VARANASI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s constituency Varanasi has emerged as the new centre of political and cultural activities ahead of the Uttar Pradesh elections. While the Ministry of Culture is organising a week-long Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav in the city—which will be attended by Modi and the minister for culture, the BJP is leaving no stone unturned to make these programmes a grand success.
Modi will interact with over 32,000 booth-level party workers in the city on the party’s preparation for the polls. Festivities will also be held in Banaras Hindu University. “It is the PM’s idea that the city should be known as the country’s centre for cultural activities. This is the first time this cultural extravaganza will be held outside Delhi,” said an official. The Mahotsav will be inaugurated by Union Minister for Culture Mahesh Sharma.
The festival has a budget of `5 crore. It will feature a theatre festival, folk dance and music festival, art exhibition, classic music and performances, short-term acting course, children’s film festival and workshop, Sanskriti exhibition, puppetry, contemporary art exhibition and one on Mahatma Gandhi.
Plays directed by Bollywood actors Manoj Joshi and Sharman Joshi will be staged. Padma awardees Channulal Mishra, Sonal Mansingh, Pandit Jasraj and N Rajam will participate in Indian classical music programmes. The event will also mark the second meeting of the Ministry of Culture’s new Central Advisory Board on Culture (CABC).
The PM will also launch the first daily chopper service from Varanasi to Sarnath and another one for “Ganga darshan” as part of the tourism ministry’s Buddhist Circuit.