This year will see a revamped Bali cultural festival, melding the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival (UWRF) and Ubud Food Festival (UFF) into a new, digital celebration of Balinese culture. Called KEMBALI 2020, it will run from 29 October to 8 November 2020.
With access to the island by outsiders restricted for the foreseeable future, the organisers at Yayasan Mudra Swari Saraswati – an independent, not-for-profit foundation – have opted to go digital, and offer a new online showcase to fulfill the creative needs of Indonesia, its individuals and communities, while showcasing its traditional and contemporary cultural diversity to an even wider audience than before: the whole world.
Called the Kembali 2020: Rebuild Bali Festival, it will be a festival of literature, food, art and culture, and will bring together the most successful elements of UWRF and UFF in a digital as well as physical. Offering a unique mix of Indonesia’s creative arts and culinary richnesses, all events will be accessible to audiences in Indonesia and beyond through donation-based sessions.
“Thank you for always believing and supporting us. With your contribution to our Yayasan Patron Program, we are proud to present the KEMBALI 2020: A Rebuild Bali Festival,” said festival director Janet DeNeefe. She added that the new format would help boost the economy and reflower the Balinese community. “With Kembali, we continue our original mission, but with a new and exciting format,” she added.
The festival will feature programs across the creative arts, from literature to film, design, fashion and journalism, as well as those from the culinary world. Better still, from Sabang to Merauke, Singapore to Mexico, all events are accessible to a global audience through its donation-based sessions say the organisers. There will also be discussions, workshops, book launches, poetry readings and film, all presented in digital format. Additionally, some programs will be available on the ground for limited local audiences, but restricted to attendees who follow required COVID-19 safety procedures.
“As a Festival with a mission, we believe that once again, it is our duty to help Bali heal and that culture is at the heart of rebuilding societies,” explained DeNeefe. “The show must go on and we are committed to creating an event like no other in a year like no other.”
For more information, please go to the over to the Kembali (come back in Bahasa) website.