Sharing the Diwali spirit

Faia

Icelebrations galore this Diwali, perhaps more so than in previous years. What is particularly exciting is the initiative being taken by local communities as well as businesses to celebrate the Festival of Lights. At the time of going to print, a variety of events have given Sydneysiders an opportunity to get together in the spirit of Diwali. Even though the mega events by the Hindu Council of Australia (at Martin Place and at Sydney Olympic Park) are done, it looks as though the desire for all things Diwali is not quenched yet - there are still plenty more parties to come if you’re interested.

Here are reports from some of the celebrations around the community.

Saish

New association Strathfield

Australians of Indian SubContinental Heritage Inc. (SAISH), have set a high standard in bringing the local community together to meet and greet each other on the happy occasion of Diwali. Describing the organisation, President Prabhat Sinha says, “We are a nonsectarian, non-partisan group established to play a pro-active and pivotal role in the involvement of Indian sub-continental community towards integration with mainstream Australia”.

Showcasing the cultural heritage of the Indian sub-continent, its maiden efforts were split in two parts on Sunday 20th October. At midday, a three-hour cultural show was organised at the Strathfield Town Square with dances and food stalls. Later the party shifted to the Strathfield Town Hall where the festivities continued. A packed hall of over 600 people enjoyed an evening of meeting friends and making new ones. There was a splattering of politicians from both sides of politics spreading the cheer. But most significantly Prabhat Sinha and his team did a wonderful job in taking the spirit of Diwali to the ‘burbs.

Westpac

Goddess Laxmi plays an important role in the celebrations during Diwali and so it comes as no surprise that the banks want to pay their own obeisance! Westpac has long shown an affinity for the Indian community down under and have worked hard to win the hearts and minds of its members and create wealth for them. To celebrate Diwali, Westpac entertained its customers at an evening of pageantry at the Holiday Inn at Parramatta. Nearly 300 people were in attendance including a large number of Westpac staff. The event was compered by Suraj Kapila, who received the news that evening of his promotion to branch manager. A welcome Diwali gift no doubt. Special speaker for the evening was General Manager of Premium Services Damien MacRae who spoke of the strong connection of Westpac with the Indian migrant community and the bank’s determination to provide superior services to this client base. After the formal part of the evening the dance floor opened up and a good part of Friday night was spent dancing away to Bollywood songs as the bankers took their clients around for a dance. Diwali does help foster some interesting relationships indeed.

It was a warm and fuzzy affair at the Shaam-e-Diwali organised by the Federation of Australian Indian Associations (FAIA) on 27 Oct. The Dundas Community Centre played host to about 200 community members who gathered to exchange early Diwali wishes. It was a microcosm of the early ‘90s as most attendees were early migrants, and the mood certainly reflected the warmth of a close-knit community. Everyone contributed towards the event either in terms of preparing cultural items for the entertainment, or even the food (indeed, President Neera Srivastava herself cooked the gulab jamuns for dessert).

While it is hoped that the FAIA is reaching out to and attracting newer Indian settlers in others aspects of its wider endeavours, on this occasion, the celebration was informal and family-like, perhaps deliberately designed to reflect the spirit of community at this festive time.

“Our intent has been to share the Diwali spirit with others,” Neera Srivastava told Indian Link “We have Australian, Thai, Ukrainian, Malyasian and other guests present today,” Premila Singh pointed out.

Vish Vishwanathan put in a note to remember the devastating bushfires and encouraged all to donate to the organisation’s benevolent fund to help those affected.