Bollywood, yoga, music and more in Hong Kong’s India by the Bay festival – a celebration of Indian culture

Now in its eighth year, India by the Bay – from October 7-15 – includes a new wellness programme to help nourish the mind and body after years of Covid stress

Attendees can also expect to enjoy Indian literature, music, food – a gala dinner features dishes from across India – theatre and dance

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Yoga instructor Devika Virmani in Tsim Sha Tsui. Virmani will hold an Iyengar yoga session as part of India by the Bay, a celebration of Indian arts and culture in Hong Kong in October. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Published: 12:45pm, 29 Sep 2023Updated: 1:22pm, 29 Sep 2023

India has one of the world’s most ancient civilisations, and a rich cultural heritage seen in, among other things, philosophy, food and dance.

Around the world today, its culture is most obviously represented by Bollywood, the billion-dollar Hindi-language film industry that churns out 1,000 films a year, leaving Hollywood – which makes about 600 films a year – in its wake.

“It’s true that much of what is known about India in places such as Hong Kong is Bollywood driven, because that is the popular culture,” says Sanjoy Roy of Delhi-based entertainment company Teamwork Arts.

Broadening people’s view of Indian culture is what Teamwork Arts does best, and it does this by presenting India-focused festivals in the rest of the world. That includes Hong Kong, where it will host India by the Bay from October 7-15.

India by the Bay will feature “Bollywood Love Story – A Musical Theatrical Extravaganza” at the Xiqu Centre in Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Cultural District on October 14. Photo: courtesy of India by the Bay

First staged in Hong Kong in 2015, the festival, which shifted online during the Covid-19 pandemic, celebrates a broad spectrum of Indian culture, including literature, music, food, theatre, and dance both contemporary and classical.

Bollywood fans have not been forgotten. A festival highlight is “Bollywood Love Story – A Musical Theatrical Extravaganza”, in which song and dance from the screen have been reinterpreted in a vibrant stage spectacle that will light up the Xiqu Centre in the West Kowloon Cultural District on October 14.