Shirish Paranjape
Christchurch, Auckland, May 10, 2021
The Maharashtrian community at the Christchurch festivities (Photo by Samhita Gokarn)
The Maharashtrian community in Christchurch came together in big numbers on May 1, 2021 to celebrate Maharashtra Day, International Labour Day and a belated Gudi/Gudhi Padwa (New Year), making it a three-in-one-event.
“Rich traditional Maharashtrian culture experienced for the very first time in Christchurch, together with authentic, delicious and sumptuous food from Maharashtra” is perhaps a good summary of the event, which was organised by the local Maharashtrian community group Apli Manse (our people).
Unite Against Covid-19
The event was held at Bishopdale Community Centre of Christchurch City Council.
The attendees were greeted at the entrance by a bright and colourful Rangoli, created by Sonal Gangurde with help from Meenal Pathak.
But keeping with the theme “Unite against Covid-19,” everyone had to either scan the QR code available or furnish the details manually before entering the hall. The Covid ‘track and trace’ station was managed by young twins Sia and Rudra Pathak.
The march of the traditional Gudhi into the venue (Photo by Samhita Gokarn)
Gudhi Padwa and May 1
The event included ‘marching-in’ of the traditional Gudhi, with the saffron coloured flag, both of which adorned the stage for the entire event. The cultural items included a welcome prayer, songs and dance performances, poetry and prose recitation.
But the highlight was a ‘Lezim’ group dance, which is unique to Maharashtra, and performed for the very first time at Christchurch.
Everyone enjoyed an excellent traditional Maharashtrian vegetarian meal, made at home with love and affection by Neha and Amol Adhokar.
Preeti Gaikwad, the person responsible for decorations, said, “The May 1 and Gudhi Padwa function is the brainchild of the founder members of Christchurch Marathi group, Dhaval Lamghare and Amol Adhokar. The planning for this event went on for almost three months. Overall, the event was a success due to all the help of the organisers and the participation of the community. Many people appreciated the homely atmosphere of the event and felt as if they are in Maharashtra celebrating the festivity with their family. The void of being away from the homeland is somewhat filled due to this event.
Encouraging local talent
“This was the first time that cultural programmes were added, giving exposure to the local talent which was a success. Such necessary for the Maharashtrian community both adults and children to keep them attached with their roots and traditions.”
The MC for the evening, Komal Save added, “I had a wonderful experience hosting this event, which revealed many aspects of our culture before the audience. The feeling of affection, belongingness and cooperation should continue to grow in us through such an event. Also, the ideal of our culture should continue to be in the minds of the new generation.”
Lezim, the popular dance of Maharashtra (Photo by Samhita Gokarn)
Traditional cuisine and culture
Neha and Amol Adhokar said that from day one, it was their desire to promote traditional food with culture, which is why they put their hands up, without any hesitation, to cook a traditional meal for everyone at their home.
They said with pride that not only the food was home-made, the spices which were used for different dishes were also prepared at home by them. The couple did a few trial runs at home to ensure that the level of spiciness was good for the wide age-group of people who were coming to the event.
Amol said that it was a stroke of luck that he saw small round ‘Indian style’ egg-plants on sale at Bombay Bazar, which helped them to make the egg-plant dish. Neha added that they wanted to go the extra mile, thus ended up making even the post-meal mouth-freshener at home for everyone to savour.
Community bond and goodwill
Dhaval Lamghere, a founder member of the Christchurch Marathi group said, “The event was successful because of the bond and support we have been receiving from our Marathi community in Christchurch. Each event member plays a very important role and takes it with respect and responsibility.”
Amol and Neha Adhokar were in charge of delicious cuisine (Photo by Samhita Gokarn)
Vishakha and her husband Omkar Tibe were responsible for the cultural items during the evening. Vishakha shared a nice message which her mother Pratibha Ranade sent from Pune, India. “Such a beautiful organisation, which is praiseworthy. Greetings to all the performers, organisers and attendees. Keep doing such programmes, and make sure you both contribute handsomely to the events. Knowingly and unknowingly, your son Malhar will get enriched with such rich culture. It is important for him to learn his culture through such educational and entertaining events, so keep doing these. Please convey my appreciation to everyone there who are doing everything to promote these values, particularly in the absence of your close relatives there.”
“We need to have more such events more regularly,” was the underlying feedback from all those who attended.
Shirish Paranjape is our Correspondent based in Christchurch. He and his family have been active in the Maharashtrian and wider community in Canterbury since their migration from Mumbai in 2002. The above story has been sponsored by
