21 March - World Puppetry Day

 

World Puppetry Day is March 21. The idea came from the puppet theater artist Javad Zolfaghari from Iran. In 2000 at the XVIII Congress of the Union Internationale de la Marionnette, (UNIMA) in Magdeburg, he made the proposal for discussion. Two years later, at a meeting of the International Council of UNIMA in June 2002 in Atlanta, the date of the celebration was identified. The first celebration was in 2003.

Each year the day comes with a theme. In 2024, the theme was "The Climate!" encouraging puppeteers to celebrate the day using some form of that theme.

World Puppetry Day is celebrated by puppet festivals,donating to puppet organizations, making puppets, or watching a puppet show. Some communities will put on puppet shows in honor of the day reminding people of this versatile and dying art form.

Puppets have been around for almost 4000 years in almost every civilization. Today puppets come in all shapes and sizes and are used to tell different stories.

21 March - World Poetry Day

 

World Poetry Day is celebrated on 21 March, and was declared by UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) in 1999, "with the aim of supporting linguistic diversity through poetic expression and increasing the opportunity for endangered languages to be heard".Its purpose is to promote the reading, writing, publishing, and teaching of poetry throughout the world and, as the original UNESCO declaration says, to "give fresh recognition and impetus to national, regional, and international poetry movements".

21 March - International Day of Forests

 

The International Day of Forests was established on the 21st day of March, by resolution of the United Nations General Assembly on November 28, 2013.Each year, various events celebrate and raise awareness of the importance of all types of forests, and trees outside forests, for the benefit of current and future generations. Countries are encouraged to undertake efforts to organize local, national, and international activities involving forests and trees, such as tree planting campaigns, on International Day of Forests. The Secretariat of the United Nations Forum on Forests, in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization, facilitates the implementation of such events in collaboration with governments, the Collaborative Partnership on Forests, and international, regional and subregional organizations.International Day of Forests was observed for the first time on March 21, 2013.

 

SPECIAL CANCELLATION ON SPECIAL COVER INTERNATIONAL DAY OF FORESTS ISSUED ON 21/03/2023 in India , in Pune city

21 March - Ustad "Bismillah" Khan born in 1916

 

Ustad Qamruddin "Bismillah" Khan (21 March 1916 – 21 August 2006) (born as Qamaruddin Khan) was dedicated shehnai maestro from India. The much-celebrated musician was born into the family of musicians on March 21, 1916. Ustad Bismillah won prestigious awards, such as the Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri, Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan and was a popular name all over the world. He mastered the art of playing the shehnai and also had the honour of playing on the eve of Indian's independence in 1947. Even today, the annual Republic Day celebrations broadcast to the opening notes of Ustad Bismillah's music.In August 2006, Khan's health deteriorated and he was admitted to the Hospital in Varanasi. He bid adieu to the world on August 21, 2006, due to a cardiac arrest.

21 March - International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

 

The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is observed annually on 21 March. On that day, in 1960, police opened fire at a peaceful demonstration in Sharpeville, South Africa, against the apartheid pass laws; 69 people were killed, and 180 were injured. Proclaiming the day in 1966, the United Nations General Assembly called on the international community to redouble its efforts to eliminate all forms of racial discrimination.