
BY SONAM MIRPURI
ARTESIA, CA - Four Indian-American organizations and the City of Artesia came together to host the annual India Independence Day celebration on August 11 at the Artesia Park. The City in association with the Federation of Indian American Association(FIA), United Federation if Indo-American of California (UFICA),
ARTESIA, CA - Four Indian-American organizations and the City of Artesia came together to host the annual India Independence Day celebration on August 11 at the Artesia Park. The City in association with the Federation of Indian American Association(FIA), United Federation if Indo-American of California (UFICA),
Indian Association of Southern California (IASC), and Federation of Indian American Community of Southern California (FICSC) joined hands to celebrate India’s 72nd Independence Day.
Anything and everything that could possibly be desired by an attendee at such an event was present. A slew of booths ranging from clothing, jewelry, food, entertainment, upcoming concert tickets among others , a kids corner and a free health fair for all, were some of the many attractions of the mela.
Opening the official ceremony, Ishwar Deedwania on behalf of FIA, took a chance to thank everyone for coming out in large numbers and thanked all the organizers for their efforts.“Gandhi, Bose, and many other previous role models were able to create the world’s greatest democracy,” said Deedwania in regards to how the country of India was shaped.
Ashok Patnaik, on behalf of UFICA, then introduced and invited current President, Ramesh Ramnani who addressed the gathering saying, “Since 1947, August 15 has been celebrated all around the world. We are here today to thank those and their families who gave their lives for us to give us our independence.”
UFICA chairwoman Charu Miglani also spoke and welcomed everyone, and expressed thanks to all the local organizations for coming together to put up the event as well as the city and the sponsors.
Kamini Khare on behalf of IASC, invited members of IASC to come to the stage, including Ramesh Mahajan who addressed the gathering and said, “We should tell our children the stories of our history, we should never forget.”
To represent FICSC, Dilip Butani came on stage and invited current president, Amrit Bhandari and other committee members to the stage. Some of the current and past elected government officials were present at the event . City of Cerritos’s Mayor Pro Tem Naresh Solanki, and Harry Sidhu, former Anaheim Mayor Pro Tem took the time to say a few words.
Solanki spoke on diversity and called for unity in diversity.
Sidhu in his comments said, “At the end of the day we are all Indians here to celebrate. This is a great message to our children, we should not forget our roots.”
Esteemed individuals from the four organizations as well as City of Artesia’s Mayor Pro Tem Tony Lima, Artesia Councilmember Ali Sajjad Taj came to the stage for the lamp lighting, unfurling of the Indian flag, singing of the Indian national anthem, and the pledge of allegiance. “I hope we celebrate the 75th Independence Day here on these grounds,” said Taj.
Talented individuals ranging in all ages participated in the entertainment segment of the mela by demonstrating their skills to the audience. Throughout the evening attendees were presented with vibrant colors and traditions that exemplified Indian culture.
Bollywood hit songs Ghoomar from Padmavat, Swag Se Swagat from Tiger Zinda Hai and Bom Diggy Diggy from Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety kept the audience well entertained.
Kathak performances were also presented .
Sangeeta Kolpalkar, Bollywood playback singer from Mumbai, came to the stage to sing a mix of new and old songs. Keeping with the theme of the evening, Ae Mere Waton Ke Logo was a hit. Recent and golden tracks followed with Kolpalkar requesting audience members to get on their feet and dance. The second singer of the night, Apurva Shah well known Bollywood playback singer and famous for four TV shows including Sa Re Ga Ma Pa and K for Kishore, opened with a patriotic song to start his set. He continued with a variety of songs – a combination of old and new - well appreciated by the audience.
Niranjan Bhatt addressing the audiences explained about the health fair and bone marrow donor registry booth. Bhatt spoke about Sangat Dave, an individual who is in dire need of a bone marrow donor. Bhatt requested all between the ages of 18-44 to come to the booth to register to donate their bone marrow. Then Dave was presented with the opportunity to say a few words.
“Please donate. Even if you don’t match with me, you can possibly save someone,” said Dave.
Services such as blood pressure, glucose and cholesterol checks were provided free to attendees who came to the booth by the School of Pharmacy volunteers from Western University and USC Keck Graduate Institute. It was hosted by USICARE along with Anekant Community Center and Western HYT Forum. Many local doctors and medical professionals volunteered to make the fair a success.The evening came to a close with attendees enjoying tracks sung by Shah.
Anything and everything that could possibly be desired by an attendee at such an event was present. A slew of booths ranging from clothing, jewelry, food, entertainment, upcoming concert tickets among others , a kids corner and a free health fair for all, were some of the many attractions of the mela.
Opening the official ceremony, Ishwar Deedwania on behalf of FIA, took a chance to thank everyone for coming out in large numbers and thanked all the organizers for their efforts.“Gandhi, Bose, and many other previous role models were able to create the world’s greatest democracy,” said Deedwania in regards to how the country of India was shaped.
Ashok Patnaik, on behalf of UFICA, then introduced and invited current President, Ramesh Ramnani who addressed the gathering saying, “Since 1947, August 15 has been celebrated all around the world. We are here today to thank those and their families who gave their lives for us to give us our independence.”
UFICA chairwoman Charu Miglani also spoke and welcomed everyone, and expressed thanks to all the local organizations for coming together to put up the event as well as the city and the sponsors.
Kamini Khare on behalf of IASC, invited members of IASC to come to the stage, including Ramesh Mahajan who addressed the gathering and said, “We should tell our children the stories of our history, we should never forget.”
To represent FICSC, Dilip Butani came on stage and invited current president, Amrit Bhandari and other committee members to the stage. Some of the current and past elected government officials were present at the event . City of Cerritos’s Mayor Pro Tem Naresh Solanki, and Harry Sidhu, former Anaheim Mayor Pro Tem took the time to say a few words.
Solanki spoke on diversity and called for unity in diversity.
Sidhu in his comments said, “At the end of the day we are all Indians here to celebrate. This is a great message to our children, we should not forget our roots.”
Esteemed individuals from the four organizations as well as City of Artesia’s Mayor Pro Tem Tony Lima, Artesia Councilmember Ali Sajjad Taj came to the stage for the lamp lighting, unfurling of the Indian flag, singing of the Indian national anthem, and the pledge of allegiance. “I hope we celebrate the 75th Independence Day here on these grounds,” said Taj.
Talented individuals ranging in all ages participated in the entertainment segment of the mela by demonstrating their skills to the audience. Throughout the evening attendees were presented with vibrant colors and traditions that exemplified Indian culture.
Bollywood hit songs Ghoomar from Padmavat, Swag Se Swagat from Tiger Zinda Hai and Bom Diggy Diggy from Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety kept the audience well entertained.
Kathak performances were also presented .
Sangeeta Kolpalkar, Bollywood playback singer from Mumbai, came to the stage to sing a mix of new and old songs. Keeping with the theme of the evening, Ae Mere Waton Ke Logo was a hit. Recent and golden tracks followed with Kolpalkar requesting audience members to get on their feet and dance. The second singer of the night, Apurva Shah well known Bollywood playback singer and famous for four TV shows including Sa Re Ga Ma Pa and K for Kishore, opened with a patriotic song to start his set. He continued with a variety of songs – a combination of old and new - well appreciated by the audience.
Niranjan Bhatt addressing the audiences explained about the health fair and bone marrow donor registry booth. Bhatt spoke about Sangat Dave, an individual who is in dire need of a bone marrow donor. Bhatt requested all between the ages of 18-44 to come to the booth to register to donate their bone marrow. Then Dave was presented with the opportunity to say a few words.
“Please donate. Even if you don’t match with me, you can possibly save someone,” said Dave.
Services such as blood pressure, glucose and cholesterol checks were provided free to attendees who came to the booth by the School of Pharmacy volunteers from Western University and USC Keck Graduate Institute. It was hosted by USICARE along with Anekant Community Center and Western HYT Forum. Many local doctors and medical professionals volunteered to make the fair a success.The evening came to a close with attendees enjoying tracks sung by Shah.