NRI Pulse Staff Report
Atlanta, GA: Berkmar High School in Lilburn resonated with laughter on May 24 with well known poets from India enthralling an audience of over 350 of all ages. The sammelan was organized locally by International Hindi Association, a non-profit organization established in 1980, to promote Hindi among kids of Indian origin.
Consul Anil Kumar from the Consulate General of India in Atlanta, prominent community members and media representatives attended this program.
Hindi is the official language of India, the world’s second most spoken language, and spoken by almost half a billion people throughout the world.
The International Hindi Association has been trying to promote and preserve India’s culture through language and literature amongst Indians abroad. The association has been organizing Hasya Kavi-Sammelans around the US with famous Hindi poets with increasing popularity.
In Atlanta, it was a fun filled evening of humor, laughter and heartwarming recitals by three poets Arun Gemini, Ritu Goel and Ved Prakash.
Arun Gemini is one of the most popular humorists inIndia. He is known for his impeccable timing and delivery. Along with laughter, his humorous poems contain a deep and enchanting satire on day to day problems of life. As a poet of distinction, he has been felicitated by the President and Prime Minister of India.
Ved Prakash Ved is a leading Hindi satirist, and a celebrated poet of ‘Hasya Vyang’. Ved has performed in over 2500 kavi sammelans inIndiaand abroad. When he takes the podium, the auditorium is filled with continuous laughter. His poetry has a mixture of engaging humor and penetrating satire. Ved is a recipient of numerous awards,
Ritu Goel is a mass communication graduate, and a journalist by profession. She is a producer and director of numerous documentaries for the government of India and various corporations and media houses, and currently runs an advertising agency named ‘Sanskriti Creations’ and an NGO named Disha Foundation. Ritu is a poetess of human-relations and emotions who has performed in over 1000 kavisSammelans inIndiaand abroad. Ritu has been felicitated by the government ofIndiaand awarded byDelhiHindiAcademy. She is a regular on national TV and radio, and is widely published in all major Hindi newspapers and magazines.
Mustafa Ajmeri welcomed the poets with bouquets on stage. Sanjeev Agarwal, the principal organizer, welcomed the audience and poets on behalf of his entire volunteer team.
The program was greatly appreciated by all. Several in the audience said this was the first time inAtlantahistory that a Kavi-Sammelan has drawn such a big crowd. The audience also appreciated the fact that the program was well organized- it started on time and ended on time.
Tea and snacks were served during the break and dinner was served at the end of the program. Food was included in the $15 adult, $10 senior citizen ticket price (ages 12 and under were free entry).
A new team of volunteers organized the event in Atlanta. The community can look forward to more such sammelans in theAtlantaarea in the future, the volunteers said.
After the program, Sanjeev Agarwal graciously thanked the sponsors, audience and his entire team. Volunteers and supporters who helped organize the event were- Acharya VedShrami, Amit and Ruchi Chaurasia, Amrita Kumar, Anil and Sandhya Bhagat, Anurag Gupta, Aslam Parvez, Ayan Agarwal, B M Yadav, Brijrani Verma, Devesh Dalmia, Dhananjay and Bandana Gupta, Dinny and Harpal Gujral, Dipti Gupta and Sanjeev Agarwal, Gulshan and Shilpi Kharbanda, Hari Uday, Jinal and Premal Shah, Kamlesh Kumawat, Kashish Kharbanda, Kaushal Tripathi, Manju and Shyam Tiwari, Manya Garg, Mustafa Ajmeri, Nidhi and Vishal Agarwal, Nitu Sharma, Om Uncle, Parul and Pradeep Goel, Richa and Manish Sinha, Rohit and Shweta Singh, Sapana Dalmia, Seema and Vineet Katiyar Garg, Shreshth Kharbanda, Shweta and Anil Dhawan, Srini Nalla, Sudhir Agarwal, Suparna and Vimal Pathak, Tanvi Gujral, Vaidehi Goel and Vikas Arora.
The event was sponsored locally by Global Mall, India America Cultural Association (IACA), Bukharaa Restaurant, Bombay Grill Restaurant, Sonal Furniture, GA Infotech, MyOrlandoStay.com, SimSam, Om Arora, ABC RENOVATIONS, YouScore, Sovi Salon, Riya’s Exclusives, Marco’s Pizza, Dunwoody Taxi & Limo, Dhanajay Gupta, Amit Chaurasia and Nimisha Trivedi.