"Our effort in this competition is revitalizing the regional languages because we have to admit that the younger generation has started to leave local languages behind," Head of the Central Kalimantan Culture and Tourism Office Adiah Chandra stated, as conveyed by Cultural Officer Gauri Vidya Dhaneswara here on Saturday.
Dhaneswara remarked that the Bakesah Competition is part of the 2023 Tambun Bungai Festival.
The office head believes that through such a cultural and tourism agenda, the provincial government has striven to revive the community and the youth's enthusiasm to study and enhance literacy regarding regional languages.
"This indirectly hones their local language proficiencies as well as part of our efforts to revitalize and reintroduce their first language," he explained.
The Bakesah competition was a storytelling contest based on the theme of heroism and local wisdom in Central Kalimantan, such as legends and folklore that are commonly known.
Each participant was given a maximum of 10 minutes to tell a story, and they were allowed to bring or equip themselves with tools or devices or wear traditional clothing that could support their performance.
During the storytelling, participants were allowed to speak Indonesian combined with their respective local languages that align with the theme or origin of the story.
The competition was attended by 18 people in the age bracket of 15-40 years, with judges being culture admirers Guntur Talajan and others.
The assessment encompassed aspects of performance, storytelling ability, mastery of story material, and storytelling techniques, such as voice volume, articulation, intonation, and tempo.
Unsu Sulasti, a participant from Katingan District, said she was happy to join the contest.
"I am happy to contribute to this activity. This is my first time participating in the Bakesah competition. I hope I can give my best," she remarked.
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Translator: M Hidayat, Kenzu
Editor: Sri Haryati
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