CALIFORNIA: It was an afternoon of enchantment at the Hasya Kavi Sammelan jointly organized by Uttar Pradesh Mandal of America (UPMA) & The Indus Entrepreneur (TiE) on April 6, in Santa Clara, California. Poets from the Bay Area kept the packed auditorium in splits for over three hours with their humorous poetry. The afternoon started with a presentation on Uttar Pradesh, and the traditional diyas were lit by Vish Mishra and Nilu Gupta.

Dr. Bindeshwari Agarwal from New Jersey was the invited guest kaviyitri (poetess) for the evening along with eight other kavis from the Bay Area. UPMA's president Nilu Gupta started the program with her kavita followed by Kusum Tandon, Shakuntala Bahadur. Dr. Agarwal's kavitayen Kaisa hai Ye America" and "Hai Ye Ameraica" kept the audiences laughing.

The tempo never ceased as one poet after another ensured the environment was charged with laughed and applause.Among the other poets who recited their poems were Devendra Shukla, Mayank Srivastava, Vish Mishra, Sanjay Mathur and Archana Panda.

The fear of losing audience because of food break was also unfounded as most of them were back after enjoying the delicious chaat and tea. UPMA works towards promoting and preserving India's rich cultural legacy and creates a platform for sharing socio-economic growth, charitable causes and cultural exchange through mutual participation.