Roma Colors – Cool Romani

On the new site, Cool Romani, we can learn about something called the Roma Hungaricum Music Company, whose aim is to re-introduce original, all-but-forgotten Roma music to  young people and urban, pop culture. On the side, the group's members also play jazz or the works of Liszt and Bartók). We can also read about a project in which European youth from Turkey to Finland collaborate to create works using Roma cultural and folk art motives and patterns.

We can read listings of festivals and other events on Cool Romani, from the Roma Days at Trafó to the Khamoro Roma Musical Meeting in Prague as well as the Roma cultural events that are part of the Night of the Galleries in Budapest. The blog draws attention to young Roma painters like Tibor Balogh or Gilda Kállai. In addition to the many features about music, fashion and culture, we find stories about football matches between Roma players and policemen, or multicultural summer camps for children. The blog also reviews other articles about Roma cultural initiatives that appear in different newspapers.

The Cool Romani is a collection of the most vivid examples of the new wave in Hungarian Roma culture. It is also an island of hope and peace in the current, stormy social reality. The blog presents real-life examples for young people on how to overcome obstacles and develop their talent. That's what really makes the site stand out. The Cool Romani avoids the cultural ghetto.

On the contrary, it introduces – already partly in English – the best examples of coexistence and symbiosis of the Roma and Non-Roma cultures, the joint thinking and creation, and the importance of interaction.