Mukund Patel;
Chicago: India’s biggest festival, Diwali, may still be a good three weeks away (on November 14), but enthusiastic Indian-Americans have already celebrated the Festival of Light, although virtually, in Seattle, Washington.
The festival, “Diwali: Lights of India”, was put together on Sunday (October 17) by the Seattle-based Northwest Share, a non-profit organization run totally by volunteers.
The event was held by its Seattle Center under the “Festal” umbrella of the arts.
This was the eighth edition of the festival organized by the Seattle Center but in a digital format due to the global pandemic of Covid-19.
As part of it, Incredible India’s culture was displayed through a variety of performances by local and Indian artists.
This Virtual Diwali function showcased performances of classical and semi-classical music, classical and folk dances, and kalarippayattu (the world’s oldest martial arts). A visual arts gallery also showcased Madhubani paintings, cooking demos showing creatively making Diwali sweets, and demonstration of mixing of Indian spices.
The function was live-streamed on the website of Seattle Center as well as on other key portals and social media pages. These included those of Northwest Share, the state and King County government organizations, and other non-profit arts and cultural organizations.
Latha Sambamurti, Producer and Director of the event “Diwali: Lights of India”, hailed the digital format to showcase India’s beauty and artistry.
Harry Terhanian, President, NW Share said, “NW Share also serves the Seattle community by distributing meals from its free Food Truck featuring vegetarian preparations in which it uses ingredients from its organic farm in Redmond.
There are also friendly pure-bred Indian cows (such as Gujarati Gir), miniature goats, and miniature Zebu Indian cows.
