Five-day Bhaktapur Festival concludes

BHAKTAPUR, Dec 20:The Bhaktapur Municipality's five-day Bhaktapur Festival, which aimed to attract domestic and foreign tourists, concluded last Friday. The festival was developed to assist enhance the old city of Bhaktapur as a tourist destination by enlightening local and foreign visitors about Bhaktapur's art, culture, legacy, original goods, and lifestyle.

The municipality created a similar celebration 26 years ago, and this is the second time it has taken place. Locals praised the event, which was created with the hope of boosting tourism in Bhaktapur, saying it played an important part in preserving the city's traditional history. They emphasized that such an event should be held annually.

The festival celebrated Bhaktapur's historical art, culture, dances reflecting religious traditions, handicrafts, cottage industries, skills, arts, food items (flute playing competition, bhajan, naubaja, traditional and modern cultural dances), exhibitions, photographs, paintings, and chhwali art. Traditional costumes, musical instruments, a live Kumari, Dipankar Buddha, pottery art exhibitions, Buddhist publications, agricultural products, cuisine festivals, and other events were also held.

The festival attracted a large number of both domestic and foreign tourists. While the locals contributed significantly to the festival's success, different groups and schools also attended. The celebration not only preserved cultural identity, but also boosted local economic activity. It is expected that this festival will have a long-term impact on the tourism growth of Bhaktapur.