SHAAM KE SANGEET AUR NACHE 111 - AT THE AMERICA SEVASHRAM SANGHA

Jenny and I went to the "Shaam Ke Sangeet Aur Nache 111" presentation at the America Sevashram Sangha Saturday evening (Nov. 21st). It was a cultural evening organized by the New York Jamaica Humanitarian Mission (NYJHM) in aide of their humanitarian/cultural work the body does in Jamaica, WI.

This mission was started by the late Pandit Shri Prakash Gossai (Guruji) in 1997 and Dr. Tara Singh. Every summer since, folks from the NYJHM have been traveling to Jamaica to conduct summer youth programs and programs for the adults too.

GuruJi was a gem among gems; someone who would be extremely hard to replace. His rich legacy needs to go on but we must try to understand the depth of his love for humanity, his compassion, his sincerity, his simplicity and his devotion and love for God - Bhagwan Shri Ram, only then we can do justice to his rich teachings and try to walk the path he has carved. His was an extraordinary life, lived to serve God's creation.

Now, I went (and 'togged' along Jenny with me) to the program because Pandit Shri Bankim Gossai from London (GuruJj's brother) and Pandit Arun Gossai were part of the program. I've listened to PanditJi many times at the Shri Prakash Gossai Bhuvaneshwar Mandir and I'm extremely impressed with the devotion and love with which PanditJi sings bhanjans and kirtans and performs Puja. Pandit BankimJi is a great devotee of God and a very dedicated, sincere, selfless worker for Dharma. To sum it up, PanditJi is a very humble servant of God and that is an honor not many people can achieve in their lifetime. NYJHM will do well to listen to his wise guidance and counselling.

Now coming back to the evening, Jenny and I were expecting the program to be in held in the Ashram's mandir, where we could sit (without shoes on) and enjoy the many bhajans and kirtans to be sung. We were also expecting pure classical/kathak/Bharatnatyam style of dancing. But, the program was held at the auditorium. That was okay.

We really enjoyed the bhajans sang by Pandit BankimJi and Pandit Arun. Neither Jenny nor I cared for the filmy songs or dances. We were expecting the program to reflect more of a spiritual ambience, not a filmy/pop culture type of creation. It would have been much more enjoyable if the program had more items of pure classical music, singing and dancing.

Here's a call for organizers of these cultural evenings to please coordinate programs that would help to elevate the audience's mental well-being to a more relaxed and calm state. Classical music and dances are much more conducive to a richer spiritual experience ... that is what we need in the community. The bottom line is, we could listen to the original Bollywood songs and look at the dances from CDs and DVDs that are readily available at our fingertips. And, there is You tube...

On the same note, I would caution the designers of these costumes that the young ladies wear to dance on the stage to take into consideration that there is a thin line that runs between decency and indecent exposure. Please, let us dress the womenfolks in more beautiful costumes that reflects the greatness of true Indian womanhood. Remember, it is the womenfolks who are the upholder of this dynamic Dharma of ours.

While we were leaving, we met Pandit Suresh Sugrim of the New Jersey Arya Samaj Mandir, Inc. This is a gentleman that is doing so much to eradicate poverty in Guyana. It is so refreshing and admirable to see someone so passionate and sincere about such a great cause that benefits the poor and down-trodden children and adults back home.

And, as we were chatting, he revealed that oftentime, it's so hard to receive support for this cause from our folks over here. He desperately wants to bring this situation of the poverty-stricken conditions and domestic abuse that our womenfolks suffer back home, but guess what, some of the local television stations that he approached are calling for an exorbitant amount of money to highlight the plight of these children and adults. This is such a blatant shame and disgrace! When are we going to stop measuring every human value or life in dollar amount? I wonder, if we ever take a minute to realize what we are without the dollar or wealth for that matter? Who are we, if we don't have a television program or money in the bank? Think about it.

These are two pressing, critical issues that need our support. As fortunate ones, we have a responsibility to help our less fortunate sisters and brothers, so folks let us pool our efforts together to help eradicate poverty and domestic abuse in our country. I rest my case for now.

Below are some photos of the evening at the Ashram...

Pandit Shri Bankim Gossai, enthralling the audience ...


PapaJi, father of Pandit Gossai-himself a PanditJi ....

MISS INDIA NEW YORK PAGEANT - GREAT PLATFORM FOR YOUNG INDIAN LADIES ...

Mr. Dharmatma Saran invited me to attend the Miss Indian New York and Miss Teen India New York pageants held at the Community Center Auditorium in Flushing Saturday 14th evening. I thought that that was such a nice gesture on his part to extend an invitation to someone like me. I accepted the invitation and he told me that there will be an envelope with my name and two complimentary tickets. So said, so done! Thank you very much, Sir. I appreciate the thought and effort put into this for me.

I first met Mr. Saran at the World Fair's Marina Restaurant for a GOPIO meeting. I was early for that meeting and he made some calls on my behalf to see when the others would be arriving. He stayed around to make sure I was alright and introduced me to the owner of the restaurant who made sure I was provided with some finger food until the team arrived.

His deameanor is so unassuming, easy-going, friendly and caring that these outstanding qualities belly the fact that he is the Chairman of the IFC who coordinates all these Miss India & Miss Teen New York pageants in the Big Apple, other states around the US and around the globe, including South Africa and India.

Not only that, but he is one of the persons who genuinely and tirelessly work towards the promotion of the Indian culture globally and provide young Indian women a powerful platform to represent what it is like to be Indian in foreign countries. He should be lauded and recognized for the time, effort, dedication and hardwork he put into helping to groom these young ladies to become more confident, out-spoken, community-minded and help them to see the world from a different perspective. Now, I call that making a difference in a big way. You're doing excellent work, Mr. Saran. Never stop promoting these lovely young ladies.

It was the 27th Maaza Miss India New York and 2nd Miss Teen India New York pageants. It was my first experience attending a pageant of this kind and I believe it was Robby's first time attending one too. Well, we thoroughly enjoyed it and I will attend one again.

The cultural program was spectacularly beautiful and consist of refreshingly clean-cut Indian style of dancing. The dances were brilliantly choreographed, much thanks to the chorographer who did a great job. The Arya Dance Academy showcased some very young talented dancers whose skills were unmatched on stage. They exhibited such grace and bravery that they held the crowd spell-bound.

It was awesome when the group of little girls between ages 3-8-years came on stage, wearing PJs and holding teddy bears. They danced so beautifully a song from the Shaw Rukh Khan and Madhuri Dixit starrer "Dil To Pagal Hai" - "Koee jaisay hai ..." I hope I am correct. But, these kids were so adorable that they literally took people's breath away. It was an amazing performance and the Arya Dance Academy should be complimented on the great work it is doing.

The contestants for both pageants did a great job. All the young ladies are beautiful and did their best, whether it was displaying their exquisite saries and lehangas, evening gowns, showcasing their talents or answering questions on stage. Their talent pieces which included dances of different kinds, were skillfully excecuted. These ladies displayed great courage by merely participating in these pageants. That is such an admirable trait. I say they were all winners by just making that decision to participate in the pageant. Congrats to all the lovely ladies. Keep shining brightly whatever you choose to do in the future.

I think the winner for the Miss India New York is the lovely Miss Anuradha and the winner for the Miss Teen India New York is the beautiful and talented Miss Victoria. Best Wishes to both of them.

I should point out that someone from out midst, the West Indian community, was a member of the panel of judges. He is no other than Mr. Ken Subraj who is the Executive Vice President of the mega rental business - Zara Luxury Apartment & Homes - located at Hillside Avenue. He was the only West Indian (originally from Guyana), on the judges' panel. That shows great unity among Indians within the Diaspora and just the tip of the iceberg of the good work that Zara Realty is involved in. The Subrajs are doing such great charitable work in Guyana and in the New York Tri-State region here to enhance the quality of life for our people, particularly children, that no amount of recognition could equal that genuine goodness within their hearts. It's pricelss. I did see Mr. George Subraj but didn't get to say hello to him. Hopefully, he'll forgive me.

Anyways, Mr. Saran great work! Keep helping these young ladies to shine brighter. And thank you very much for the invitation. I really appreciate it.

Below some photos we managed to capture ....

The lovely contestants displaying their saries ...

Dancers from Arya Dance Acamedy dancing to "Jai Ho" from Slumdog Millionnaire...

USA PANDIT'S PARISHAD OUT DINING AT FAIRFIELD PAVILION?

Members of the USA Pandit's Parishad, Inc. held it's first ever dinner and cultural presentation at the Fairfield Pavilion on 101st Avenue Sunday gone (11/9/09) in Richmond Hill. The cultural event was quite different from what we are used to see in the community. It was pure classical singing and dancing, including sitar recitation; it was great nourishment for the tired soul.

The entire presentation was beautifully executed by the performers: singers and dancers. The performers were all youngsters who need to be complimented for a job well done. Not only that, it's nice to see our young people so involved in things cultural. After all, they are ambassors of this dynamic culture and leaders of tomorrow. The parents who take their children to music (dholak, tabla, harmonium), dancing and singing classes should be lauded for helping to up-keep this great culture of ours and passing it on to the next generation.

The organizers of this dinner displayed a rare sense of vision and insight into the actual needs of this community. Evenings like these are what the people of the Richmond Hill community needs. However, I have a feeling that the USA Pandit's Parishad Dinner 2009 was geared towards a particular crowd. Though the turn out was not that great, the folks who missed this event, really lost out on a qualitative, enjoyable, memorable and soothing evening for the entire family. And, the food was just as nourishing and tasty as the cultural presentation.

Hats off to Pandit Pavindradatt Parasram, Pandit Yoga Ramnarain, Dharmacharya Pandit Misir and the other hard-working pandits of the religious body for the dedication, perseverance, dilligence, foresight and goodwill they exemplified by embracing new ideas to move the USA Pandit's Parishad forward. It's the correct way to go. It will take courage and more hard-work to accomplish the tasks needed to be done to move Hinduism forward. But, it seems like the current body of leadership is made up of a group of devoted, selfless, community-minded, honest and sincere religous leaders who has the interest of Dharma at heart and are willing to work to promote this great religion. It must be a collective effort, not fall on just one or two person's shoulders.

Back to Fairfield Pavilion: The evening's program was classy and dignified and should be repeated intermittently. Great work, organizers!

Some photos of the evening.


This little cutie pie really enjoyed the dances ...


Two young classical dancers executing their dances ...

Pandit Yoga and Geeta in conversation with an old friend?!

DR YESU PERSAUD RECEIVES HONORARY DOCTOR OF LAW DEGREE FROM UWI

I would like to extend heartfelt congratulations and best wishes to Dr. Yesu Persaud on being conferred with an honorary doctor of law degree from the Univeristy of West Indies (UWI), recently. It's an honor and recognition that Dr. Persaud richly deserves.

Dr. Persaud is one of Guyana's most influencial, intelligent and powerful entrepreneurs. He was raised from humble beginning, but with hard work, discipline, perseverance, dedication, focus, and steadfastness, he overcame great obstacles thrown on his path to reach the highest peak of his life. His success story is such a great Guyana and Caribbean story that young aspiring entrepreneurs need to study his work to learn from him.

Despite all the power and authority he weals, though, he remains one of the most humblest persons I've had the fortune to meet. I first met Dr. Persaud at the GOPIO 20th Anniversary Convention, held in New York during the month of August. After chatting with him briefly, I sensed that he is a warm, genuine, kind and caring human being. If there is one thing I appreciate in another person, it's there humility and well, I was blown over by his. Please stay that way, Dr. Persaud.

As much as his name is a household name on the Guyana landscape, for those of you who may not know of him, Dr. Persaud is the Chairman of Demerara Bank Limited and Executive Chairman of Demerara Distillers Limited. These are two companies he started years ago and today, they are leading companies in Guyana and have helped reshaped and developed Guyana's fledgling economy over the years.

The leading industrialist that he is, Dr. Persaud still finds time to participate in civic and community activities. He is a member of GOPIO in Guyana and the Caribbean. I am sure he is a member of host of other organizations.

Among his easy-going personality and great sense of humor, he is a very devoted Hindu at heart. He understands the responsibilities involved in being a practicing Hindu, towards family and society at large. It was an honor to have met him. He is a great son of the soil; very loyal and patriotic. I am sure all his family members, Guyanese and Guyana are very proud of his achievements. I join with his circle of friends and relatives to say "Congrats!" Keep up the great work!

I would end with an old saying that goes like: "True success is measured by how many people you have helped on the way."

Dr Persaud understands that because he once said: “I love what I do. I like to see people develop themselves and help themselves. This is what life is all about. I am a student of philosophy. Money is an object that can disappear overnight. One of those things that you can acquire, but it can also go overnight.”

Some photos of Dr. Persaud and friends (Courtesy: Mr. Ashook Ramsaran and online).

Dr. Yesu Persaud (second from right) displaying his degree.


He actually met Mr. Fidel Castro? How did that happen?