Lakshmi Iyer
India Post News Service
On Monday,15thof August, the city of Milpitas, California celebrated Indian Independence Day, in collaboration with the Festival of Globe (FOG).
Milpitas Mayor Rich Tran, Vice Mayor Carmen Montano, Milpitas City Councilmember Evelyn Chua, City Planning Commission member Deepak Awasthiand District Director from the Office of Assemblymember Alex Lee, Anurag Pal, were among the local officials present at the occasion. Deputy Counsel Rajesh Naik from the Consulate General of India in San Francisco represented India.
Mohan Trikha, the Chair of FOG Milpitas, opened the event, welcoming everyone to the celebration of India completing 75 years of independence, which the Government of India is marking as “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav”.
SameenaJapra Paul sang the national anthem of the United States. Alka Bhatnagar, the Chair of FOG Music and Entertainment, sang the Indian national anthem with a group of young FOG Idol 2022 participants.
Mohan Trikha introduced Mayor Tran, whose parents came to the US as immigrants from Vietnam and commended the example he set for the Vietnamese community as the first Mayor of Milpitas in sixty-eight years.
Mayor Tran reminisced about his visit to Mumbai and called it “one of the most amazing cities” that he had ever been to, in the world. He referred to the “Gateway of India” and drew parallels to Milpitas as the “Gateway of Silicon Valley”, and said, “No matter where you come from anywhere in the world, Milpitas has always been hundred percent welcoming to everybody.”
Introducing police chief Jared Hernandez, the mayor pledged to always protect the community, its diversity, and harmony. Deepak Awasthi spoke, “Milpitas is proudly called home by people from all states of India.” Anurag Pal wished everyone a happy 75th Indian Independence Day and welcomed the Deputy Consul.
The Indian tricolor was hoisted by the dignitaries. Mayor Tran officially proclaimed15th of August 2022 as India Independence Day. Theproclamation laudedIndia as “a courageous nation seeking to establish its fundamental principles those same values upon which the United States of America was founded – freedom, opportunity, and justice.”
It also acknowledged the notable contributions of people who hail from India in various fields.
After accepting the certificate from the Mayor, Dr. Romesh Japra, the Founder of FOG took to the podium, “We came here for the American Dream, for the family values, the freedom, liberty, and everything else which it stands for and also India, the largest democracy stands for and rest of the world is following now.”He explained the importance of celebrating Indian Independence Day to make sure these values get imbibed into upcoming generations so they can really feel what it meant and learn about all the sacrifices that their elders in America and the freedom fighters in India had made.He called on everyone to make sure that the celebration goes on for years and welcomed Deputy Counsel Rajesh Naik
Mr. Naikcommended everyone for bringing India alive there and celebrating the tradition of freedom and liberty. He explained that the Gateway of India was the gateway through which the British left India after ruling for about 150-200 years during which the country became the brightest jewel in the crown of the British Empire, leaving it as one of the poorest countries on earth, with a literacy of 16 percent and a life expectancy of 40 plus years.
The Deputy Counsel proudly said, “But 75 years then, we proved everyone wrong. A country that was dismissed in 1947, it is too big to be missed out anymore. Today, India is the fifth largest economy.”
He credited Indians living in India and abroad with building India and talked about the responsibility of each Indian, “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav is rightly celebrated in the name of each and every Indian. So, the Hon. Prime Minister also gave a clarion call this time that we celebrate the 75 years of our achievement. Also, this is the time we have to dedicate ourselves, express our commitment to build a stronger India.”
He emphasized the special responsibility that Indian Americans have of building two of the greatest democracies closer together, forging a stronger partnership not just between the two nations but for a better tomorrow for everyone in the world. Expressing confidence in the local community to accomplish this with the help of the Mayor and other elected officials, Mr. Naik thanked the City of Milpitas for allowing the Indian community to flourish and prosper.
He made special note of the fact that the celebration was being held in Cesar Chavez Plaza– the revolutionary farmworkers’ rights activist was deeply influenced by Gandhi’s nonviolent resistance – saying that it was a befitting tribute to India’s tradition, and what it stands for as a democracy and nation.
The cultural program started off with Gauri Kaushik’s fantastic Bharatanatyam performance, based on the famous freedom fighter Subramania Bharati’s patriotic poetry.
Pooja performed a beautiful Kathak dance on Lord Krishna’s and the ‘gopis’, and Nikita Srikanthfollowed with a graceful Kuchipudi dance.
Alka Bhatnagar and her troupe of young singers instilled more patriotic fervor with “SaareJahaan Se Achha…” The evening wound up with everyone enjoying delicious Indian snacks and ‘chai’, and eagerly anticipating the grand FOG event on the following weekend.
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