Tamils Mark Deepavali
BY A STAFF REPORTER
ARTESIA, CA - The SoCal Tamil Organization formed just over a year ago had its first major get together at the Woodlands Banquet hall on Nov 1 to celebrate Deepavali.
Children of various age groups entertained the 250 guests, with keyboard music, Bharathanatyam, Bollywood dance, recital of Tamil poems, etc. Many adults participated in the entertainment. Debate between two adult groups, popularly known in Tamil as “Patti Mandram”, was among the high lights of the evening.
The famed Tamil comedians N.S.Krishnan and T.A.Mathuram were remembered through the enactment of their movie songs, by their daughter Kasthuri Krishnan and Usha Padmanaban. Balaji and his group entertained the guests with their ‘karaoke’ rendition of many popular film songs.
Earlier, welcoming the guests after the opening prayer to Lord Ganesha, Padmanabhan Iyer said the reason for the formation of the group was just because, “Some of us have been here for a long time and have made our lives here and have felt the need for a united platform that caters to current needs at various age groups of our community –to the children, young settlers from TN, youth forum to meet the needs of the youth who are growing up here, assistance to senior citizens who are in need of help –emotionally, physically and may be economically, celebrate our festivals to continue to give the exposure to our children, grand children and their children.”
