IACA Diwali celebrations at North Point Mall
“Diwali at North Point was enjoyable for all ages. I felt like I was celebrating back home in India. It was amazing to see our festival being celebrated in a major mall. I absolutely loved the art exhibition, and it had the most incredible artwork,” Dattatraya Joshi, who is visiting his daughter and her family in Atlanta from Mumbai, expressed.
IACA organized Diwali celebrations at North Point Mall for the second year in a row.
Joshi and his family were revelers at the grand Diwali celebrations hosted by the India American Cultural Association (IACA) in association with Northpoint Mall in Alpharetta, GA on November 2. Festivities set the mall abuzz with a panoply of performances, pageantry, fanfare, bazaar, activities for kids, art exhibition, yoga, treasure hunt, and raffle giveaways culminating with sparklers for kids.
With close to five thousand attendees throughout the day and 50 vendors, the Diwali commemoration was a spectacular success, echoing the spirit of the festival of lights in our American communities. Mayor of Alpharetta, Jim Gilvin, presided as the guest of honor. “Alpharetta has changed a lot over the last few decades to an international community. Regardless of languages, religions, or traditions, we celebrate each other as a community,” Mayor Gilvin said, adding that the event symbolizes unity and togetherness for the community.
Northpoint Mall was a sight to behold as flamboyant rangolis, vibrant flowers, and glowing diyas that showcase the rich tapestry of Indian culture bedecked the mall at its various entrances. Enchanting elaborate Golu set-ups displaying diverse deities by Shri Krishna Vrundavana (SKV) featured stunning handcrafted intricate deities that featured various mythological characters, gods, and goddesses. Aim of Seva put together a magnificent thematic display of dolls depicting
Diwali in various states, complete with a striking revolving lotus. Informational posters about Diwali by CoHNA (Coalition of Hindus of North America) educated the unversed about the significance of the festival of lights.
“Diwali marks the beginning of New Year for many cultures in India. It symbolizes the victory of good over evil and light over darkness. IACA, the oldest nonprofit Indian organization in Georgia, has taken such an initiative at North Point Mall.
The center stage, set right across Macy’s department store, featured back-to-back music and dance performances throughout the day. Practitioners from Kerala presented their ancient martial art form, Kalari Payattu, much to the amazement of the audience! A group of 16 women adorned in traditional outfits and jewelry presented various brides of India across the states in their themed fashion show, “Poshaak II - Brides of India.” A unique poetry recitation about light, rendered in different languages by the South Asian Poetry Collective, highlighted the significance of illuminating the light within to win over the darkness of evil, greed, lust, and other vices.
“Thanks for coming into our house. This is the second year in a row that the IACA has partnered with us. Thanks for sharing your culture and creating an exciting event for us in the community,” Nick Nicolosi, General Manager, North Point Mall, said. Macy’s offered several raffle prizes for their scavenger Hunt. Dillards also offered several gift baskets.
[Left] Beautiful art by Indian artists was showcased at the event.
Spectacular décor by Ruchi Rastogi, Madhuri Suman and Dr. Neelima Marada who decked the mall floor with captivating rangoli patterns added vibrancy to the pathways that featured multifarious vendors that were spread across the mall.
The spot wall of the Scene Art Gallery in the mall was illuminated with brilliant artwork by artists of Indian origin—Shilpi McReynolds, Isha Uppala, Renuga Devi, Sridhar, Ruchi Jain, Anu Shibu, Shachi Srivastava, Aashiyan Goel, and Meenakshi Iyer weaving a rich, diverse and expansive history of 1,700 years of South Asian art.
Activities, including diya painting, arts and crafts, and rangoli competition, kept the kids occupied. IACA Women’s Forum organized a treasure hunt with clues spread all around the mall to engage visitors. Dynamic flashmobs at the top of the hour added the vibrancy of the festivities.
Four Indian restaurants and a food truck set up inside and outside the mall premises completed a critical Diwali essential—food and sweets! Many of vendors including clothing, jewelry, IT services, educational courses, meditations, even astrology filled the halls of the mall. Several yoga schools and meditation institutes including Heartfulness, Saloni Jain, Ksom Holistic Wellness, Sahaj Yoga, Online Fit Studio, Amoha Yoga, Sanskara Yoga, and Art of Living offered free yoga sessions all through the day.
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