Alongside interstate annual soccer tournament slated to kick start from June 19, the soccer hounds, players, music buffs and of all—the ardent ‘devotees’ of ‘brain n beauty’, are expected to beat the days’ heat with some fairly cool evenings in one of the banquet halls of Nashville.
In the twilights of June 19 and the next day, some prominent soloists, hoofers and other thriving Bhutanese music makers will groove the crowd. Among the varying list of contests, items like singing, dancing, the projection of short movies and a few others are expected to rule the roost in the first two days. Some group dances will also feature in between the jigs and melodies.
Meanwhile, the third day, according to the organizer, is presumed to come with much ruptures and excitement. Bhutanese maidens and damsels, between the age of 18 -26, will parade catwalks and ‘heat’ the runway in the midst of jeering crowd and a panel of judges. Amid some musical vibes from a seasoned Disc Jockey (DJ), the aspiring girls vying to compete for the coveted crown—Miss Bhutan USA (2015) –will eventually flaunt their extensively hyped “ brain n beauty ” in the later rounds.
A couple of days ahead of the show, former Miss Bhutan USA, Prakriti Rai reinforced by a set of hired beauticians will be called in to tutor, buttress and groom the craving lassies coming in from Tennessee, adjoining states and beyond. A bevy of damsels are expected to ‘twist, twirl and swirl’ with some predictably titillating moves as a part of annual Bhutanese extravaganza. Eventually, the bash is expected to be concluded with a horde of swiveling crowd on the floor against the mounting decibels emanating from high-end music boxes.
“We’d lived a life for years that had absolutely no taste at all”, revealed Rajen Giri, one of the founding members of the Fest, during the sidelines of the promo-night held on March 29 in Nashville. ‘But today, we are rolling beyond the necessity of a basic living and therefore we’re looking for something else that is globally trending’, he clarified.
While asked about the intent and relevance of the Himalayan Fest, Naresh Dahal, the lead organizer in the host state, said that it was all about bringing, preserving and demonstrating the entire Himalayan culture at one place annually.
He also reiterated that the Fest is bent on preparing a common platform for young boys and girls pursuing goals in the different fields of arts. He confirmed that the rationale behind ‘pushing the girls towards the ramp’ was to bestow them with a appropriate soapbox to display their glamour and intellect.
Asked about the likelihood of overlapping of schedules with soccer, the organizer said that the Fest for each of the three days would begin only after the matches are over. However, it can be well predicted that motive behind organizing the Fest in line with soccer is to cash in with a substantial number of audience coming in from far and wide. However, the two organizing committees (the soccer and the fest) have not sat together to find a common agenda so far.
“I have heard about the Himalayan festival also scheduled in Nashville coinciding our tournament,” Suman Subba, one of the lead organizers of fifth the interstate soccer tournament, told the Bhutan News Service over phone. “I want to make it clear that neither we have been requested for collaboration, nor we are at all interested. There shouldn’t be any confusion regarding this.”
It is also learnt that some spicy-hot buffet and beverages will be served at a fairly reasonable price. However, in view of getting hold of the entire crowd till the end without any mishaps, hard drinks would not go off the legal limits.
During the promo-night, the organizer also briefed the participants to visit their website for more details..The contestants are also asked to choose the category of contest and fill up the registration form with appropriate fees.
The website says that the Himalayan Festival USA is an annual event organized for the people of the Himalayan region living in the US. This event has been initiated to promote our rich cultural heritage, and to provide an accessible platform for our younger generation to showcase their talents through sports, music, dance, acting, modeling, and more.
Last year, the Himayan Festival was organized at Houston, Texas from June 13-15 with Prakriti Rai being crowned as the First Miss BhutanUSA -2014.
