National Cultural Festival from April 1

As part of celebration of India's diverse cultural heritage, the Union Ministry of Culture will be organising the National Culture Festival from April 1 to 3 at NTR Stadium in the city.

According to officials, the Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav (RSM) is the flagship programme of the Ministry of Culture that aims to preserve, promote and popularise Indian heritage. The RSM has been organised since 2015 with the active participation of seven zonal culture centres (ZCCs) and has been playing a pivotal role in taking India's vibrant cultural diversity out to the masses, instead of confining it to auditoria and galleries.

The RSM has been instrumental in showcasing the 3Cs of the heritage of the country- Culture, Craft and Cuisine of one State in another State reinforcing the cherished goal of 'Ek Bharat, Shrest Bharat'. At the same time, the folk and tribal art, dance, music, cuisines and culture that are being demonstrated provide an effective platform for the artists and artisans to support their livelihood.

The programme will be held in the Telugu states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana for the first time. Approximately, 1,000 performing artists, culinary artists and craftsmen would exhibit their skills and display India's rich cultural heritage.

The event would be held from 5 pm to 10.30 pm every day. The inaugural programme would be held on April 1, where Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu would be the chief guest. The other guests to present include Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari, Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi, Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatraya, Union Minister G Kishan Reddy, Union Ministers of State for culture Arjun Ram Meghwal and Meenakshi Lekhi and former Union Minister K Chiranjeevi would also take part in the celebrations.

There would be 'Panchanga Shravanam' on the occasion of the Ugadi Festival at the venue and also cultural programmes like classical dance performance by Ananda Shankar Jayant, classical music performance by Taal India by Banyan Tree, Shankar Mahadevan, SS Taman, L Subramanyam and Kavitha Krishnamurthy would be held during the three-day event.