DUSHANBE, 16.09.2019. (NIAT Khovar) – An evening celebrating the friendship between Tajikistan and Poland was held last Friday evening at the Tajik State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater named after Sadriddin Aini.

Representatives of the Tajik government, diplomatic corps accredited in Dushanbe, science and literature circles, as well as many admirers of Polish culture attended the event.

Photographs of the well-known photographer Leon Barschevsky relating to Tajikistan were exhibited for art lovers in the theatre’s lobby.

Barschevsky was a colonel in the Russian army, a traveler and a talented photographer of the 19th century. Unique photographs taken in Central Asia, mainly in Samarkand, Hissor and Darvoz are included in the exhibition.

Barschevsky is considered the founder of the ethnographic museum of Samarkand.

After viewing the exhibition, the cultural program was opened by the First Deputy Minister of Culture of Tajikistan Obid Nazariyon and Acting Ambassador of Poland to Tajikistan Tomasz Kollád.

In their speeches they noted that the cultural program contributes to the strengthening of industrial relations between the two countries.

“It is very gratifying that an evening of friendship between Tajikistan and Poland is taking place in this bright and spacious theater. The people of independent Tajikistan are proud that, thanks to the wise and cultural-educational policy off President Emomali Rahmon, the cultural space of our country is always filled with great content. Cultural ties with the countries of the world are improving every day, as evidenced by the holding of this friendship evening,” said Nazariyon.

“The development of Polish-Tajik relations has a historical foundation and a bright future, these ties can be strengthened through cultural and entertainment programs. Bilateral relations of our states are also developing in various directions, which is based on the direct attention of the heads of the two states, and I am sure that the masters of art invited to the evening will give you aesthetic pleasure,” noted Kollád.

The concert program featured the famous Polish singer Anita Figel and the artists from the National Dance Ensemble at the Polish Academy of Physical Culture named after Jozef Pilsudski, who got a standing ovation from numerous Tajik spectators with their folk songs and dances.

The dance program Parastu and talented Tajik artists were also included in the cultural program.