In a resounding celebration of heritage and culture, over 1,000 individuals gathered for the Phuket Peranakan Festival‘s ‘Extravaganza Carnival’ grand parade. The glowing event unfolded within the classic vicinity of Phuket Old Town on a joyous Saturday evening.
The iconoclastic carnival, the crown jewel of the three-day extravaganza, resulted within the closure of roads, culminating in a tremendous spectacle. The competition wrapped up yesterday.
Covert of Phuket Town have been acknowledging their Baba-Nyonya background by way of state-backed initiatives for years. However, the ‘Phuket Peranakan Festival’ was championed as the inaugural gathering of its type. It emerged as a “prototype” event devised to spice up sustainable tourism by spotlighting native tradition, The Phuket News reported.
The dynamic 2023 Phuket Peranakan Festival was a product of a synergistic involvement of over 20 entities. These include the Phuket Provincial Office, the Phuket Provincial Administrative Organisation (PPAO), Phuket City Municipality, Thailand’s Peranakan Association, the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), the Thailand International Events & Festivals Trade Association (TIEFA), and the Phuket Old Town Community affiliation, as confirmed by the Phuket department of Public Relations Department (PR Phuket). The specifics of the government budget allocated to the occasion remain undisclosed.
The festival’s opening ceremony was presided by Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew, accompanied by the PPAO President Rewat Areerob, ex-Phuket MP Anchalee Vanich Thepabutr and the Deputy Mayor of Phuket Town, Prasit Sinsaowapak.
In a statement, PR Phuket expressed that the competition acted as “a magnet for sustainable tourism, with emphasis on inviting native Phuket residents and Thai and overseas vacationers to take part in conventional costumes to participate in the event, elevating the extent of soft energy to become an annual international arts and tradition competition.”
Hundreds of stories have been handed down via generations, introducing aspects like preserving Baba-Nyonya wedding ceremony traditions, international Peranakan type and application of up to date art and culture, the report elaborated. It created a unity of Phuket with robust roots and stuffed with Peranakan culture, based mostly on the Malay Peninsula.
The competition also aspires to stimulate tourists into engaging with Peranakan culture, a major attraction for Phuket Town tourism for several years.
Various businesses in Phuket Old Town and close by areas are hoping to capitalise on the rise in tourists caused by the competition. The competition was initiated on Friday by Woo Gallery & Boutique Hotel celebrating the ‘Phuket Peranakan Festival 2023’. The event showcased conventional wedding ceremony dresses and costumes in the Baba-Nyonya fashion.
Cedric Tan from Malaysia led the ‘Workshop & Showcase,’ explaining 150 years of Peranakan fashion in Malaysia. The opening celebration continued with performances by the Khun Jom Yamaha band with conventional Malay songs and dancers from Indonesia. The Thai Women’s Social Creation Association, the Peranakan Association of Phuket, and the PPAO moreover hosted a reception at The Carb House.
Music and dance renditions continued all through the weekend at the Standard Chartered intersection in the heart of Phuket Town..