Fighting for the title: 16 groupscompeting for the 'Indak' scepter
Indak-Indak sa Kadayawan 2025: A Cultural Celebration with Competitive Prizes
The vibrant streets of Davao City once again came alive with the rhythmic beats and colourful floats of the Indak-Indak sa Kadayawan 2025. This year, the competition featured 16 contingents, evenly split between the school-based and open categories, showcasing the rich cultural heritage of the region[1].
In the school-based category, Davao City National High School returned to defend its title, while in the open category, Sindac Anib's Performing Arts Guild of Bislig City, Surigao del Sur made a comeback to the prestigious street dancing competition[2].
The winners of this year's competition were as follows:
Open Category:
- Mati City’s Balangay City High Performing Arts took the grand prize of ₱1 million, a plaque, and medals for all 150 performers[3].
- Sindac Anib Performing Ensemble of Bislig City won ₱500,000 and a plaque for second place[3].
School-Based Category:
- Daniel R. Aguinaldo National High School - Mana Performing Arts Ensemble was declared the grand champion[4].
The prize distribution for winners included ₱1 million, plaques, and 150 medals for first place; ₱500,000 for second; ₱400,000 for third; ₱300,000 for fourth; ₱200,000 for fifth; and ten consolation prizes of ₱50,000 each[1].
In addition to the main prizes, special awards were given for Best in Music, Best Choreographer, and Best in Artistic Design, each coming with ₱50,000[1].
The festival continued to emphasize cultural tribute to Davao’s 11 ethnolinguistic tribes and celebrated themes such as environment and abundance through performances and floats[1][3].
Harold Quibete, the event organizer, expressed his delight at the growing turnout for the Davao City school-based category, noting that more schools are participating, not just those with Special Program in the Arts (SPA) in their curriculum[2].
If Davao City National High School wins again this year, it will take a one-year break to give other schools a chance at the championship[2].
The grand champion in the dako category for the Pamulak sa Kadayawan floral float parade will take home ₱800,000.
The Indak-Indak sa Kadayawan 2025 combined both competition and cultural celebration, offering significant cash prizes and special awards recognizing various aspects of performance and design.
Davao City is the home of the Sindac Anib Performing Ensemble, who competed in the open category of the Indak-Indak sa Kadayawan 2025 and received the second place prize in sports. The festival also featured sports events, as Mati City’s Balangay City High Performing Arts won the grand prize in the open category of the sports competition.
