Jashn-E-Rekhta Festival To Go Online

Jashn-e-Rekhta UK 2020: Jashn-E-Rekhta, the six-year-old Urdu festival, has carved a niche for itself in the literature world. It wouldn't be wrong to say that it made the culture of Urdu language, poetry, and art, a cult of sorts among the general public from all age groups alike. The credit for making decorative literary words like qawwali, mushaira, dastan goi, and ghazal, in addition to beautiful words and catchphrases from Urdu, too goes to festival, to a large extent. Earlier a new concept for the millennials, the Jashn-e-Rekhta festival now attracts a large exodus of the audience to enjoy the literary marvels under gorgeous tents, surrounded by art and literature all around.

Thanks to its popularity, the festival is making a comeback on the virtual platform, undeterred by the pandemic. The two-day long celebration will take place between September 5-6, 2020 and the event recordings will be available for the next 15 days till September 15. Though the event has been staged for the UK audience, it can be accessed by enthusiasts from all over the world.

Usually, a free-of-cost event that just required the audience to register before, the festival is ticketed this time. Tickets have been slated as £ 18 for the general audience and £ 15 for students. Some select audience, largely based in India, have also been offered discounts.

Like always, the team has ensured to add a component of diversity by including various art facets such as poetry, gazals, mushairas, qawwali, discussions, talks, interviews, music, storytelling, and even theatrical performances. Some of the noted artistes lined up for the two-day event include Gulzar, Vishal Bhardwaj, Neelesh Mishra, Annu Kapoor, Jaaved Jaaferi, Rana Safvi, Javed Akhtar, Nandita Das, Mehmood Faruqui and Daarain Shahidi.

However, it isn't the first time that Rekhta has stood up for the literature in these testing times. The Rekhta organization has been organizing regular virtual sessions on poetry, cinema, and music among others, all through the pandemic. The organization also broadcasted several old footages to maintain the dialogue with the audience. This is, of course, besides the application which updates top shayaris and ‘word of the day' on a daily basis.

Everything You Need To Know  About Jashn-E-Rekhta UK Festival

Q1. What is Jashn-e-Rekhta festival?

Jashn-eRekhta is a six-year-old Urdu festival organsied each year by the Rekhta Foundation. Besides literature and promotion of Urdu language, it also celebrates music, dance and art.

Q2. When and where is the festival?

Jashn-e-Rekhta UK 2020 will take place between September 5 and September 6, 2020 in the United Kingdom virtually. It includes 30 hours of uninterrupted entertainment.

Q3. What are the timings?

UK – 3:00 PM TO 8:00 PM (BST)

India – 7:30 PM TO 12:30 AM (IST)

Pakistan– 7:00 PM TO MIDNIGHT (PKT)

United Arab Emirates- 6:00 PM TO 11:00 PM (GST)

US – 10:00 AM TO 3:00 PM (EDT)

Q4.  What are the ticket prices?

The tickets will be available at £ 18 ( approximately Rs. 1,750) for the general audience and £ 15 (approximately Rs. 1,460) for students. 

Q4. How can you book the tickets?

You need to buy the tickets online, through the official Jashn-e-Rekhta UK website, which will give you an access to all the exclusive programmes slated for the event, though a link. The recordings of these will be available even 15 days after the event is concluded. 

Q5. What all events are lined up?

The event will include more than more than 30 sessions on poetry, gazals, mushairas, qawwali, discussions, talks, interviews, music, dance, storytelling, and even theatrical performances. While some of these will be taken up from the archives, others are new.

Q6. Who all will be performing?

Like always, Jashn-E-Rekhta has more than 100 noted artistes lined up for the festival. Some of them include Gulzar, Vishal Bhardwaj, Neelesh Mishra, Annu Kapoor, Jaaved Jaaferi, Rana Safvi, Javed Akhtar, Nandita Das, Mehmood Faruqui and Daarain Shahidi among others. 

Q7. What all themes/topics will be touched upon?

The festival will have many discussions and talk-sessions on a wide range of topics including the lyrical beauty of Urdu, Delhi, the golden years of Radio, entertainment poetry, the legacy of cinema (a comparative and futuristic account), Manto and his legacy today, parallels between Urdu and Hindi etc. 

Q8. Are there any noted plays lined up?

The festival will include famous plays including Lal Qile Ka Akhri Mushaira and Mai Biwi Aur Wajah.