BY JYOTHSNA HEGDE
Photos by Vinod Sharma, SFA Productions
Atlanta, GA, April 8, 2022: Well over 500 revelers of all ages drenched in vibrant, mesmerizing hues of blues, yellows, magentas, greens, violets, celebrated the arrival of Spring at IACA’s Annual Holi Dhamaka on March 19, 2022 at the IACA Building in Smyrna.
“This year we had the most successful and profitable Holi ever in IACA history. We saw three year to 80 year old person enjoying playing with colors and had so much fun and laughter,“ noted Rani Singh, VP, IACA. Thanking sponsors, Singh also highlighted the varieties of fresh food served up at the event, including Chole Bature and Dosa and the fact that the celebrations attracted Indian as well as local American families. A point also noted by Kaushal Tripathi, BOD, IACA, who stated, “My heart was overwhelmed with joy when Perry/Simmi/Priya Joiner ( 3rd generation Indo American, kids of second gen Indo American Sapna Sawhney Joiner) came running to me and threw colors during Holi celebration on Sunday 20th March 2022! Every penny spent on the IACA property made it all worth it. This year Holi at IACA was celebrated by many mainstream Americans as well. Packed parking lot, everyone in joyous mood made it all a Happy Spring gathering of colors. IACA Holi team ( Rani/Rina/Chand/Ravi Singh/Chaitanya/Anoop ) deserves Kudos! He was joined by Chaitanya Bhatt, Executive VP, who credited the entire team, “IACA Holi (dhuleti) program was very successful because of the united efforts under one umbrella (Raniji), raising funds for Holi expenses, with free entry for everyone, delicious food, colors, and DJ. I enjoyed bringing the community together. I am proud to have served as IACA Chairman, Vice Chairman and President. Special thanks to Mr. Ravi Singh and all the sponsors who made this event a success.”
“The intent of IACA celebrating Holi is to instill our culture in the next generation and encourage more of their participation. This year this vision has become a reality,” Paddy Sharma, BOD, said. Known as the festival of colors, Holi is celebrated on the last full moon in the lunar month of Phalguna. This ancient tradition marks the end of winter and honors the triumph of good over evil. Keeping up its traditional routine, celebrants splashed gulal, enjoyed sumptuous delicacies, danced to music, even as they enjoyed the energetic dance performance by Maria Martynova and grooved to the music by DJ Shyam. Staying relevant to times, IACA has been introducing various new initiatives to encourage Indian Americans to explore new avenues and interests. But few of the old celebrations and practices always bind the community. “Holi has helped IACA in its community building activities. It is heartening to see people of all ages coming and enjoying Holi,” noted Chand Akkineni, President IACA.
