Consulate General of India in Shanghai along with Suqian Municipal People’s Government would be jointly organizing an India-China (Suqian) Business and Investment Forum and India Culture Week celebrations in Suqian from today.  CGI Shanghai’s template of cooperation with Suqian is a unique initiative bringing together economic, commercial and cultural aspects and intends to transport a truly Indian experience into Suqian in the week beginning 23^rd May, 2017. 

2.  Suqian is a prefecture level city located in northern part of Jiangsu Province and enjoys a strong locational advantage being placed at the the intersection of East Longhai Sea Industrial Belt, Coastal Industrial Belt and the Yangtze Economic Belt. With a high percapita of $7276, Suqian has several industries with long standing cooperation with India, including the Jingke Group, which has executed several power projects in India. 

3.  A brief overview of the components of the Business Forum and Culture Week elements being planned is as below: 

Indian-China (Suqian) Business and Investment Forum 

By way of organizing India-China (Suqian) Business forum, Consulate hopes to invite more Suqian companies to invest in India. Suqian is expected to receive the Indian delegation comprising Chief Representatives of more than 10 leading Indian companies, who would be led by Consul General Prakash Gupta, to participate in the Business and Investment Forum, being held on 24^th May at Suqian Hengli International Hotel. Representatives of Indian companies would be introducing the latest investment opportunities in India in sectors like Infrastructure Development, Banking and Finance, Smart Cities, Urban Transportation, Power Sector, as well as opportunities for investments in Indian film industry to Suqian companies. A series of B2B meetings have also been planned for participating Indian companies with their Chinese counterparts from Suqian. 

India Culture Week- inaugural ceremony with Charishnu and Bollywood Dance Performance at Suqian Suyu Theater 

The week long celebrations under India Culture Week in Suqian will be inaugurated with an opening dance performance titled ‘colors of India’ at the Suqian Suyu theatre on the evening of 23^rd May. The two hour long program will include both Indian classical and Bollywood dance performance to bring the unique and vibrant flavor of India to Suqian audience. The classical dance performance is by the renowned groups Charishnu led by Ms Leela Samson and Bollywood performance is by Teamwork Arts. The troupe is being sponsored by Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), which is India’s premier agency for promoting cultural exchanges abroad. 

Charishnu is a spectacular dance and music presentation that offers a glimpse of the diversity and richness of India’s performing arts. It includes a selection of the classical, folk and martial dance forms from India. The wonderfully complex art of percussion is also presented through an ensemble of drums from different parts of India. This production is conceived and directed by Ms. Leela Samson, one of India’s illustrious dancers. She is a teacher, writer and choreographer of Bharatnatyam. 

Teamwork Arts is a highly versatile production company with roots in the performing arts, social action and the corporate world. The group would be showcasing the musical extravaganza, Bollywood Love Story - which continues to tour the world and has sold out shows in Austria, Germany, Netherlands, South Africa, Spain and Switzerland. 

Indian Food Festival: 24-26^th May 

An Indian Food Festival, showcasing the best Indian culinary experience, will also be hosted for a week at the Hengli International Hotel and would be jointly inaugurated by Consul General and Suqian Leadership on 24^th May noon.  Two Indian Chefs have been specially assigned in Suqian to prepare select Indian delicacies for the Indian Food Festival, which will last for one week for Suqian food lovers.  

Exhibition of Indian Paintings and Photos : 

Art lovers from Suqian would also get to view an exhibition of Indian paintings (drawn by Chinese veteran artist Wang Zhijie and his student Luo Weimin) titled “India through Chinese Eyes”. It is worth noting that Mr Wang, after his return from India, painted only Indian landscapes, and subsequently donated these paintings to the Consulate. Mr Luo Wei Min (a student of Wang Zhijie) painted his portraits of India after his recent trip to India, that was sponsored by ICCR.  Separately, a parallel photo exhibition showcasing photographs of prominent Buddhist sites/ monasteries from across India and photographs tracing life of Mahatma Gandhi will also be inaugurated. The photo exhibits along with the set of Indian paintings aim to take Suqian audience to a virtual journey to India. These paintings and photographs will be on display at the prestigious Suqian Art Museum beginning 24^th May and will last for a period of two weeks. 

Indian Bollywood Film Festival 

Given the tremendous interest generated by Indian films amongst Chinese audiences, a two-week long Indian Film Festival featuring 13 of India’s most successful and recent movies – (“PK” “Three Idiots” “Bhaag Milkha Bhaag” “Taare Zameen Par” “Queen” “English Vinglish” “Mary Kom” “Ek Villain” “Tanu weds Manu” “Manjhi” “Kahaani” “Jolly LLB” “Prem Ratan Dhan Payo”– all in Chinese) would also be available for viewing as part of the Indian Film Festival at Suqian University campus. 

All in all, a truly Indian experience is being transported for the people of Suqian, in the week beginning 23^rd May. It is hoped that the Business and Investment Forum coupled with the series of cultural events will foster a better understanding of Indian arts and culture in the minds of Suqian people and further promote all-round development of bilateral ties.

Suqian (Jiangsu)

23^rd May, 2017