REPRESENTING INDIA AT THE KC ETHNIC ENRICHMENT FESTIVAL

 It was an honor representing INDIA at the recently concluded KANSAS CITY ETHNIC ENRICHMENT FESTIVAL.Its a three day festival which is held in Swope Park, in Kansas  City. A weekend full of celebrations. Music, food, dance, fashion, you name it and its there. US is a country which has residents or citizens from across the world. All these people from different parts of the world,who bring with them their unique flavors and lend to the flavor profile of the great American plate. So this weekend seeked to celebrate these different unique flavors. More than 60 participating countries celebrating in a festival which seeks to create an understanding an appreciation of cultural diversity.

Our slot was on Sunday, the last day of the festival. every country was given a certain time slot, and they had to present anything on stage which represented their culture and their uniqueness.

The INDIAN ASSOCIATION OF KANSAS CITY  had planned their slot well. A Fashion show celebrating Indian outfits. From Sarees, to lehengas, from anarkalis to patialas, we had it all on show. And we also shared the stage with our daughters.

Choreographed by Kansas City based Fashion Designer and Choreographer Preeti Gandhi, it was a show which had the audience asking or an encore.

The colors, the fabrics, the ladies and the tiny gentleman all summed together to make it a great show.

India itself is a country of diversities, and Unity in diversity is something, we live by everyday. So even the stage representation had to bear that spirit.

If there as a fashions how celebrating Indian fashion, there was the BHARATNATYAM food offering dance.

Followed by a beautiful KATHAK rendition.

And if we are celebrating INDIA,how can BOLLYWOOD be far behind. Yes, we decided to hold an impromptu BOLLYWOOD DANCE SESSION for anyone who was interested. Shaking  leg to the latest desi chartbusters with a  bunch of KC kids was indeed a great experience.

The LATKAS, the JHATKAS and the THUMKAS were not to be missed.

It was total Paisa Wasool kinda fun for everyone. Those of us on stage had a great time performing and the audience had a great time soaking in all the fun. Win Win as they say.

Time for some some photos with all the other Fashionable ladies who took the stage with us. It was an honor and a pleasure to represent INDIA.

Huge Thank you to my husband for the lovely photographs all day.

Then it was time to literally let our hair down and explore the festival. There were tents or stalls from every participating country. From kinck knacks to clothes to food and drinks, every country was offering their best. We decided to stick to food. You could not miss the smoke from the meat on the grills, floating about, or the sheer power of aromas of all the different cuisine, which could take your taste buds for a craving. Our Food journey had to commence fast.

Started off with NIGERIA. It was GOAT CURRY and a sweet fritter called POP POP.

Followed by ETHIOPIA. A lovely chicken curry with a heady dose onions. Very similar to the Chicken Rezala I felt.

Then it was time to sample the famous CHICKEN ADOBO and PORK KEBABS from PHILLIPPINES.

We were so full that we had to literally had to collapse on the hay bales, to recover from the food coma. A bit more exploring and it as time bid farewell to Swope Park this year.

It was indeed a unique experience celebrating the cultural diversities of so many countries.

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HOLI IN KANSAS CITY

Holi is undoubtedly one of my favorite Indian festivals. and to think I played Holi after almost 6 years or so. Or maybe even more. As before I got to Kansas City, Holi meant a normal day at work. Yes, journalists do not have the luxury of getting an off on public holidays.

For the last so many years, I have been planning to indulge in a  bit of Holi revelry but the Man decided to sleep in. This year I was not having it. I had made up my mind, that even if he wanted to sleep in, Mommy and toddler would make it for all the fun. To my utter surprise, a single mention of whether he wanted to go for Holi,and the man said Yes. Seriously !!! Yippie i said in my mind.

Holi in KC is a pretty simple affair. It starts off with a Holi Mela or a Food fest at the Hindu Temple of Kansas City. A cultural program(which we missed it) starts off the gala. Then you go on a binge eating fest. No, I don't have any pictures for all that I ate, as I was too busy eating. We tried out Luchi-Alur Dom, Mirchi Ka Salan, Veg Biriyani and the toddler had her chocolate cupcake with rainbow sprinkles. But it did give us the opportunity to meet so many known faces.

The parking lot of the temple was where the fun was.A section of the Parking Lot was cordoned off to create a make shift dance floor out in the open and also where you could indulge in the play of colors.  A Desi Dj with his repertoire of Bollywood hits and even a Dhol completed the picture. Now for the fun to begin.

We played and we played and when we got tired, we played a bit more. Yellow, blue,red, green and shades of Purple. The list was endless. Our faces could almost be used for a United India Political campaign even, with the Red,Green and Orange together.

Our major concern was how our daughter would react to Holi. It was her first Holi per se. But she was the perfect Desi Girl. She took some time to warm up to the idea of what was happening. Once she figured out what the deal was, there was no holding back. Not only did she enjoy herself but she made sure the other kiddos did too, by running up to them with her color. Awww !!!! Proud Momma Moment for sure.

My gang oF girls were there, enjoying in all their glory. All of us had multiple layers of every possible color on our faces. And all of us seemed to reach out for more.

As the moms were busy, Daddies were clearly on Baby duty, but they packed in some fun, even in that.

And then it was time for Dads to pose some more while they went on.

All in all a wonderful day. Surely could not have asked for more.

But we did pack in more. Yes, we attended a Desi Holi party in the evening. Got Dressed for the occasion.

Joined in the adda, gorged on delicious food and generally had a great time.


Looking forward to next year, I must say.

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