Carrying the legacies of the folk culture of Pakistan for 43 years, the annual Lok Mela pulled huge crowds of people, including families, youth, and content creators, here late Friday Lok Virsa on its first day. The stall of Palestine was set up at the entrance of all cultural pavilions, where enthusiasts gathered and chanted slogans of Free Palestine, holding Palestinian flags in their hands and wearing the colours of the Palestine flag. “It is after a long time that I witnessed such a rush of people on this festival on the first day, and it seems that this will be a most successful event for the Federal Minister for Culture and Heritage, Jamal Shah, who called people from all walks of life to this festival and dedicated this event to the people of Palestine,” said Director General, Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA), Muhammed Ayub Jamali, talking to APP. Lok Virsa’s newly appointed Executive Director, Uzair Khan, who also holds experience in theater, said that the management of Lok Virsa and the Heritage Division planned this festival to provide recreational activities and cultural glimpses of Pakistan to people of different ages and fields and invited maximum tiktokers, YouTubers, and social media experts to highlight Pakistan’s true soft image through the artistic expressions. Jamal Shah, the Minister for National Heritage and Culture, said when there was no extremism, people used to enjoy such traditional ‘Melas’ in their areas, bringing together their cultural attire, traditional foods, and folk art from the past, while this culture faded with time and needs to be revived to engage people in healthy activities. “This annual mela is meant to keep our heritage, values, and traditions alive, and it can only be possible if more people visit it and promote the cultural legacies of Pakistan,” he said about the festival. Saira Peter, the first Sufi opera singer in Pakistan, gave a mesmerizing performance at the opening ceremony. She told APP that she came from the UK to perform at this festival for the people of Pakistan to give them a unique experience among other folk performances and celebrate the diversity of Pakistan’s musical heritage. Those artisans, sitting on stalls, prepared much trendy and in-demand work for the people. A bangle stall holder said that mostly the artisans brought the stuff that is not available in local markets, and they also prepared the live stuff in front of the people so that they could witness the hard work being done to create artistic masterpieces.