Other than sun and sand, staples in Chennai’s calendar, there will be a heady dose of yoga, beach cricket and ‘Australian Keerthanists’ livening up Marina Beach on January 19.
The events are part of the ongoing Oz Fest, a four-month long Australian cultural festiva being conducted across 18 Indian cities.
Bringing Australian beach culture to the city, the Australian Consulate General, along with event-management partner Carrot Adworks has put together, an ‘Aussie Beach Day’, which will suitably begin with a 90- minute yoga session organised by 136.1 Yoga Studio.
“This is one of our biggest cultural promotions in India so far. We want to fully showcase multicultural Australia,” said David Holly, Australian consul general for south India.
The day will begin at 6 a.m. with a yoga session led by Alex Medin from Norway, and will be accompanied with music by Australian duo, Edo and Jo, who specialise in Kirtans .
Starting 8 a.m., eight teams comprising corporates, media organisations, and educational institutions will battle it out on the sands to win the Oz fest beach cricket cup.
The teams, which will have eight players each, will play six overs in each match. Other than individual and team prizes for the players, there will be prizes for spectators too, such as the ‘best catch’.
In the afternoon, the Tamil Nadu Sailing Association will bring out their best 29er class yachts. Talking about these yachts, Mr. Holly said: “They are designed in Australia. Other than the 29ers, there will also be a 44-foot yacht on sail.”
There will also be a performance by Nabarun Ghosh, who will entertain the crowd with Indian and Australian songs.
On the security arrangements, for the event, which will fall on a Saturday, Anand Balakrishnan, managing director, Carrot Adworks, said that other than 30 private security personnel, they were also co-ordinating with the police to provide adequate security.
Chennai Live 104.1 FM is promoting the event, which is open to all.
