Ben Hamilton
February 21st, 2023

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All the colours of the rainbow (photo: Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh)

As a way of encouraging the grey days to give way to sunnier skies, and our dark attire to make way for brighter hues, a saviour is returning to Copenhagen this April.

Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS-DK), the organiser of last August’s well/attended Indian Vegetarian Food Festival, is once again setting up shop in Østerbro, this time to swap the cuisine for a much needed injection of colour.

Over a thousand people are expected!

Lots of activities and performances
On April 23, the Holi Festival of Colours will take over Docken in Copenhagen to promote cultural diversity and mutual understanding between the capital’s many different communities, whilst signalling the arrival of spring and the victory of good over evil. 

The ancient Hindu tradition of tossing coloured powders into the air to create a beautiful rainbow of hues with take centre stage, ably supported by an impressive line-up of Bollywood musical performances, delicious Indian street food and drinks, and interactive activities.

Learn more via this link.

Clean sweep for the Iranian-Danes at the Roberts
Every single winner at the Robert film awards was Danish – well, almost. While even the winners of best Best English-Language Film (‘Triangle of Sadness’) and Best Non-English Language Film (‘The Worst Person in the World’) were Danish co-productions, Iranian stars Zar Amir Ebrahimi and Arash Ashtiani took home the awards for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor for their performances in ‘Holy Spider’, the big winner on the night with 11 statuettes, including Best Feature Film and Best Director for Ali Abbasi. And it was also lucky 11 for Anders W Berthelsen who finally won Best Actor for ‘Bamse’ – his 11th acting nomination in 24 years of trying.

Sixty-five years of hard graft not enough for lifetime achievement award
Neither Ian Burns nor Vivienne McKee walked off with ‘Årets Hæderspris’ – the CPH Culture award that recognises those who have made a “lifelong effort in Danish theatre as well as a very special effort in 2022”. Respectively they enjoyed stellar years that marked the respective 25th and 40th anniversaries of That Theatre Company and the ‘Crazy Christmas Cabaret’, but it was not enough to impress the jury, who instead plumped for Ole Lemmeke, an actor, audiobook reader and sometime model.

Jack Bauer to spend 24 hours in Denmark
Kiefer Sutherland’s gang is coming to town – no, not Wild Guns or The Lost Boys, but his country-rock band, as the star of ’24’ and countless other series and films is coming to Denmark to play a concert at Arena Aabenraa on July 14. Since releasing his first album in 2016, Sutherland has been more focused on music than acting, and a second album duly followed in 2019. Buy tickets to see the Kiefer Sutherland Band via arenaaabenraa.dk.

New DFI website for preschoolers
The Danish Film Institute has launched a new website dedicated to preschoolers called ‘Børnebiffen i dagtilbud’. Aimed at children aged 3-6, the website makes use of 400 shorts films, bombarding the youngsters with visuals and audio designed to stir their imagination and encourage fun, creative and educational activities. The overall goal is to encourage the kids to become media users but in a wholesome way – both at home and at daycare.

KFTS headteacher announces surprise resignation
Stuart Lynch is stepping down as headteacher of KFTS after ten years in charge of the Copenhagen film and theatre school. Recently profiled by CPH POST, the British-Australian explained that he wanted to return to his first love: directing and performing theatre. Over the last 10 years, he has played a key role in turning the school’s fortunes around – a revival recently recognised by the awarding of BA degrees to graduates. Lynch’s final day will be on May 31. 

Court investigating how a Bornholm museum lost more than 10 guns
A Bornholm court has heard how 13-15 weapons have disappeared from Bornholms Forsvarsmuseum in recent years. Kastellets Venner Bornholm stands accused of breaching the Arms Act with inadequate provisions to safeguard a cache of 180 weapons and ammunition that included 24 machine guns, 96 rifles, 63 revolvers and pistols, and six hand grenades. One of the machine guns was used in a crime in 2020 after being stolen by a man on behalf of his son. Judgement is expected today.

The bodies left broken by the use of paraffin oil
One of Denmark’s most talked about TV programs is ’Dødelige Drømmekroppe’, a DR documentary about the growing trend among bodybuilders to inject themselves with paraffin oil. Last autumn, the practice claimed its first victim, and the documentary reveals how Herlev Hospital has seen case numbers mushroom from one in 2018 to 202 in 2022. 

New Ukrainian cultural centre to open
A new cultural centre dedicated to Ukrainians in Denmark will officially open at Gammel Dok Strandgade 27 in the Copenhagen neighbourhood of Christianshavn on Friday. The culture minister, Jakob Engel-Schmidt, will be among those present at the official opening of Ukraine House in Denmark at 15:30, which will include an exhibition of war-inspired Ukrainian art entitled ‘The ‘Muses are not Silent’, a panel debate discussing the importance of art for the resistance struggle and the future of Ukraine, and snacks and refreshments.