RIYADH — The eastern Indian state of Odisha were in the spotlight in the Indian Pavilion of the Janadriyah Festival here where the state’s rich culture was put on show for all to see. The Janadriyah, which is being held under the aegis of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, is in its 32nd edition and being conducted at the heritage village near here. India is the ‘Guest of Honor’ country this year. The grand India Pavilion at Janadariyah was jointly inaugurated by King Salman and the Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. The Indian Embassy here has welcomed the expatriates of different Indian states to display their states’ heritage on different dates so as to showcase the cultural diversity of the nation. Last Monday was the day to depict the rich heritage and culture of Odisha state and the lead to project Odisha culture was taken by the Riyadh Odisha Socio-cultural Association (ROSA), which has been endeavoring for last ten years to ‘Make Odisha Visible’ in the foreign land. The colourful display of Odisha stall included the historic maritime trade, art and craft, saris, scenic tourist attractions, rich mineral resources, modern industries, smart technology, sports etc. The second theme of display was to depict Odisha as the destination of modern investment under the able and stable leadership of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The focus sectors of foreign investments in Odisha are metal, electronics, textile, food, chemical, downstream industries, tourism etc. Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) President Dr. Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, Indian Ambassador Ahmad Javed, Deputy Chief of Mission Suhel Ajaz Khan and Counsellor (Community Welfare) Anil Nautiyal inaugurated the Odisha stall by lighting the traditional lamp. Several items such as the Pipili chanduas and other handicrafts, pattachitras (palm leaf paintings), traditional paintings, Odiya saris, Odiya jewelry, coir deer, painted coconut shells, handmade traditional boat, model of a Konark wheel, Odishi dance costume etc were displayed. The famous Odiya sweet ‘chenna podo’ was served to all guests who visited the stall. The event management of displaying Odisha in such a high-profile festival was done under the able leadership of ROSA President Debashis Rout with support of a core dedicated team including Razik Wakil, Saroj Panigrahi, Vivek Silla, Ms. Dr. Chandana Das, Prabir Kumar Das, Ms. Lopamudra Prusty, Sukanta Patra, Samikhya Patra, Anishka Patra, Anwar Tarafdar, Manas Swain, Azeemuddin Khan, Afreen Azmi, Hadubandhu Sahu and Dr. Mahendra Kumar Patra. The inspiration behind this cultural extravaganza to make Odisha Visible was ROSA Patron Dr. Dev Mohanty and Advisors Dr. Fazal Haque and Mohammed Shamsher Ali. Thousands of guests visited the stall and showed keen interest in Odisha heritage and culture and had a first-hand experience of it. The continuous support from Indian Embassy, especially Nautiyal and the co-host of the stall — the sisterly state of West Bengal — were immense and praiseworthy. — SG