Pakistani, Indian Artists Join to Celebrate Shared Heritage Festival

A 94-year-old pink palace modelled on the famous 18th century castle in Versailles in France formed the gracious backdrop to a three-day festival of music, dance and nostalgia as Indian artistes mingled with their Pakistani compatriots.

“Accept it or not, we lost half our glory after partition. Most of our population went off to Pakistan, and those who came are yet to know the cultural heritage of the region,” said Sukhjit Singh, the eighth generation ruler of the erstwhile princely state of Kapurthala and now chairman of the Kapurthala Heritage Society that organised the festival.

If day one had Punjabi folk songs by Jawwed and Babbar Niazi of Pakistan merging with renowned Indian danseuse Uma Sharma’s kathak steps, day two featured qawwalis from Pakistan’s Sher Miandad and bandishes from India’s Jawwad and Mazhar Ali Khan. The last day had recitals by sitarist Buddhaditya Mukherjee and legendary vocalist Pandit Jasraj.

Hundreds of people from nearby Jalandhar and other Punjab towns crowded into the former princely state for the cultural extravaganza, made all the more inviting by the delicious nip in the air…