Food-film fest delights Asians

The 6th Asian film festival concluded here at the weekend with a heartbreaking Indonesian movie, traditional dance and the cuisine of 13 Asian nations.
Indonesian Consul General Zakaria Anshar was the host of the event which was attended by diplomats and members of the Asian Consul Generals Clubs (ACGC).
Visitors were entertained with an Indonesian film “Sang Pemimpi” (The Dreamer), a tale of three friends and their heartbreaking struggle to fulfill their dreams. It was also about the love between a father and his child.
The embassy organized a colorful Indonesian traditional dance “Tari Payung” (Umbrella Dance).
Dishes on display included Korean kimchi, Bengali chicken rice, Pakistani chicken biryani, Japanese sushi, Indian kandhari tika, Indonesian basomalang, Thai som tam, Singapore migoring in Malay style, Philippine pastel with banana leaves, Sri Lanka cutlets, Malaysian noodles and Brunei beef satay with rice cakes.
Salah Attia, dean of the Arab consular corps and consul general of Algeria, said he enjoyed eating dishes from other countries. “I wish we could arrange something like this with all the consulates. As the dean of the consular corps of Arab countries, I will soon organize the same event for Arab countries, so we can share our culture and traditions,” he said.
Korean Consul General Shin Yong-gi’s spouse, Cha Young-ae, told Arab News that she prepared all the Korean food.
“Korean kimchi and marinated beef are famous traditional food which I prepared with and without red chili. This was for our special Saudi guests. I also offered them Korean Ging Sing Root Herb in honey, which is part of our rich culture,” she added.
Aftab Khokhar, Pakistan consul general, said he also enjoyed the festival because it was an opportunity for various communities to meet and strengthen ties.
Raziff Aljiunied, Singapore consul general, said food was one of the best ways to demonstrate the culture and hospitality of a country, “Singaporean dishes in Chinese and Malay style are an excellent way of showing our mix of different cultures and traditions.”
Mohammed Nazmul Islam, consul general of Bangladesh, concluded the film festival by thanking the ACGC, particularly the consulates of Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Indonesia for hosting films on their premises. “It was an incredible,” he said.
The ACGC organized the festival to highlight our traditions and culture. During the festival 11 Asian tourism documentaries and films were screened. We are confident that everyone enjoyed it. We will try to screen more thought-provoking films from our countries in future,” he said.