India, Feb. 17 -- The world has collectively exited the year of the snake to enter the momentum-oriented year of the fire horse. The Chinese New Year, today, Febraury 17, marks the first new moon of the lunar calendar, also kicking off the 15-day Spring Festival in China, set to conclude on March 3.

And the first cultural rite of passage has always been the Chunwan, organised by the China Media Group. One of the country's most important televised cultural spectacles, it has been produced and organised by the state broadcaster CCTV since 1983. The show typically lasts close to four hours, beginning at 8PM, China Standard Time, and continuing slightly past midnight. It generally showcases around 30 performances - acrobatics, singing, dance...