Singer enthrals audience at Lok Virsa

Islamabad: The National Institute of Folk and Traditional Heritage, Lok Virsa organised a Lok Baithak on Folklore of Hindko here at Lok Virsa Media Centre with the aim to promote the art and culture of Hazara division Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Renowned Hindko folk singer Shakeel Awan sang his popular melodies enthralling the audience by singing local and traditional music of Hazara being practiced in that region. Shakeel Awan is a Hindko singer from Hazara division and also known as a folk singer of Hazara. He sings in different languages including Hindko, Pharhi Potohari, Panjabi, and Urdu.

The National Institute of Folk and Traditional Heritage, Lok Virsa has recently launched a new fortnightly series of folklore and folk music called ‘Lok Baithak’ to revive the informal sittings of the traditional and rural communities. The main purpose behind 'Lok Baithak' is to revive the informal sittings of the traditional and rural communities.

These 'Lok Baithaks' were multifaceted and used to serve the multiple purposes of associations, camaraderie, entertainment, social cohesion, knowledge sharing, creation of disciplinarian and organizational spirit, and above all hub of promotion of art and culture in the general communities.

‘Lok Baithak’ at Lok Virsa is being run while being true to the mandate of Lok Virsa i.e. the promotion of folk and traditional heritage of Pakistan. This programme is open to the people of all age groups and to all ethnicities, in the style that they themselves would be the speakers and listeners with Lok Virsa as regulator and facilitator only.