The festival of Holi was celebrated at the Hindu Samaj Temple on Saturday, March 3rd, 2007. In the morning, the Balagokulam group heralded the arrival of Spring in it’s many forms and shades by smearing a myriad of colors on all assembled. “Bura na mano, Holi Hai!”
The same evening the Rochester Indian community and friends of the Indian community gathered at the Stewartville community Hall for a cultural celebration and dinner. The community hall was elegantly decorated by Meera Menon, with personalized touches of flowers in vases at each table. Dinner arrangements were coordinated by Santhi Subramaniam of Zumbrota. The menu consisted of mouth-watering items like Chhole/Naan, Tamarind Rice, Rice and Sambhar, Mixed vegetables, followed by Badam Burphy and Ras Malai for dessert. Satisfaction was evident as the kids enjoyed gigantic slices of cheese pizza! Thanks to the many volunteers who helped Santhi.
A superb cultural program coordinated and orchestrated by Meera Menon was the highlight of the evening. Beautifully choreographed classical and folk dances from different parts of India were a delight to watch. The Kuchipudi and Kathak dances were wonderfully performed by talented young girls in the community. From the Kohli Nritya of Maharashtra to the Punjabi dances performed, each item had the audience tapping their feet to the beat and rhythm. The women who performed the extremely complex “Dola Re Dola” dance from the movie “Devdas” got a standing ovation. Of course, no Indian program is complete without the Bollywood element that the Indian community really enjoys! Salaam Namaste to the Pretty Women who could give the Bollywood super stars a run for their money! Shilpi Sethi and Riya Madan had the crowd humming “Say na, Say na” and Ashok Mishra’s songs from the seventies stirred nostalgic memories. Interspersed throughout the evening’s entertainment were Bollywood songs rendered by Biju Nair and group from the twin cities.
The open dance at the end of this magical evening was a fitting finale to the magical night of Holi!
Kudos to the Hindu Samaj Temple for bringing the Rochester Indian community together at this event! We are now eagerly awaiting the next cultural event for Diwali!
WRITTEN BY Rajani Sohni.
The same evening the Rochester Indian community and friends of the Indian community gathered at the Stewartville community Hall for a cultural celebration and dinner. The community hall was elegantly decorated by Meera Menon, with personalized touches of flowers in vases at each table. Dinner arrangements were coordinated by Santhi Subramaniam of Zumbrota. The menu consisted of mouth-watering items like Chhole/Naan, Tamarind Rice, Rice and Sambhar, Mixed vegetables, followed by Badam Burphy and Ras Malai for dessert. Satisfaction was evident as the kids enjoyed gigantic slices of cheese pizza! Thanks to the many volunteers who helped Santhi.
A superb cultural program coordinated and orchestrated by Meera Menon was the highlight of the evening. Beautifully choreographed classical and folk dances from different parts of India were a delight to watch. The Kuchipudi and Kathak dances were wonderfully performed by talented young girls in the community. From the Kohli Nritya of Maharashtra to the Punjabi dances performed, each item had the audience tapping their feet to the beat and rhythm. The women who performed the extremely complex “Dola Re Dola” dance from the movie “Devdas” got a standing ovation. Of course, no Indian program is complete without the Bollywood element that the Indian community really enjoys! Salaam Namaste to the Pretty Women who could give the Bollywood super stars a run for their money! Shilpi Sethi and Riya Madan had the crowd humming “Say na, Say na” and Ashok Mishra’s songs from the seventies stirred nostalgic memories. Interspersed throughout the evening’s entertainment were Bollywood songs rendered by Biju Nair and group from the twin cities.
The open dance at the end of this magical evening was a fitting finale to the magical night of Holi!
Kudos to the Hindu Samaj Temple for bringing the Rochester Indian community together at this event! We are now eagerly awaiting the next cultural event for Diwali!
WRITTEN BY Rajani Sohni.
