Alai Balai Festival on October 22 to Focus on Drug-Free India

The 20th edition of the Alai Balai festival will be held at the Exhibition Grounds in Nampally on October 22, with ‘Nasha Mukt Bharat’ as its central theme.

Organised to promote cultural unity and harmony beyond political and social divisions, the festival will bring together people from different sections of society.

Focus on drug abuse and development

Bandaru Vijayalakshmi, chairman of the Alai Balai Foundation, said this year’s festival will focus on ‘Nasha Mukt Bharat’ and ‘Viksit Bharat’.

She said the programme would emphasise the need to address drug abuse, particularly among the youth, while also encouraging public participation in the country’s development.

The event is likely to draw an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 people, according to the foundation.

The focus on a drug-free India gives this year’s gathering a public issue-oriented theme, while retaining the festival’s broader emphasis on social participation and cultural unity.

Festival’s cultural and political outreach

The annual event was started by former Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya during the Telangana agitation days.

Since then, it has brought together leaders of different political parties, artists, writers, historians and people from diverse communities to celebrate Telangana’s culture and traditions.

Dattatreya said the festival, which has been organised since two decades, conveys the spirit of embracing one another with warmth and affection.

He also said the event goes beyond politics by showcasing Telangana’s cultural traditions through local artists, folk dancers and rural performers.

The festival’s stated purpose is therefore to combine a campaign against drug abuse with participation in the country’s development and a public celebration of Telangana’s cultural traditions.

Source: The Hindu