Poetic gathering, Phagwa parade mark Holi in NY

New York, Mar 23 (UNI) Kavi Sammelan by Indian-Americans and a Phagwa parade mainly by Indo-Caribbeans marked Holi, the festival of colours, in New York.

The Akhil Vishwa Hindi Samiti held a Kavi Sammelan (poetic gathering), which was attended by several talented writers and poets.

Though the proceedings at the gathering were in Hindi, there was a sprinkling of other languages and dialects like Awadhi, Hariyanwi, Bhojpuri and Punjabi.

The highlight of the meeting was the recital of Hindi poems by American participants who studied the language at New York University and the City University of New York.

Dr Vijay Mehta along with Dr Bindeshwari Agarwal organised the event. Dr Agarwal formally inaugurated the event with the recital of Saraswati Vandana.

Reena Sandhu, education counselor at the Consulate General of India, was the chief guest on the occasion.

Mostly Indo-Caribbean Hindus hailing from Guyana and Trinidad took part in the Phagwa parade.

Holi is celebrated in the Caribbean as Phagwah by the Hindus living there. When Indians arrived in the New York area in the recent decades from English-speaking neighboring region, they brought along with them their cultural traits. The Phagwa parade, which began in 1990, was one such.

The Phagwah Parade in Richmond Hill, Queens (one of New York's five boroughs) is the biggest of its kind in North America. At least 20,000 took part in the parade.

Participants wear colours such as bright red, purple, orange and green dyes and powders. Revelers generally wear white clothes.

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