Asian Fest 2019

June 9, 2019

Asian American Alliance, Inc. is excited to announce that Anita Lerche, Billboard Top-5 Charting singer-songwriter and the first non-Asian woman from the West (she is from Denmark) to release a solo album in Punjabi, will make a special appearance and perform at the Asian Fest this Sunday. This is a FREE event.

Anita will sing “Vaishnav Jan”, Mahatma Gandhi’s favorite Hindu devotional Song sung in Guajarati language. You can see her video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YF-r1MasVYE She will also perform a medley of Punjabi songs.

The 12th annual Asian Fest takes place on Sunday from noon to 5pm at the Indiana State Museum in downtown Indianapolis. This free, family-friendly festival celebrates the rich and diverse Asian cultures and traditions that can be found right here in Central Indiana.

Every year, Asian Fest spotlights one Asian country, and this year, we are proud to present South Korea. This fascinating country rose from the ashes of the Korean War to become a world economic powerhouse. More than 20,000 Korean Americans call Indiana home.

Festival highlights include:

· Special appearance by singer-songwriter Anita Lerche

· Cultural discovery and displays of Featured Country – SOUTH KOREA

· Entertaining cultural performances from S. Korea, China, India, Japan, Philippines, Burma, Sri Lanka and more

· Asian cuisine from local restaurants

· Interactive children’s activities

· Asian communities booths

· Asian American Alliance’s Youth Leadership Awards presentation

Festival goers will receive $5 reduced event parking in the White River State Parks garage.

ENTERTAINMENT in the Auditorium
12:15 Opening Ceremony
12:30 Indianapolis Chinese Orchestra
1:00 Indy Bollywood/ DESI Fusion
1:20 SAYAW Philippine Folk Dance
1:30 Special performance by Anita Lerche
1:40 AAAI Youth Leadership Awards Presentation
2:05 Indianapolis Chinese Performing Arts
2:40 Indianapolis Minyo Dancers
3:15 Korean K-Pop Dance
3:35 Taekwondo Demonstrations
3:55 Korean Hanbok Fashion Show
4:05 Philippine Barangay Children’s Dance Troupe
4:40 Gajaga Wannama – Sri Lankan Dance
4:50 Word of Thanks

ENTERTAINMENT in the Great Hall
12:15 “Dotting the Eyes” Ceremony
12:20 Chinese Lion Dance
12:45 Sri Lankan Folk Songs and Drums
1:15 Bollywood Dancer
1:25 Okinawa Japan Yuyukai Drum Performance
2:00 Bharatnatyam Indian Classical Dance
2:30 Dragon Dance
3:10 Philippine Bamboo Dance
3:25 Punjabi Medley by Anita Lerche
3:30 Bollywood Beats
4:00 Burmese Ethnic Dance
4:40 Korean K-Pop Dance

SPECIAL EXHIBIT/DISPLAY – South Korea
Videos: Korean culture, high-tech industry and food
Korean “Tea Ceremony”
Photo zone with a Korean palace backdrop
Korean “Hanbok Dress up”
Acupuncture / Korean traditional medicine
Korean Calligraphy
Korean children’s games
Decorating fans

INTERACTIVE ACTIVITIES
Free Health Screenings by the Philippine Nurses Association of Indiana
Taiwanese Calligraphy
Kitsuke “Kimono Dress up”
Chinese Calligraphy
Japanese Origami Demonstrations

RESTAURANT VENDORS
Indy Asian Cuisine (Chinese)
Seoul Fresh (Korean)
Filipino Sweets & Desserts

KIDS ZONE
Coloring
Face Painting
Henna Art

For more information contact Asian Fest Manager, Marife Callender at marifecallender@gmail.com

The 2019 Asian Fest is made possible by these generous sponsors:
Title Sponsors: Barnes and Thornburg, Indianapolis Power & Light, IUPUI, Roche, Tenthpin, One America, Key Bank
Event Sponsors: Purdue Asian American and Asian Resources & Cultural Center, Morgan Stanley, The International Center, Indianapolis Foundation, Christel DeHaan Family Foundation, Nationalities Council of Indiana
Event Partner: Korean American Association of Indiana (KAAI)
In-Kind Sponsors: Indiana State Museum, Indy Korea, Indy Asian American Times

Asian Fest is hosted by Asian American Alliance, Inc., a local, nonprofit, pan-Asian organization whose mission is to empower Asian Americans to serve and lead in businesses and communities.