Surati Celebrates Indian Independence Day

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August 15, 2020, Surati hosted India’s 74th Independence Day Celebrations. The day started off with a Virtual Event, where playback singer from the Indian film industry Pritha Majumder performed the National Anthem. This was followed by messages from Ambassador Randhir Jaiswal, Consul General of India in New York, Steven Fulop, Mayor-Jersey City, and Christine Goodman, Director of Cultural Affairs, Jersey City. The online event concluded with a short slideshow depicting Surati’s work over the years

Following the online event, a socially distanced outdoor event was organized in the Newport Area of Jersey City. Safety was a first priority at this event. The City of Jersey City very graciously provided sanitizer bottles and face masks. There was a modest turn out with a celebratory vibe. Jersey City Councilman-At-Large, Rolando Lavarro, Surati’s Founder & Artistic Director, Rimli Roy along with Surati Events, Director of Operations, Karan Pande raised the Flags of India and the United States of America, followed by the singing of Jana Gana Mana, india’s National Anthem and Star Spangled Banner, the US National Anthem.

There was a short cultural program, where Roma Das, one of Surati’s youngest students presented an Odissi dance performance to the music of Vande Mataram, choreographed by Rimli. Tanvi Malushte, a professional visual artist from Jersey City, conducted a flag-making-bookmark workshop with children, youth and other attendees. Rimli conducted a lively folk dance workshop – the music used was an original patriotic song called “My India is Great” composed by veteran musician, performer and composer from India Sumit Roy.