June 25, 2019

On June 16, the seventh Sabantuy took place in Paris. Organized by the cultural organization of Tatars of France, Maison France-Tatarstan, the national holiday brought together Tatars from Metz, Nancy, Vernon, Prague, Minsk, Ufa, Kazan, Novosibirsk and other cities, as well as French guests interested in Tatar culture.

The Plenipotentiary Representative of the Republic of Tatarstan in France, I. Yusupov, opened a holiday by reading the greeting of President R. Minnikhanov. Vice-Chairman of the organization R. Sabitov told the guests about the history of Sabantuy.

Local Bashkir, Kyrgyz, Russian, Ukrainian and Uygur groups performed for the residents and guests of the French capital. The Tatar pop artists Gulnaz Zakirova and Musa Malikov arrived to win the love of a multinational public by performing author and popular folk songs.

The concert part ended with a joint hymn about the native language “Tugan tel”.

Paris Sabantuy was decorated with Tatar souvenirs, presentation materials, national costumes.

The guests had the opportunity to taste the national dishes ochpochmak, manti, pancakes, pies, kystyby, as well as drink tea with chak-chak and halva.

Adults and children actively participated in traditional contests: running with full buckets of water on a yoke, running with  egg in  spoon, jumping in bags, dragging a rope.

At the end of the holiday the Tatar skullcap was played.

Good weather, beautiful songs, excellent mood, tasty treats, hot dances and folk games provided delight to hundreds of guests of the Tatar-Bashkir holiday in Paris Park Andre Citroen.

The holiday was held thanks to the efforts and support of local Tatars.

The festive mood continued in the evening in the restaurant, where the artists delighted the Tatars with lyrical songs.

Rishat Sabitov

Paris