From 12 – 21 April 2024, the Royal Thai Consulate-General in Kolkata in collaboration with Mayfair Lagoon, Bhubaneswar co-organized “Thai Food Festival in Odisha” with support from Thai Trade Centre in Chennai, Tourism Authority of Thailand New Delhi Office, and Charoen Phokphand Foods (CPF) India to promote the popularity of Thai food among Indians. More than 60 guests from private sector, travel agents and tour operators, Friends of Thailand, influencers and tourism bloggers as well as local media attended the inaugural reception. Several Thai dishes that have been ranked among tops of the world such as Som Tam (green papaya salad), Tom Yam Goong (spicy prawn soup), Tom Kha Gai (galangal chicken soup), Massaman Curry, Gaeng Khiaw Wan (green curry), and Khao Niaw Ma Muang (mango sticky rice) were curated by Chef Samrong Chanfalueam, personal chef to the Consul-General and served at the event.   

At the inaugural reception, Ms. Siriporn Tantipanyathep, Consul-General of Thailand in Kolkata reiterated that the purposes of the Festival were to promote closer people-to-people ties between Thailand and Odisha through the exchange of culinary cultures, and to celebrate traditional new year for both Thai people (Songkran) and Odisha people (Pana Sankranti), which fall on the same period and reflect the cultural affinity. She also invited Odisha people to visit Thailand to join the celebration of Songkran Festival, which has recently been formally recognized as an Intangible Cultural Heritage by the UNESCO, and to enjoy the benefits of direct flights between Bhubaneswar - Bangkok operated by IndiGo 2 flights per week and visa exemption scheme for Indian tourists by the Royal Thai Government, which have made traveling to Thailand even easier than ever.

Apart from promoting Thai food, the Consulate-General also organized the ceremony of bathing Lord Buddha statue to preserve Songkran’s tradition signifying washing away any misfortune from last year and bringing about good lucks for this coming new year. The ceremony was well received by the guests since, according to Hindu believe, Lord Buddha is considered as one of the avatars of Lord Krishna and hence Hindu people also pay respect to Lord Buddha. Other interesting activities included the display of Thai products by Thai Trade Centre in Chennai and local Thai ingredients seller SS Frozen World, the presentation of tourism promotional video from Tourism Authority of Thailand, and the serving of Thai dishes made from frozen products by CPF India.

The Consulate-General aims to promote Thai food’s popularity, to enhance its competitiveness, and to increase the values of Thai food products exported to India in line with the Royal Thai Government’s policy in promoting Thai food as a ‘Soft Power’ and ‘Ignite Thailand Vision’ that aims to develop Thailand as a global hub for food industry and seek for new markets and opportunities. In addition, the Consulate-General will build upon Thai food products’ well-established credentials on unique flavors, varieties, refinedness, and health benefits, which all make Thai food quite popular among Indian people.