Thailand Festival to Honour Her Majesty The Queens Birthday

A cultural festival will be held in Thailand to honour Her Majesty Queen Sirikit on the occasion of her 79th birthday, August 12. The Festival will be held in Bangkok at the Thailand Cultural Center between August 11 and 14. It will also take place in Lampang province in the North, Khon Kaen in the Northeast, and Phuket in the South, from August 15 to 17.

At the Thailand Cultural Center, the festival features exhibitions on the life and work of Her Majesty and Thai arts and culture, especially the costumes of the Khon, a classical masked dance, and traditional Thai crafts. There will be a demonstration of popular Thai dishes, such as Massaman curry, which was ranked first among the world’s 50 most delicious foods, according to a survey conducted by CNNGo.com.

Apart from Thai cultural performances, music, and a film show on the Legend of King Naresuan, the festival will include international performances from nine countries, namely Bangladesh, Indonesia, Iran, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Poland, Russia, and Sri Lanka. Admission is free.

Two years ago, Her Majesty the Queen expressed her wishes for the preservation of the Khon for fear that this traditional art form would gradually disappear. In response to Her Majesty’s wishes, the Ministry of Culture has launched a project to raise public awareness of this traditional performing art educate the public, particularly young people, through various forms of the media. More Khon performances have also been arranged for people in various parts of the country.

In celebration of Her Majesty the Queen’s birthday, various organizations have organized activities throughout the month of August as a tribute to Her Majesty. The Foundation for the Promotion of Supplementary Occupations and Related Techniques, or SUPPORT Foundation, has joined many activities to promote Thai arts and crafts on this special occasion.

Her Majesty the Queen established SUPPORT in 1976 to revive and preserve traditional arts and crafts, train craft makers, provide assistance in craft designing, and seek markets for folk crafts. The primary objective of SUPPORT is to form women’s groups and provide them with training, equipment, and materials to set up and operate cottage industries, especially in rural areas. SUPPORT has offered additional sources of income for farmers.

An admirer of Thai fabric, Her Majesty plays a vital role in promoting Thai fabric and silk and making it better known in the world at large. Various projects, carried out by SUPPORT, have broadened the perspectives of local farmers in terms of silk designs and skill development. Her Majesty said that she was proud of SUPPORT, as this foundation showed that Thai people in all regions of the country are good at craft-making and their excellent craftsmanship is well recognized, both locally and internationally.