Kala Utsav celebrated by hundreds in Chicagoland

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The Consulate General of India, Chicago hosted the annual Kala Utsav on August 26 at Yellow Box, Naperville IL. Kala Utsav, with its grand history in Chicagoland , did not disappoint the artistically inclined Indian diaspora. Many dance forms from all over India were presented on stage by artists from all over Midwest.

Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi was the Chief Guest of this event. Consul General Neeta Bhushan was accompanied by her husband Anurag Bhushan, Joint Secretary ( ASEAN-ML) , Ministry of External Affairs. The event commenced with the traditional lamp lighting and national anthems, followed by Bhushan’s address. Juan C represented the office of Chicago Mayor, Rahm Emanuel at the event and was honored on stage. Krishnamoorthi said that today we are celebrating what is good and beautiful around us and he congratulated Bhushan, the volunteers and all the participants for putting up a successful celebration of Indian art and culture. Bhushan thanked Krishnamoorthi for taking time out to encourage the participants.

More than 150 performers from all over the Midwest region participated in the cultural program. Nineteen teams presented various folk dance forms from different states of India.

The performances started with a Chenda Melam performance by Chicago Kalashtera, reverberating the auditorium and concluded with Punjabi Gidda by Bollywood Arts Academy. Colorful and lively dance performances delighted the audience. The program was well coordinated with the grand performances left to the end of the program.

At the conclusion, Consul O P Meena presented vote of thanks to all the guests, the volunteers, participants and the audience. 2017’s Kala utsav did not disappoint in either its substance of the dance forms, nor the exuberance of the crowd who were on their feet encouraging the participants.