TEHRAN – The Lorestan Cultural and Economic Festival was inaugurated in Tehran’s Goft-o-Gu Park on Monday with a wide range of interesting programs highlighting the culture of the western province.

A number of cultural officials, including Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ali Jannati and Iranian Interior Minister Abodolreza Rahmani Fazli, attended the opening ceremony of the festival, which began with live Lori traditional music performance.

Speaking at the ceremony, Jannati praised Lorestan for its variety of traditions and customs, which have formed the precious heritage of the region.

“Lorestan have made its people deeply interested in poetry, and we can really say that Lorestan is the land of melodies. In this culture poetry flows in the daily life of people,” he said.

“The epic poets of Lorestan are great many in numbers and are rooted in historical and regional events, which narrate the stories of the heroes and heroines like Ali Mardan Khan and Mir-Gholam,” he explained.

He said that whatever remains in the historical memory of each nation forever is the epics created to defend the respect and knowledge of man.

Jananti continued that the people of Lorestan have always been brave and never surrendered themselves to the enemies.

Open-air theatrical and musical performances, and exhibition of Lori costumes and food are among the programs arranged for the five-day festival, which also aims to highlight the economic potential of the region.

Photo: A Lori music band performs during the Lorestan Cultural and Economic Festival in Tehran’s Goft-o-Gu Park on August 15, 2016. (Mehr/Asghar Khamseh)

RM/MMS