Holiday Festivities At GATS Year End Program
The Greater Atlanta Tamil Sangam (GATS) celebrated the festival of lights and welcomed the holiday season with pomp and gaiety through a cultural show. The ?GATS Year End Celebrations' was held at the Meadow Creek High School in Gwinnett County on November 22.
The celebrations began with a traditional invocation that included a song recital glorifying the Tamil language and culture, and a Bharatanatyam performance. Following this, the lights on the stage were turned off and talented dancers holding diyas in their hands performed a glittering ?Dance with Lights' against the darkness of the stage. The item set the right ambience for the evening.
The entertainment and cultural program included two segments with different themes. The first segment, named Panchabootham glorified the five elements of nature - earth, sky, wind, fire and water through scintillating dance performances. The second segment aptly named Navarasam highlighted the different facets of human emotions, moods and sentiments like courage, fear, humor and beauty. The segment included dance performances, light music and a hilarious mimicry show. The presentations showcased the immense talent of various GATS members and their kids and drew loud cheers from the crowd.
This was followed by a heated debate on the question of whether to raise children in the USA or back in India. The debate was not only entertaining, but also informative. It concluded with the message that both places have their own merits and how you bring up your kids matters more than where you bring them up.
The program also highlighted the goals, achievements and activities of GATS during the current year. The year saw the transformation of GATS from a cultural group to a cultural and charity organization. GATS raised close to $ 6000 in charity this year through several fund raising events. The funds have been utilized for supporting various projects undertaken by non-government organizations like AIMS India, ASHA, Vibha and Sornammal Educational Trust (SET).
Miss India USA, Meghna Nagarajan and Miss Teen India Georgia contestant Movina Nagarajan were also felicitated during the event. The evening concluded with the announcement of the elected representatives and committee members for GATS for the coming year.
GATS, which came into being in 1981, is a member supported organization serving the Tamil community of Atlanta. For more information, contact Vaithy Subramanian at contact@gatamilsangam.org or visit online at www.gatamilsangam.org.
Enjoyed reading Khabar magazine? Subscribe to Khabar and get a full digital copy of this Indian-American community magazine.
