomats including Heads of Missions of Brunei, Cuba, Iran, Malaysia, Germany, UAE and other diplomatic staff of various diplomatic Missions in Canberra attended the celebration. A large number of expatriate Bangladeshi community people living in Canberra and Sydney and members of other communities also enjoyed the day long event.
The main focus of this year’s celebration was to creating a platform to display our rich culture and heritage among the members of other communities as well as to acquaint and educate our next generation with our rich cultural heritage. Keeping that in mind this year’s Bangla New Year celebration comprised of Fair famously known as “Boishakhi Mela”, Cultural program and Film show. Members of Bangladesh community as well as the High Commission hosted twenty stalls and display centres at the “Boishakhi Mela” showcasing traditional goods and artefacts of Bangladesh. In the fair, there were also various food stalls selling authentic and delicious cuisine of Bangladesh. “Face Painting and Mehedi Stall” helped small children as well as adults to get various tattoos on their faces and hands. The “Mela” premises became colourful when children and adults alike did roam around the fair with various traditional and colourful dresses.
The cultural program included various performances comprising dances, recitations, chorus songs and solo songs. Cultural presentation begun with the famous Boishakhi song “Eso He Boishakh ..…” jointly performed by the members of the Bangladesh High Commission and Bangladeshi Seniors Club, Canberra. The performances of the children from “Bangla School Canberra” received huge admiration of the audiences. All the spectators were spell bounded by the performances of the prominent and famous musical groups named “Protiti” led by Mr Serajus Salekin and “Dhrupad” led by Dr Robin Guda. The solo performances by various artists including Mrs. Amia Matin, Dr Nilufa Akhter Khanom, Mrs Sheikh Lana Rahman, Mrs Refat Fatema Bita and Mr Albab Masud received huge applause. Cultural presentation by the Bangladeshi students studying at Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) was also cheered. In a parallel event, famous Bangla movies “Amar Ache Jol” and “Gahine Shabda” were also screened during the festival. The cultural program ended with the presentation from the members of the Bangladeshi Seniors Club. Recitation by Mr Hashmat Ali, Mr Zillur Rahman and Mr Kamrul Ahsan Khan of Seniors Club was praised by the audiences. His Excellency Lieutenant General Masud Uddin Chowdhury along with his spouse joined the chorus performed by the Seniors Club members. Moreover, a Bangla New Year special issue “Boishakhi 1419” edited by Mr Kamrul Ahsan Khan was also published with the support from the event’s media partner “Priyo Australia” to commemorate the Bangla New Year celebration.
Bangla New Year 1419 celebration at the Bangladesh High Commission premises created a unique opportunity for the colourful and artistic displays of our history, culture and heritage. “Boishakhi Mela” became a mingling place for everybody. This is for the very first time this High Commission organized such program at the Chancery premises and the day long event was enjoyed by all quarters. They praised the High Commission’s initiative and requested them to continue this trend in the future.
