M Aamir Khan

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, July 27

A first-of-its-kind cultural festival is being organised next month in the Nubra valley’s Turtuk area — known as the last village along the Line of Control (LoC).The fest is aimed at connecting the divided families of the ethnic Balti community living in the Ladakh region and highlighting their unique art, literature and culture.Once known as the gateway to the ancient Silk Road, Turtuk had come out of Pakistan’s occupation after the 1971 war. Through the fest, the J&K Academy of Art, Culture and Languages (JKAACL) wants to introduce the Balti literature to the rest of the world.“This is our first initiative and it’s huge. It took us a year to finalise the programmes for the ‘Balti Literary and Cultural Festival’ that will be held on August 3 and 4. After the 1971 war, the Balti community got divided and we want to connect the families living in Leh and Kargil. We also want to promote their unique art, culture and literature,” deputy secretary (culture) Nazir Hussain told The Tribune.He said the fest would also give an opportunity to the people of the Balti community to give vent to their sorrows. “They are divided and they went through a lot after the 1971 war…. some have relatives living on the other side of the LoC…. we want to bring those living in Ladakh to one place where they can narrate their woes. We also want to make it a yearly event,” he added.Stating that the villagers of Turtuk were upbeat over the festival and had given full support to the JKAACL, Hussain said the main attractions of the event would be cultural programmes, paper-reading sessions, mehfil-e-mushaira and traditional horse polo matches, among others.JKAACL secretary Aziz Hajini said the academy had earlier held an event in Zanskar and such festivals were being held to promote the rich art, culture and literature of ethnic communities of the state, especially the lesser-known ones of the Ladakh region.