Puri Beach Festival
Puri Beach Festival is celebrated
annually in early November, in Puri. Orissan craft, cuisine and
cultural evenings are the highlights of the event.
Taking a cue from the popular Goa festival, the current Puri Beach
festival has included fashion shows and rock shows to attract
tourists. The festival held on the beautiful beach at Puri, offers a
unique opportunity to visitors to interact with the local populace and
enjoy the many splendoured charms of Orissa. But the recurrences of
natural and man-made disasters are creating havoc for the tourism
sector, which is viewed as a potential source of income for the state.
Efforts are on to attract international community and to make the
festival an international event. The festival, which began on November
23, is all set to bedazzle the tourists and art lovers with its
charismatic mix of classical and folk dance from all corners of India.
Apart from the performance of various dance forms, the five-day
festival will also bring together sand art, handicraft and a number of
cultural programmes.
¤ Organisation of the Festival
For tourists the festival serves as a source of enjoyment and makes
them aware of various art forms, but for the artists it was something
more than that. For them it is an opportunity to show their talent and
to interact with other artists.
The festival is being organised by the Hotel and Restaurant
Association of Orissa in association with the Ministry of Tourism,
Government of India, the Department of Tourism, Government of Orissa,
Development Commissioner of Handicrafts and the Eastern Zonal Cultural
Center, Kolkata.
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