NIHON STAR 2021 SETS REVOLUTIONARY PRECEDENT AS SRI LANKA’S FIRST ONLINE TALENT COMPETITION ORGANISED BY LNBTI

For many, the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns have slowed down the pace of life, leaving little else but the mundane to keep us entertained. But for the eager and enthusiastic students and faculty of Lanka Nippon Biz Tech Institute (LNBTI) including the numerous Japanese language teachers and their students nationwide, the past few months have been a source of excitement and fevered preparation in anticipation of one the biggest events to date!

The Nihon Star Japanese Talent Competition began as a fledgling idea by Sri Lanka’s premier Japanese backed Higher Education Institute, LNBTI and garnered the attention of not only a captive audience in the various cultural circles of Japanese influence, but of Sri Lankans domiciled in Japan, as well as the general public. In an unprecedented decision to host Sri Lanka’s first ever Japanese cultural talent competition, exclusively on an online platform, LNBTI saw an overwhelming response of about 500 participants who went on to display their talents in the areas of performing arts (singing, dancing, speech, cosplay & rakugo) and fine arts (calligraphy, origami, ikebana, haiku, kyara ben & creative writing); all stemming from the rich heritage of Japanese culture. Among many participants, 33 finalists went on to win the respective categories in the competition, whilst all others received certificates of participation in order to appreciate their keen interest and efforts in participating in the Nihon Star Japanese Talent Competition.

The competitive categories for students to participate in, featured an exciting balance of modern Japanese pop culture in the performing arts category, with cosplay and rakugo being featured alongside the usual song and dance categories. The fine arts category, created the space for students to display their skill and talent in origami, ikebana, kanji calligraphy and haiku among many prominent areas of Japanese art.

“We were all very impressed by the talents showcased by the contestants in the competition. We at LNBTI, are delighted at being able to create a platform like the Nihon Star competition to enable our young generation to demonstrate their talents in the arts, culture, and language of Japan”, stated Mr. Saman Kumara, Director of LNBTI.

As an indispensable cog in the higher education sphere, LNBTI has played a pivotal role in strengthening the relationship between Sri Lanka and Japan in its unique curricular offering, which marries a variety of disciplines in computing with the distinctive quality of Japanese work ethics.

As a result, the Nihon Star Talent competition garnered the attention and support of various JapanSri Lanka associations and their affiliated communities namely, the Presidents and members of The

Sri Lanka Association in Japan, The Sri Lanka Business Council in Japan, The Sri Lanka Academics Association in Japan and The Sri Lanka Professional Association in Japan. The institute’s strong business connections that stem from its relationship to Metatechno Inc and hSenid Group of Companies, have also garnered the local support of The Japanese Business Association and the Japanese Graduates’ Alumni Association (JAGAAS) in Sri Lanka. Within the academic circles, officials of many key government authorities representing higher education in Sri Lanka participated for this event in recognition of the institute’s efforts to bring greater awareness to the arts and culture of Japan.

Furthermore, the event finale was graced by the esteemed presence of the Honorable Ambassador of Japan in Sri Lanka, His Excellency Akira Sugiyama and the Honorable Ambassador of Sri Lanka in Japan, His Excellency Sanjiv Gunasekara. Both ambassadors appreciated the efforts of conducting a unique event of this magnitude and went on to mention that LNBTI has always provided quality programmes with excellent learning experiences for students and trained them to become outstanding IT professionals which is in line with the demand for individuals of such caliber, within the Japanese IT Industry.

The competition concluded with an award ceremony and an open category talent competition for the general public, which was livestreamed worldwide as a full day event on 21st September 2021, commencing at 0900hrs (Sri Lanka time)