Many artists and cultural figures participated in the "Ho Chi Minh City Ao Dai Festival 2024" as ambassadors - Photo: TTD
2024 marks the 10th anniversary of the Ho Chi Minh City Ao Dai Festival . The increasing number of people participating in the festival's activities demonstrates the widespread appeal and love people have for the Ao Dai.
The Ho Chi Minh City Ao Dai Festival 2024, themed "I Love Vietnamese Ao Dai ," will take place from March 7th to 17th. This year's festival will feature over 50 Ao Dai designers and festival ambassadors.
Preserving and safeguarding the beauty of the Ao Dai (Vietnamese traditional dress).
Mr. Nguyen Van Dung, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, stated that the success of the Ho Chi Minh City Ao Dai Festival over the past 10 years is the result of the perseverance, dedication, continuous learning, innovation, and creativity of various departments, units, and individuals.
He suggested that the Department of Tourism, the Department of Culture and Sports , the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Ho Chi Minh City Women's Union, and the organizing committee of the Ho Chi Minh City Ao Dai Festival continue to develop and come up with more creative and attractive ideas for the long journey ahead.
Looking back over the past 10 years, Ms. Nguyen Thi Anh Hoa - Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism - felt moved by the love and support she received from all levels and sectors, including designers, image ambassadors, and especially foreign diplomatic agencies in Vietnam...
" The Ho Chi Minh City Ao Dai Festival contributes to the preservation and safeguarding of cultural heritage. This is the motivation and also the theme we hope to pursue in future seasons. Above all, the ao dai has naturally become an integral part of life, increasingly familiar and close to us," Ms. Anh Hoa told Tuoi Tre newspaper .
Next year, the Ho Chi Minh City Ao Dai Festival will pay tribute to the community's contributions to the city's development, featuring Ao Dai performances for female workers, sanitation workers, vendors, and small traders in markets... Because all silent contributions deserve to be honored.
"From the 11th year onwards, we will collaborate to spread the ao dai more widely abroad. It won't just be seen in Ho Chi Minh City during festivals or Tet (Lunar New Year), but will be present everywhere. Seeing an ao dai means knowing it's Vietnam."
"It's a journey that requires perseverance and creativity. However, we believe we can achieve it through unity and collective effort," Ms. Anh Hoa shared.
Over 5,000 people performed a mass parade in traditional Vietnamese ao dai dresses on Nguyen Hue pedestrian street (Ho Chi Minh City) - Photo: TTD
Aspiration to soon become a legacy
Activities and programs related to the ao dai are considered vivid and practical evidence for preparing a dossier to propose the ao dai as a national intangible cultural heritage, with the goal of becoming a heritage of humanity.
The Ho Chi Minh City Ao Dai Festival , having been established and maintained for 10 years, will certainly continue to exist and become a traditional activity of Ho Chi Minh City, a source of pride for the city named after President Ho Chi Minh.
Ms. Le Tu Cam - President of the Ho Chi Minh City Cultural Heritage Association - Photo: Ho Lam
Ms. Le Tu Cam, president of the Ho Chi Minh City Cultural Heritage Association, assessed that the Ho Chi Minh City Ao Dai Festival, now in its 10th year, has become more diverse and, in particular, more profound.
The depth here lies in the fact that the designers are showcasing many collections of traditional ao dai (Vietnamese long dress).
"The ao dai is not a difficult, cumbersome, or immobile garment to wear."
However, there would need to be specific criteria to describe the ao dai, such as: what kind of skirt constitutes an ao dai, the ao dai must be worn with trousers, the ao dai must have sleeves, and the neckline can be chosen according to preference (high, low, or even wide for comfort, suitable for the Vietnamese climate).
"I hope the State will soon recognize the ao dai as a national intangible cultural heritage, and eventually recognize it as a heritage of humanity," Ms. Le Tu Cam told Tuoi Tre newspaper .
According to Ms. Anh Hoa, for the ao dai to become an intangible cultural heritage, it must become an indispensable part of people's lives.
"The organizers of the Ho Chi Minh City Ao Dai Festival hope to spread that spirit and beauty," Ms. Hoa emphasized.
MC Quynh Hoa showcases the traditional Vietnamese ao dai dress at the "Ho Chi Minh City Ao Dai Festival 2024" - Photo: Provided by the artist.
MC Quynh Hoa has been associated with the Ho Chi Minh City Ao Dai Festival for six years as an ambassador. Quynh Hoa says this is a great honor for her.
MC Quynh Hoa said she has visited 45 countries and always brings an ao dai (traditional Vietnamese dress) with her.
"In 1994, Hoa wore the ao dai (traditional Vietnamese dress) abroad for the first time when she was a final-year student at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Foreign Trade, attending the World Youth Festival. Many people saw Hoa wearing the ao dai, knew she was from Vietnam, and friends and tourists all wanted to take pictures with her. Hoa felt very proud," Quỳnh Hoa recounted.
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