By Asia Samachar | Singapore |
A major Sikh biennial religious and cultural gathering called Naam Ras makes a comeback after four years.
The 10th edition of the event, from Dec 23-26, typically attracts thousands of attendees from around the region per day. Likewise this year, the crowd is back!
Probably the largest Sikh event in Southeast Asia after the annual Malacca Sikh gathering in the memory of Baba Sohan Singh, Naam Ras is being held at the Singapore Expo Hall, with a host of daily programmes running from 6pm to 10pm.
The 2020 event could not be held due to the Covid-19 pandemic. So, the thousands of Sikhs are eagerly taking part in the entirely volunteer-driven extravaganza.
The way Singapore accommodates and celebrates its smallest communities is how the country demonstrates unity, said Singapore senior minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam who was invited as a guest of honour yesterday.
“It’s very important for us in Singapore to understand that each community has a special place…The Sikh community is a minority within a minority, but that makes its place even more special,” he said.
The event is a showcase of Sikh culture and traditions, including a display of centuries-old artefacts sourced from around the world, an interactive exhibition of Sikh history, a gallery of Sikh art, a daily theatre production on aspects of Sikh history and stalls to purchase Sikh-related merchandise.
It also features an immersive experience of the Sikh congregation featuring the Sikh traditional and spiritual music from renowned musical artistes from around the world and of course the free community kitchen serving hot vegetarian meals to thousands.
In addition, Naam Ras will also host several global Sikh celebrities from the UK, US, Canada and India.
One of them is UK-based artist Amandeep Singh, popularly known with his social media handle Inkquisitive, whose most recent collaboration with Marvel Studios and Disney saw him work on the Ms Marvel franchise.
With a large fan following around the world, Inkquisitive will be holding the first exhibition of his work after a five-year break at Naam Ras where attendees can view and purchase his art pieces.
As in previous years, Naam Ras will also host an interfaith component where non-Sikhs who attend the event will be taken on a parallel structured programme of Naam Ras. This will include a guided exhibition tour, an interactive dialogue session and an immersive volunteer service opportunity.
Invited guests who will be taking part in this year’s interfaith programme, titled One People, One Humanity, will include key leaders of the different faith groups in Singapore as well as students from several tertiary organisations.
A much awaited occurrence is the daily arrival and walk-in ceremony held at 5.15pm which is a grand procession featuring Sikh martial artists from India, a Sikh bagpipe band from Malaysia and other local and foreign talent as they welcome in Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, the eternal Sikh Guru, into the hall.
The artist Inkquisitive will be at Naam Ras from 23rd-26th December to display his work and engage with attendees. He will arrive in Singapore on 21st December and stay until 2nd January 2023 where he will also hold a public exhibition.
The event is out together with the support of the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, Singapore Expo Hall and all other Sikh organisations in Singapore, including the Sikh gurdwaras where the meals are cooked daily and sent to Naam Ras, as well as countless other philanthropists and well-wishers.
RELATED STORY:
Singapore senior minister visits Naam Ras 2016 (Asia Samachar, 1 Jan 2017)
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond. When you leave a comment at the bottom of this article, it takes time to appear as it is moderated by human being. Unless it is offensive or libelous, it should appear. You can also comment at Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can reach us via WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 or email: asia.samachar@gmail.com. For obituary announcements, click here.
