Jashn-e-Rekhta draws overwhelming crowd, but hundreds left unhappy

The three-day-long Jashn-e-Rekhta festival returned after a pandemic break of three years, but ended on a note of inconvenience for many visitors as they were left stranded on the final day of the celebration.

On Sunday night, as many as 200-250 people couldn’t enter the Major Dhyanchand Stadium, the venue of the world’s largest festival to celebrate the Urdu language, as the security had to close the gates.

“There is full-house inside. So, they are not able to accommodate more, which is why they are not being allowed to enter,” said sub-inspector Mahender Kapoor, who was part of the security outside the venue.

There were people who had come from as far as Gurgaon and kept pleading the security to open the gate. At the same time, visitors complained of receiving no information from the organisers inside on whether they will be allowed to enter or not.

Adil, who had come from Govindpuri to attend the event, said, “It is unfortunate that I won’t be able to witness it. It seems that they are not able to handle so many people.”

There were people who criticised the organisers for failing to give them a clear picture, calling them “irresponsible”. The fact that the entry to the festival was free and open to everyone may have caused overcrowding.

Organised annually in Delhi under the aegis of Rekhta Foundation – a non-profit organisation, operating a free online resource and the world’s largest website and resource for Urdu poetry and literature, the festival aspires to unite language lovers from every part of the world to celebrate Hindustani languages, its rich history, and culture.

A glimpse of the extent of the crowd that landed at the gates of Jashn-e-Rekhta on Sunday