ICHCAP

Gandharba Cultural Art Organization (GCAO) celebrated the twelfth Sarangi Day in collaboration with the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) on 24 February 2018.

Sarangi is a typical Nepalese folk musical instrument of the Gandharba community of Nepal. The community, also known as the musician community of Nepal, has been taking part in singing and playing sarangi over centuries. Long before the broadcast media in Nepal, the Gandharba traveled from place to place, playing sarangi and spreading news, making themselves the nation’s messengers. Sarangi is regarded as the chief musical instrument that has carried the Gandharba’s long history of music and traditional culture.

To commemorate the contribution of sarangi and the Gandharba in preserving, promoting, and safeguarding Nepali folk music, culture, and tradition, GCAO initiated Sarangi Day in 2003, a musical event. Since then, GCAO has been annually celebrating Sarangi Day to preserve, promote, and safeguard the intangible cultural heritage possessed by the Gandharba. Sarangi Day has been a platform to knowledgeable, skillful, and talented Gandharba musicians. More importantly, it has encouraged the youth to take part in embodying Nepali culture and heritage.

The former Vice Prime Minister and Home Minister Mr. Bamdev Gautam were the main guests at the opening of Sarangi Day 2018. Many guests from various fields were invited to the event. The program was divided into two parts: symposium and musical. The three-hour event started at 2:00 pm. An old musician sang a mangal geet (an auspicious song) to welcome the event guests. At the auditorium hall of Nepal Tourism Board in Bhrikutimandap, Kathmandu, the vice president of GCAO, Rubin Gandhari, formally started the event with an introductory speech about the twelfth Sarangi Day 2018. A few other guests delivered short speeches reflective on the event, and the symposium was closed. Like the Sarangi Day of the previous year, this year’s Sarangi Day was nothing short of successful.

A Clip from Sarangi Day 2017