By Tenzin Choephel
Phayul Correspondent
Kathmandu, January 27: The ‘Grand Losar Fiesta’, a day-long celebration event organized on 3rd day of Losar (Tibetan New Year) by Dream Factory in Kathmandu is set to go bigger this year. The organisers of the event revealed their ambitious plan at the press conference here today at the five-star Hyatt Regency Hotel, which has also been the regular venue for the Grand Fiesta since it was first organised.
Giving a glamorous presence to this year’s celebration will be the participation of none other than the reigning Miss Nepal Sitashma Chand, who is set to be the co-host of the event along side Dr. Tashi Dorji, a member of the organising group.
Miss Sitashma was also present today at the event’s press conference.
Dream Factory is a vision of a circle of close Tibetan friends in Kathmandu who made it a point to draw Tibetans, who are scattered in small numbers in different areas of the city, together to have a larger public celebration of Losar.
This year’ celebration would be the third in the successive row since the organisers first managed to put their ideas together and formed Dream Factory.
Tenzin Wangdu, another member of Dream Factory team describes the Grand Losar Fiesta as “a purely not for profit event”. “We want to create a venue where all Tibetans and people celebrating Losar could come together and enjoy, all at an affordable price, at a five-star venue”.
And to make the event go bigger, lots of surprises are in store for this year’s celebration. Lots of exciting door prizes are to be won besides regular song and dance presentations by local Nepali and Tibetan artistes like Shambala Band featuring Tsering Gyurmey, Chokey of the popular ‘Sempa’ album, Nepsydas, a top local hip hop group, and hosts of other performers.
According to the organisers, there would also be a separate games corner for children and a free bingo where many free prizes would be given away.
Then the next question is; how do they manage to do all these at an affordable price at such an exclusive venue?
“Most of the funds to cover the event’s expenses are raised from local companies like Surya Nepal,” says Tashi Dhondup, another member of the Dream Factory group.
“We try to keep the ticket price as low as possible and make it affordable to all, and make it free for children. We do this so that all class of people could come together and enjoy Losar together, and thereby the Tibetan tradition of celebrating Losar is well preserved and also it creates a platform for Tibetan artistes to showcase their talents” he says.
So, for those in Kathmandu, if you are yet to make up your mind on how to spend your third day of Losar, here is still an option to join one of the biggest public celebration events for Tibetans in Kathmandu that you can’t afford to miss either.
