Korean students showcase beauty of Taekwondo at World Cultural Festival

Mar 27, 2017, 09:00 am

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Korean students demonstrated their Taekwondo techniques at the World Cultural Festival held at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in New Delhi on March 25./ Photographed by Jeong In-seo

By Jeong In-seo, New Delhi correspondent, AsiaToday – The World Cultural Festival took place at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on March 25, celebrating the diversity in cultures from across the world.

The venue was set in the open space behind the Karmal Complex at Nehru University. When I arrived at the venue at 7 pm, all I could see was only the stage and some staff preparing for the festival. I was worried thinking there was lack of promotion. But I was wrong.

The celebration started at 8:30 pm. Nepalese students dressed up in red traditional costumes showed off their singing talents, catching the audience's attention. Then Indonesian students in pink hijab and Tibetan students wearing colorful costumes with white masks danced their traditional dances. Students from Afghanistan and Syria played comic chat, making the audience burst into laughter.

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Tibetan students performed a traditional mask dance at the World Cultural Festival held at Nehru University in New Delhi, India./ Photographed by Jeong In-seo

Tibetan students performed a traditional mask dance at the World Cultural Festival held at Nehru University in New Delhi, India./ Photographed by Jeong In-seo

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The Taekwondo demonstration prepared by Korean students got the hottest applause during the festival. From left: Kim Joon-young, Lee Kun-woo, Song Si-young, Choi Young-hyun, and Choi Ha-won./ Photographed by Jeong In-seo

Sumit (21) and his friend Ravi Kumar (21) were fascinated by Taekwondo.. "I was impressed by many Taekwondo moves when I watched the demonstration. I felt like I want to learn Taekwondo," Sumit said. "I remember enjoying Korean food at the recent food culture festival. And when I watched the performance today, I was able to be more interested in Korean culture."

Ravi Kumar, who is interested in martial arts, said, "I often watched boxing, May Thai, and Taekwon videos online. But this is the first time to watch the performance directly. I've seen Taekwondo club at Munirka near the school. I'd like to learn it if possible."

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Korean students demonstrated Taekwondo. From left: Lee Kun-woo, Kim Joon-young, Ryu Joo-heon, Choi Young-hyun, and Song Si-young./ Photographed by Jeong In-seo

Pema Khandu (23) picked Taekwon as the most impressive performance. She said, "I've learned Taekwon before. I'm impressed with smooth movements and demonstration of Taekwondo competition."

After about two hours of performance, a traditional costume fashion show for international students was held. Each of them with their traditional costumes walked the catwalk confidently. After the fashion show, a dance party took place as the final part of the festival.

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Korean students wearing Hanbok walked the catwalk at the World Cultural Festival held at the Nehru University in New Delhi, India, on March 25./ Photographed by Jeong In-seo

I was able to meet Taekwon demo team during the dance party.

Ryu Joo-heon (26), who holds a fifth-degree belt in Taekwondo, led the demo team. "Each of us was able to do basic Taekwondo moves, so it was easy to prepare for the show," he said. "I was a little worried because we didn't have much time to prepare, but I'm so glad to have finished it successfully. I'm proud that I had the opportunity to introduce Taekwondo to foreign friends. I'd like to introduce Korean culture if there is another chance."

Ko Kwan-woo (22), the head of the Korean Student Association at JNU, said, "Korean students decided to participate in the festival in order to promote various cultures of Korea. We didn't have enough to practice because the festival schedule conflicted with the exam period. But I'm thankful to my team members who followed me without complaining."

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Indonesian students danced traditional dances at the World Cultural Festival held at JNU in New Delhi, India, on March 25./ Photographed by Jeong In-seo

Choi Ha-won (21) said, "I wanted to introduce Korean culture to my friends through Taekwondo. I was so nervous on the stage, but I'm happy to introduce my culture to my friends."

The festival was participated by international students from 15 countries including Korea, Japan, Tibet, Nepal, Afghanistan, Indonesia and Syria to introduce their traditional cultures.