From 25 May to 31 May, 2015 an Indian culinary fiesta was held at The Westin Dhaka's Seasonal Tastes restaurant. 

The festival was not an ordinary one. The rather comprehensive effort offered the guests foods from seven different regions of India. Indeed, a country's cuisine has a few subsets, and given the size and diversity of India, its cuisine is also multifaceted. Hence, the Indian Food Festival presented the culinary delights of seven different regions on seven days: Mumbai, Delhi, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Goa, Rajasthan and Gujarat. 

The variety of Indian foods is indeed overwhelming. From spicy street foods to the imperial produce, from Pani Puri to kebabs and biriyanis, the event was truly a colourful fiesta. And of course, there had been a generous assortment of desserts, given the fame of Indian sweets. 

The gastronomic affair was supervised by the renowned Indian chef Shamsher Ahmad from The Westin Mumbai. 

The inaugural ceremony of the grand and ambitious programme took place at the hotel's ballroom on 24 May.

The highlight of the ceremony was the Sufi Kathak performance. Sufi Kathak is a unique genre. It compounds the mysticism of Sufism with the classical Kathak. Manjari Chaturvedi, who is regarded as the master and the utmost authority on this unique dance form, performed at the event. 

The festival was launched by lighting up by a traditional 'diya'.  

Pankaj Saran, Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh, was to chief guest of the opening ceremony. "There are many routes to strengthening the friendship between the two countries. Some of them have been explored in great detail. I believe food can also be a route," he opined. 

Abrar A Anwar, CEO of Standard Chartered Bangladesh, explained their participation in the festival as the prime partner. "What does a bank have to do with food? Well, they say that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. So, this is an initiative for us to win our customers' hearts!" 

Daniel Muhor, General Manger, The Westin Dhaka, also spoke on the occasion. 

While the prime partner was Standard Chartered Bank, the beverage partner was Pepsi. 

Photo Courtesy: The Westin Dhaka