Dastak comes knocking with enriching mix

Lucknow: Theme of the 18th Dastak Youth Festival is ‘Nature, Environment and Uttar Pradesh'. Organised with support of UP Tourism Department, Yuva club and EcoTourism initiatives, the event will run from Feb10 till Feb12 at International Buddhist Research Centre. It is a platform for youth to showcase artistic, poetic and theatrical skills addressing issues like gender equality, environment, women empowerment and culture. Students can participate in 30 competitions including poetry writing, baitbaazi, rangoli competition, photography, collage making, stand up comedy, group dance, film review, cartoon making, solo singing, face painting, nukkad natak, extempore, solo dance, skit or play, short film, news reporting and poster making. Group registration is for Rs 50 while solo registration is for Rs 20.Post-festival engagement activities such as film club screenings, nature walks, social media based videos and storytelling will continue from Feb 13 till Feb 20. On Feb, 11 a play ‘Dhatt Tere Ki' will be staged by artists Udayveer Singh Yadav and Ziya Khan. Festival will also feature a photography exhibition by noted wildlife enthusiast and photographer Mohammad Ahsan.
The festival will culminate on Feb 21 with a closing ceremony in which prizes and certificates will be distributed. Founder and Coordinator of the festival Veena Rana said, "The festival is for every student who wants to showcase talent and it also brings together creative minds and fosters a sense of responsibility among the youth".