Happiness abounds at Teeyan mela

People groove to gidda and bhangra as Sydney celebrates the festival of swings

first prize, with Kudiyan Kamal coming in second place.

BY RACHITA SAINI

Teej - ‘the festival of swings’ is celebrated with bang in various parts of India and across the globe, and I experienced the Australian celebrations of this amasing festival on a fairly cold day on July 17 at Bowman Hall in Blacktown, which warmed the hearts of all.

Mrs Amardeep Grewal has been involved in organising Teeyan Da Mela in Sydney since 2005, and together with the Teeyan Society Inc team (Team Teeyan), they worked together to make the event a big success.

The presenters and comperes kept the audiences entertained by asking Baatan (bujhartan or riddles) and gave away prizes to the winners. I did try to guess few, but didn’t get any right. However, I did have a lot of fun!

Blacktown Member of Parliament Julia Owens graced the event saying, “According to me, people who come from different countries bring treasure to Australia.”

A musical play called Dheeyan highlighted issues relating to women which was very emotional, and other competitions such as giddha and Mrs Teeyan were also a part of the programme

When I got to the venue around midafternoon, the programme was already well under way. Teenagers were dancing to a hit number from famous Punjabi singer Lehmber Hussapuri. The hall was jam-packed and I noticed beautiful Indian outfits everywhere, including the young girls and children who were attired colourfully. Next was the bhangra and giddha performances. The relation of giddha with this festival is ancient; girls who perform giddha on Teej dedicate it to their husbands or to-be-husbands. Some of these special Teej dance and songs symbolise that a woman are always ready to sacrifice her life for her lover.

After the dance performance, young ladies offer prayers and sing songs for good health of their love.

Another main attraction of this event was the variety of mehndi stalls, colorful bangles, juttis, dresses, earrings and Tarot and Horoscope reading. Bowman Hall was converted into a mini-Punjab, with mesmerising scenes. But the cherry on the cake was the stall from Maharaja Haveli which offered chole bhature, samosas and masala chai

The Teeyan Society Inc Team (Team Teeyan) consists of Navjeet Sandhu , Rajkiron Randhawa and Harinder Kaur, and this year they were joined by Amarjeet Boparai, Guneeta Kaur and Neeru. The event’s support partners were Maharaja Haveli Restaurant at Quakers Hill; the generous platinum sponsor was Caltex; the gold sponsors were Tulli Jewellers and Platinum Indian Entertainment. “This event wouldn’t have been possible without their generous support,” said organiser Amardeep Kaur.

It was a brilliant day offering a better understanding of Indian culture and the colourful evening was enjoyed by everyone

A musical play called Dheeyan highlighted issues relating to women which was very emotional, and other competitions such as giddha and Mrs Teeyan were also a part of the programme. “On reviewing all the contestants it was a hard decision to make to choose a winner,” claimed one of the judges, Kuldeep Kaur. The Mrs Teeyan crown was won by Rajbir Kaur Kang, with Naneet Kaur as first runner up Naneet Kaur and Sharan Kaur as the second. It was certainly a day to remember for Ranjeeb Kaur as her giddha team called Kudiya Dhamal Diyan won the

It was a brilliant day offering a better understanding of Indian culture and the colourful evening was enjoyed by everyone.

Teej (teeyan) is an important festival for Punjabi women in India and around the world, which depicts the reunion of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati.

The celebration of Teej begins from the third day of the month of sawanthe fifth Hindu month beginning from Chaitra, and brings a respite from the hot summer in Punjab. Married women and young girls celebrate the festival with full devotion, through many religious activities and customs which encourage people to become a part of grand Teej. This festival promotes goodwill and brotherhood to all.