Bathukamma in Atlanta, GA – Colorful and Jubilant!
By Manju Ganta
Bathukamma 2009 festival celebrations organized by Telangana
Community, Inc., were held amidst lot of fanfare at South
Forsyth Middle School, Suwanne on Saturday, Sep 26th.
The colorful event got off to a flying start around 12 noon with
the ladies and children arriving in their finest traditional
dresses carrying their beautiful Bathukamma’s. The organizers
warmed up the occasion by keeping the kid’s occupied with games
while freeing the parents to socialize and exchange pleasantries.
Mr. G.S.Reddy, President of Telangana Community in his inaugural
address spoke about the significance the Bathukamma celebrations
and thanked the record turnout of an estimated 900 people who
had come to attend the celebrations braving the inclement
weather. He spoke about the ideals of Telangana Community and
how the organization intends to look beyond the occasion to
involve itself in various development projects across the
Telangana region.
Mr. Narender Reddy invited the Chief Guest Mr. David Williams,
Mayor of Suwanne City to light the lamp. Mayor Williams also
released the Telangana Community Member Directory and addressed
the audience on the occasion. A Bathukamma was presented as
memento to the Mayor.
The event continued with many cultural programs such as group
dances and solo dances by children of different age groups,
mostly related to folk. Each program was woven around the
Telangana culture bonding all present close to the homeland.
Events such as fancy dress competitions for various age groups,
raffle draws, etc. were also held with active audience
participation.
Mrs. Sulochana Reddy was recognized for her outstanding career
in Information Technology serving over three decades. A plaque
was presented to her by Narender Reddy. Earlier G.S. Reddy
awarded a plaque to Viju Chiluveru for his outstanding services
to the community during the year.
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On behalf of the Telangana Community, a presentation on the
clean water initiative by the organization was made by Mr.
Ranjith Ganta. He explained how the organization was helping
build water purification projects at various villages in
Telangana.
The much awaited Bathukamma's finally received the nod in the
evening. All the women gathered and placed their Bathukamma’s in
the middle and danced around them, synchronizing steps and claps
in unison, and singing soul stirring Bathukamma folksongs. After
singing and dancing around the Bathukamma’s for sometime, they
were taken to the nearby swimming pool and set afloat in the
water. The judges picked the best three award-winning
Bathukamma’s for this year and prizes were distributed for their
creators. The other event prizes were also announced and
presented to the participants as the program progressed.
The lunch for all the participants was sponsored by the local
restaurants - Sai Murali, Swapna Indian Cusine, Madras Chettinad,
Krishna Vilas, Amma’s Kitchen and Maruti restaurant.
This event was ably supported by Telugu Association of Metro
Atlanta (TAMA). Satyanarayana Reddy Tangirala and Executive
Committee members were present at the event, which was also
graced by Paddy Sharma, a community leader and other
distinguished gentry – both from within and outside Atlanta
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The event was a resounding success largely due to the generous
contribution by several businesses and individuals and other
patrons who sponsored the event. The organizers greatly
appreciated and acknowledged the efforts of more than 60
volunteers for their untiring efforts. Sushumna Ravichander
proposed ‘Vote of Thanks’ and appreciated the initiative of the
organizers, women who arranged and brought Bathukamma’s,
volunteers, sponsors and everyone who contributed to the success
of the events.
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