 Early Times Report
Jammu, Feb 8: The Tourism department is organizing Jammu Mahotsav-2019 from 8th to 10th February but inviting a Punjabi pop singer and a Kashmiri Sufi singer raise serious questions over the organizers' intentions as whether the event is merely a pop show or it has actual purpose of promoting Jammu's culture and Jammuness.
According to the hoardings raised by Tourism department in several busy crossings and markets of Jammu city, two singers Aabha Hanjura a Kashmiri Sufi singer and Shery Maan a Punjabi pop singer has been invited for 9th and 10th of February.
Though Aabha Hanjura has had her schooling from Jammu but she has nothing to do with Jammu's culture. What she claimed to have evolved a new form called Sufistication. While explaining about Sufistication in an interview she said, "We performed Punjabi folk, Sufi Music, Ghazals, Kashmiri folk and some familiar folks as part of Sufistification".
Similarly Shery Maan is a Punjabi pop singer from Punjab who used to perform in various events. Both these singers have nothing to do with Jammu's culture or Jammu's music or songs.
"We are not against these singers but inviting a Kashmir and a Punjabi singer in a festival called Jammu Mahotsav is actually an insult to the indigenous singers of Jammu", a renowned literary personality of Jammu said, adding never in the history of Kashmir Mahotsav or Punjab Mahotsav, the main singers would be from other languages rather than their local dialect.
President of Dogri Sanstha Jammu, Prof. Lalit Magotra said, "It appears that the organizers of Jammu Mahotsav are completely ignorant of Jammu's rich culture, ethnicity, heritage, singers, folk forms, dance forms, dresses, sumptuous cuisine forms etc".
"Jammu is a diverse society with Dogri as dominant culture while Gojri, Pahari and others less dominant cultures", Prof. Magotra said, adding that if the organizers really wanted to promote Jammu's culture, they must have framed an advisory committee of Dogri literary personalities to chalk out strategy to organize the event.
He further said that as per the schedule announced by Tourism department it would merely an entertainment event with Jammu absent. "Neither the department has invited me for the event and nor I will attend the same", Prof. Magotra said.
Another literary personality of Jammu, who wished not to be named, said that it would be the wastage of huge public money without any outcome. "The bureaucrats along with majority of the politicians of Jammu have no concern for Jammu otherwise, Jammu's Mubarak Mandi will not be in such a pathetic condition as well as other heritage spots of Jammu region", he said, adding that the only concern of bureaucrats, organizers of these events as well as politicians was to accumulate more and more wealth by one way or other.
He further alleged that apart from outsider singers the other programmes being organized in the event were also only for namesake and have nothing to promote Jammu's rich cultural heritage. |
