Lok Mela

http://www.lokvirsa.net/

Lok Mela is a cultural Fair held in Islamabad, the Capital of Pakistan, each year.

Lok Mela also know as "Lok Virsa".

The meaning of Lok in english is people.

Lok is the word of " Punjabi Language", which means "Log" in "Urdu Language", Urdu is the national language of Pakistan.

You may have noticed that these two words are too identical. Infact, Punjabi and Urdu are very similar with each other. and in practice, ppl have a habbit to mix up the words of both languages to talk.

You will find many other Lok Melas all around the world, especialy in India. Where the national language is Hindi. The hindi is also very similar to Urdu. Even if you see Indian Movies, they call their movies hindi movies but you will notice that they are using Urdu. The meaning of "Lok" in Hindi is "Junta"

And the meaning of word "Mela" is "Fair". This word is same in both Urdu and Punjabi

And the meaning of word "Virsa" is "Belongings". And this word is also same in both Urdu and Punjabi.

National Institute of Folk & Traditional Heritage (Lok Virsa).

The institute was established in 1974 with a mandate of research, collection, documentation, preservation and dissemination of Pakistan's traditional culture. Its holdings are freely accessible to researchers, scholars, educational institutions and for professional electronic and print media.

Major activities during the year were:

• The National Heritage/Ethnology Museum

  Its covered area of 60,000 sq ft (over 5,500 sq m) makes it the largest museum of any kind in Pakistan, featuring more than 25 large galleries in four blocks linked through passages depicting cultural linkages with Iran, Central Asia and China

• Kashmir Solidarity Day – Yakjehti Mela

  To show solidarity with Kashmiri people and to acknowledge the struggle of people of Kashmir against state terrorism by the Indian government, the Kashmir Solidarity Day was celebrated on February 5th 2005 with an emphasis on the cultural perspective by Lok Virsa, focussing on the participation of the Kashmiri diasporas who have kept their cultural traditions alive in exile.

• Artisans-at-Work Festival (Lok Mela)

  The Ministry through Lok Virsa annually supports an Artisans-at-Work Festival (Lok Mela) to preserve and promote traditional skills in the country. The festival also aims to project the authentic cultural image of Pakistan and provides an opportunity to master artisans from even the remotest parts of the country to display their skills.

• Women Artisans-at-Work Festival

  The First Lady of Pakistan inaugurated a Women Artisans-at-Work Festival organized at Lok Virsa to mark International Women's Day. Twenty-five women artisans of different crafts including embroidery, papier mache, lacquer work, wax printing, handloom and stone carving participated.

• Lok Virsa Publication Programme

  Lok Virsa publishes books, prepares audio and video cassettes, CDs, DVDs and other cultural material on Pakistan. The books aim at giving access to folk literature in Pakistani languages by parallel text translations in the national language, and to make cultural literature available for academic institutions.

• Craft exhibitions

  Lok Virsa maintained its mandate by holding exhibitions. The programme envisages the promotion and development of crafts and craftsmanship aiming at creating awareness about Pakistan's rich cultural heritage. During the year, Lok Virsa continued to hold craft exhibitions on a regular basis.