India’s 77th Independence Day was celebrated in Fremont, California with great enthusiasm and patriotic fervor among members of the Indian community.
The Federation of Indian Americans of Northern California (FIA) unfurled the Indian tricolor to commemorate India’s 75th Independence Day on August 19 and 20, 2023 at the Alameda county Superior courthouse, Fremont.
For the past 30 years, the FIAT has been organizing the Festival of India to symbolize the unity, integrity, culture and the best of things that are hallmarks of the Indian community in the Bay Area. The event was co-hosted by the City of Fremont, Consulate general of India, SO, and Alameda County. The two-day event was attended by 30,000 from all over the West Coast.
Elected officials from the City of Fremont, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, San Jose, Indian American community leaders, representatives from Indian American community organizations, patriotic Indians as well as members of the media attended the event.
Consul General of San Francisco Dr Srikar Reddy said India has also made its mark in the global community. India is an “indispensable” part of bringing solutions to global challenges–be it in the form of the pandemic or in food security or critical technology.
He emphasized that the India-US partnership, especially the one between US President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was extremely crucial not only for India and the United States but also the world.
He heralded the Indian diaspora as an instrumental part of the India-US relationship. He lauded FIA/FOG for this stellar event and looking forward to many during his tenure.
Dr Romesh Japra, Chairman, FIA said that the mela and parade aims to showcase our motherland India in our homeland US and also to keep the Diaspora connected to their cultural roots. The vibrant India Day parade has been organized by FIA since 1983 and witnesses colorful floats, marching bands, colorful traditional attires, cultural performances, booth fairs – all representing India’s Unity in Divers
Student artists enthralled the audiences by performing different forms of dance through choreographic performances of group dances. The Cultural Segment was hosted and organized by FOG/FIA Cultural Chair/Actress Jo Sharma (Jyotsna) with 150+ dance teams in a 2-day event.
There were huge crowds attending the event.
Day 1 was filled with Dance competitions of multiple age groups with 1200+ kids/adults performing dances blending Indian dance styles with Bollywood and Classical styles. Jyotsna(Jo) along with a team composed of dozens of volunteers did an outstanding job managing backstage for smooth execution of the cultural segment.
Day 2 started with a Folk festival compiled by Ryan Nathan, Shanmukha theaters on stage. Folk festivals are cultural celebrations that showcase the traditions, customs, and heritage of a particular region or community. The festivals are often characterized by a strong connection to local culture, music, dance, food, and art followed by Bollywood celebrity showstopper performance choreographed by Jo Sharma from DanceDilSe company along with DDS students.
Consul General of India in San Francisco, Dr.Srikar Reddy who assumed charges just a day back led the India day parade on August 20. Fremont Mayor Lily Mei, Supervisor David Heubert, Councilmembers Yang Shao, Raj Salwan, Teresa Cox, Teresa Keng, and many elected officials from neighboring cities were all in attendance. The event was also attended by Alameda county DA Pamela Price, Tom Pyke, from Congressman Ro Khanna’s office, Assemblymen Alex Lee and many more.
Celebrating the beginning of the Amrit Kaal, Dr Srikar Reddy, Consul General of India, SFO, greeted the Indian diaspora congratulating everyone on the special occasion. In his address, Consul General highlighted Hon. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day message, where he paved the way forward for India, and our aspirations of building a new India. The celebration of India’s Independence Day in the U.S. is a symbol of the strong relations between the U.S. and India, he said. The consul general highlighted the close friendly ties between India and the US.
Grand Marshal Bollywood actress Mahima Chaudhary said that the Festival made her realize how rich her culture and heritage is. The memories of the festival will last her a lifetime, added Mahima. She has beat cancer, the actor said in a social media post in June. It is curable, Cancer screening for women is essential for the early detection and prevention of various types of cancer that affect women. Regular screenings can significantly increase the chances of detecting cancer at an early, more treatable stage, said Mahima.
Lok Sabha MP Sunita Duggal and Bollywood singer Yash Wadali were the Guests of honor. The primary purpose of the event Is to showcase Indian culture for the local community, while celebrating the values of freedom, democracy, diversity, and tolerance, shared between India and the United States, said Dr Romesh Japra, Chairman, FIA. He thanked the countless volunteers who have toiled for the past 6 months to make this event a huge success.
Sponsors who made this event possible were City of Fremont, Alameda county, Consulate General of India San Francisco, BMW of Fremont, Poppy Bank, Raymond James, Signia by Hilton, Sling, Astro vastu Vaneet Sharma, MTR Foods, Spare the Air, Young Champions, LT Foods, Laxmi, Fazlani foods, CEFCU, Golden 1 home loans, WP Advisors, Keen learners, Provident Credit union, State bank of India California, BART, PG&E, Desi natural, AC Transit, Washington hospital, ICICI Bank, NBC Bay area, Compass, Dublin Chevrolet and Parmeet Randhawa.
As part of the two day fair, we had 110 booths and 6 food trucks, which had businesses, clothing, jewelry, home decor and other attractions. I would like to thank all the sponsors and community organizations who have contributed to the grand success, said Vidya Sethuraman, Executive Director, FIA.
India day parade had 65 parade entries, 70 plus volunteers and we introduced technology in many facets of Parade, said KP Maheshwari, Parade Chair. Bharati Tamil Sangam, SMAP, FOG Odisha, FOG Bengal, FOG Gujarat, Prabasi, Bay area Kerala Dangam, OOBB, Madhya Pradesh, NACHA, Haryanvi Association, Kashmir Hindu Foundation, Shruti Swara Laya, FUSD had their walking groups and artistically decorated theme based floats in the parade. Anand Yoga, East Bay BMA Dhol Tasha, Scouts Troop 2220, Brahmakumaris, Falun Dafa Drum, HSS, Indian Muslims of Bay Area, Nepalese, Vietnamese communities participated as walking groups at the grand parade.
Commenting on the success of the Festival, Rajesh Verma, President of FIA, said, “This is our way of passing on the torch of our pride in our traditions to the future generations of Indian-American youth.”
Vidya Sethuraman
India Post News Service
