India Festival 2010

India Festival 2010 

www.gujaratisamaj.org 1 GUJARATI SAMAJ OF TAMPA BAY












Table of Contents 



Best Compliments to 

23rd India Festival 

and 

Gujarati Samaj of Tampa 

from 

The Bakarania Family 



Chairman’s Message 

Welcome too our 23rd annual India Festival of Tampa Bay. 

India Festival has its mission to create awareness about the Indian 

culture and adding to the cultural diveristy of Florida. This festival is 

one of its kind, presented by the Indian community of Tampa Florida. 

This even brings diversity of many Asian cultures with all its splendor entertainment, 

food and people. india Festival attracts the largest gathering 

of the Indian community in a single even in Florida and surrounding 

states, attracting more than 10,000 people annually. 

India Festival offers an excellent opportunity to businesses in in creasing exposure of their 

producs and services to the public on this day. The popularit and reach of India Festival continues 

to grow year after year, with the effort of the organizing teams to continuously provide quality 

entertainment and value to its sponsors. 

One of the many main entertainments of this festival are the wonderful teams of different age 

groups that will participate in various dance comptitioins to Indian folk music in native dance 

styles. There will also be numerous non-competetive performances. The performers com efrom 

different school, colleges and universities from all over Florida. 

An array of flavorful Indian food and drinks are served by the many supporting vendors. 

There is also always a stunning collection of Indian jewelry and clothing available for purchase or 

just to browse through. 

India Festival offers an excellent opportunity to reach out to a large number of Floridians. 

We look forward to your support and contribution to India Festival of Tampa Bay. 

I would like to send out a warm thank you to all the wonderful committee members and volunteers 

for their hard work, always stepping up to the plate and taking charge of their responsibilities. 

I also would like to thank all the great vendors, informative advertisers and supporting sponsors for 

all their commitment and loyalty throughout all the years that is event has taken place. Last but not 

least, a special thank you to my friends and family for always supporting and helping me through 

this wonderful experience called life! 

Thank you and warm regards, 

Kanti Bakarania 

Chairman India Festival 





and 


from The Parekh Family 



President’s Message 

Dear India Festival Lover Friends, 

It gives me great pleasure to welcome you all at the 23rd India Festival 

hosted by GUJARATI SAMAJ OF TAMPA BAY, which displays the 

memorable and rich heritage of Indian culture. This is a huge festival 

organized by the “Gujarati Samaj Of Tampa Bay”, going and growing each 

year with record attendance. 

This event emphasizes on the Indian culture and heritage, which brings young and old together 

from different parts of Florida and its neighboring states. This event also attracts lots of Non Indian 

Americans to taste Indian culture, music, arts and delicious Indian cuisine. 

I am really proud to serve as a President-2010 of Gujarati Samaj Of Tampa Bay, when my 

mother state GUJARAT in India, celebrates 50th Year of her foundation celebration “SWARNIM 

GUJARAT” 

I am grateful to all my Executive Committee Members, Volunteers both youth and seniors to 

make 23rd India Festival a big success and supporting all GSTB-2010 colorful events through out 

the year. 

I am thankful to India Festival Chairman Mr. Kanti Bakarania to lead his hard working team to 

lead this huge festival with colorful success with his hard work, good planning and getting support 

from all the corners of community. Also I will take this opportunity to thank all GSTB members 

to elect me as a President and supporting me around the year to make 2010 colorful with record 

numbers of events in GSTB history. 

I am also thankful to all the participants, vendors, advertisers, community leaders, committed 

volunteers and other associations for their valuable support to make 23rd India Festival a huge success. 

As the saying goes ‘ Behind every successful man there is a woman.’ I would like to thank my 

lovely wife HANSA for her support and participation with hard work through out the year, standing 

with me shoulder to shoulder in each event. 

My Executive Committee Members and I wish every GSTB members “A Happy Diwali” and “A 

Happy New Year” 

United We Will Stand. Jai Jai Garavi Gujarat - Jai Bharat 

Himatlal Parekh 

President -2010, Gujarati Samaj Of Tampa Bay 





and 


from The Gandhi Family 



Vice Chairman’s Message 

It is my great pleasure to welcome all of you to the 23rd india festival. 

By far, India has the richest legacy of fairs and colorful festivals. No 

other country but india upon this earth is blessed with the unfurling 

and unfolding of a greater variety of feelings and fascinations. Her age 

old culture is a mosaic of human civilization. India is known for its rich 

heritage and culture. It is a country where people from different ethnic 

backgrounds live like a family. 

There is hardly a day when in some part of the country, a festival is not celebrated or a fair 

not held. Festivals play a very important role in bringing everyone together in order to celebrate 

our rich heritage. They provide an opportunity to share the joy and love of people, and in order to 

spread the communityís harmony. 

Far from home, here, at Tampa Bay, Gujarati Samaj has provided this plateform since 1988 

and has brought the community closer, celebrating their festivites. This is also a very unique opportunity 

to share and spread our proud heritage to the second generation of indian americans as 

well as the main stream of our american friends. 

Like every other successful event, this one has also been victorious by the diligent hard work 

of many committee members and volunteers. There are many names to list, so i would like to 

thank all of you and your family members for the effort and contribution. thanks to all the vendors 

and advertisers for their continuous support. 

A special thanks to mr. kanti bakarania for his examplery leadership. 

Good luck to all our participants. 

Best wishes to you and your family for a happy diwali and a prosperous new year in health 

and wealth. 

Yours truely, 

Dinesh Gandhi 

Executive Vice Chairman 

“Let our hearts be united, let our minds and work be united. Let us be always eager to help 

each other “ 

..... Rigveda 





and 


from 

The Shah Family 



Editor’s Message 

Mark Twain, American author: “India is, the cradle of the human race, 

the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of 

legend, and the great grand mother of tradition. our most valuable and most 

instructive materials in the history of man are treasured up in India only.” 

I am humbled by the opportunity given to me by “Gujarati Samaj 

Of Tampa Bay” to be a part of 23rd India Festival and take upon an 

important task of publishing our 2010 souvenir book. I welcome all of 

you to this wonderful annual event for the 23rd consecutive year. I have 

fond memories of being part of 1st India Festival and there on almost 

everyone of them, one way or the other. It seems like just yesterday. This is a great event to share 

our heritage, culture, traditions, music, folk dances with Indian and American Communities in USA. 

Our community has progressed a lot through this in Tampa Bay. My message on this important day is to be more 

united and strong as a community. I would like to see some candidates from our community to be a part of U.S political 

system. To preserve and grow our heritage and culture, we need to be united and strong community. We have come 

long ways and lot of our fellow community members have taken high governmental positions in other states and now 

is the time that as Floridians we step up to the plate. In our community I have seen lots of donations given into the 

political system in USA. It is time to bring and support some strong candidates into the political arena from Florida. 

I would like to say special thanks to my wife Shreya and children Puja and Ravi. While working to bring this edition 

in light and also be a part of Gujarati Samaj executive committee as Social Secretary, I have spent a lot of time working for 

Samaj and leave my family behind. All this hard work is a result of their support and sacrifice and I thank them for that. 

I would also like to thank (not in any particular order) Shri. Kanti Bakarania, Himatlal Parekh, Dinesh Gandhi, Dr. 

Ashok Modh, Dr. Kiran Patel, Ghanshyambhai Patel, Nainan Desai, Kirit Shah, Dr. Samir Shah, Dr. Jayendra Choksi, 

Attorney Dilip Patel, Nikunj Patel, Jignesh Bakarania, Swapna Shah, Kaushik Joshi, Vikas Ghiya, Vijay Gandhi, Yogesh 

Shah, Jyotsana Patel, Manish Gandhi, Rajan Bhatt, Sudhir Shah, Mahesh Modha, Harish Patel (Nursing), Dr. Mukesh 

Kapadia, Malti Pandya, P. D. Patel, Dr. Dipak Shah, Nick Patel, Dr. C. J. Patel, Parimal Butala, Narendra Patel, Pankaj 

Patel, Ramila Patel, Jigisha Desai, Gordhanbhai patel, Mukesh Patel (Sound), Hitesh Adhia CPA, Dr. Mahesh Amin, 

Jasubhai Bakriwala, Indravadan Modi, Jayesh Patel, Arvind Patel, Bharat Doshi, Sushmaben Patel, Shantibhai Patel, 

Kamlesh Patel CPA, Dr. Ravi Patel, Dr. Vijay Patel, Dr. Nandkishore Shah, Sanjay Sharma (Web Site), Mina Bakarania, 

Hansaben Parekh, Dr. Harish Patel, Manish Kharod, Gaurangiben Patel, Geeta Kapadia, Kuleen Shah, Namrata Amin, 

Dr. Vijay Patel ( Tampa), Kaushik Joshi, Jyoti Gandhi, Bhogilal Patel, Upendra Upadhyay, Gautam Thakkar , Jigar Jadav 

and entire community of Jain Society Of Tampa Bay, to be a part of making my work successful, one way or the other 

and giving me an opportunity to be part of their team and a coworker. I believe that they are the pillars of my success. 

I would also like to thank all the readers and participants of the India Festivals. There are lot of volunteers 

who are also helping on the background and whose names I may have forgotten to mention and without their 

help and support this massive task is impossible to achieve. I really thank them from bottom of my heart. Finally 

my thanks goes to all the advertiser, donors, vendors who have financially supported this entire event. This 

book is the direct result of their support and I am looking forward to working with them again in future. 

My special thanks to all the members of our Gujarati Samaj who are the backbone of all our activities. 



23rd India Festival Executive Committee 


President 

Kanti Bakarania 

Chairman 

Dinesh Gandhi 

Exe. Vice Chairman 

Harish L. Patel, MS 

Co-Chair Advertising 

Dipak Shah, MD 


Mukesh Kapadia, DDS 

Co- Chair Advertising 

Harish J. Patel, MD 


Ashok Modh, MD 

Treasurer/Advertisement 

C.J. Patel, MD 

Co-Chair State Mgmt. 

Malti Pandya 

Co-Chair Registration 

(Cultural) 

Dr. Gaurangi Patel 

Co- Chair Judges 

Vikas Ghiya 

Co-Chair Stage Mgmt. 

Nikunj Patel 

Co-Chair Vendor 

Jignesh Bakarania 

Co-Chair Vendor 

Kuleen Shah 




23rd India Executive Festival Committee 

Chetan Shah 

Editor 

Mukesh Patel 

Co-Chair Sound Mgmt 

Saloni Bakarania 

Co-Chair Decoration 

Mahesh Modha 

Secretary 

Parimal Butala 

Co-Chair Hall Mgmt 

Minaxi C. Patel 

Trophies 

Mina Bakarania 

Co-Chair Host Committee 

Hanshaben Parekh 

Host Committee 

Manu Joshi 

Co-Chair Decoration 

P.D. Patel 

Sundome Liason 

Rajesh Gandhi 

Co-Chair Stage Mgmt 

Amit Patel 

Emcee 

Swapna Shah 

Media 

Harsha Patel 


Sanjay Sharma 

Information Technology 

Pooja Pandya 

Co-Chair Back Stage 

Manish Kharod 

Scoring 

Jyoti Gandhi 


Jyotsna Patel 




India Festival Committee 

Special Thanks to 

Dr. L. D. Gedia 

Yogesh Shah 

Dr. Vijay Patel 

Upendra Upadhyay 

Dr. Kiran Patel 

Bhogilal Patel 

Dr. Akshay Desai 

Gautam Thakkar 

Dr. Nandkishor Shah 

Manish Gandhi 

Dr. Hemant Shah 

Sahil Patel 

Dr. Siddharth Shah 

Jigar Jadav 

Dr. Rakesh Shah 

Juhi Desai 

Dr. Rohit Patel 

Ojas Rawal 

Dr. Samir Shah 

Suchi Dwivedi 

Dr. Sanjay Navadia 

Shephali Rele 

Dr. Chirag Patel 

Nila Patel 

Dr. Rajesh Dave 

Dipti Patel 

Mr. Kaushik Joshi 

Parth Shah 

Mr. Dilip Patel, Esq. 

Asha Kharod 

Mr. Pankaj Patel 

Ruchi Patel 

Dr. Kotha Shekharam 

Ann Joseph 

Mr. Nick Patel 

Nina Patel 

Dr .Madhavi Shekharam 

Preeti Patel 




President 

Gautam Thakkar 

Vice President 

Jyoti Gandhi 

Secretary 

Dr. Ashok Modh 

Treasurer 

Bhogilal Patel 

Social Secretary 

Chetan Shah 

Co-Social Secretary 

THANK YOU EVERYONE FROM BOTTOM OF OUR 

HEART FOR MAKING 2010 SUCCESSFUL 









Home Health Care by 

American Nurses 

www.American-Nurses.com 

Medicare Certified Home 

Health Care Agencies 

Harish L. Patel, M.S. President & CEO 

Vidya • Amit • Sunny 













INDIA FESTIVAL 

Independence- the birth right of every individual-, 

Neither by weapons, nor by conventional war, 

Democracy was achieved by a non-violence movement. 

India gives inspiration and a beacon of hope for people around the world. 

Among all the ancient cultures and civilizations, 

Fusion of ancient culture and modern technology, 

Even the fusion of yoga of body, mind and spirit, 

Soulfully she reveals the true meaning of prosperity. 

Today, we celebrate the inventor of the number zero, 

India, the largest democracy in the world, 

Visionary Rishis and leaders have sanctified the land. 

Arise, awaken and stop not until the goal is achieved; 

Let the teachings of Vedas invigorate our lives 

By: Magan L. Bakarania 



MY INDIA FESTIVAL 

EXPERIENCE 

I am a 7th grader at Liberty 

Middle School, in New Tampa. 

I am 12 years old. 

This Article is about my 

experiences at India Festival and 

how I look forward to it each year. 

I love India Festival, and I am glad 

Tampa hosts it every year. 

I hear the audience long 

before I see them…I feel the stage 

vibrate…I see the curtain open… 

my heart is racing…the emcee 

announces “Item # 22”….and the 

familiar beat begins….. 

After eight years of 

participating at India Festival, 

you’d think that each year it would 

get more boring, but it never wears 

off. In fact, I get re-energized to do 

more. I have attended this festival since I was born 

(even though I don’t remember the early years). 

Everything about our India festival is wonderful. The 

shopping, the food, the competitions, even watching 

the chaos in the dressing rooms!! 

When practices start way 

back in August, I can already 

feel the momentum building 

for the contest. I have a blast 

meeting all my friends during 

practice. When I dance, the 

Indian music flows through 

me, and I feel energized. I feel 

like I am dancing in front of the 

audience, on the big stage, at the 

Sundome. Over the years, I have 

done everything, from garba to 

bhangra, folk to fashion show, 

and each one is thrilling. 

The food and shopping are 

also something I look forward to 

every year. I like to buy outfits, 

bindis, CD’s and all kinds of jewelry. 

I literally shop ‘til I drop! For me, 

India Fest is an eating fest. I eat pani 

puri, pav bhaji, dhosa, falooda and 

of course, polar bear ices!! 

The day of India Festival, I feel proud to be an 

Indian. I feel more Indian on that day than any 

other day of the year. 

Maya Patel 





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Magan L. Bakarania, MD, FACC 

Saba Thangam, MD, FACC, FSCAI 

Ed Gandhi, MD, FACC 

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Phone: 813-689-1912 • Fax: 813-684-3335 



Email: realtoracm@gmail.com 



best wishes 

to the 

2010 

indian festival 

from 

Vadan 

and 

nanda 

Patel 





best wishes 

to the 

indian festival 2010 

from 

Pankaj Shah 

with 

Cumbey & Fair 

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clearwater, fl 33763 

813-223-4333 

Lata, Rushi - Bina - Kira 

Dhruv - Sheetal 









FESTIVAL OF CHARIOTS 

A Tribute to Lord Jagannath Ji. 

It was the July 18th 2010, a most anticipated 

Sunday morning as our family was heading to 

the Indian Cultural Center (ICC) to witness the 

spectacular Indian festival, Tampa Bay Rath Yatra – 

2010. Whenever, its Rath Yatra, we usually head to 

the ICC as usual location for any significant Indian 

festivities. Now let us start the Masala!!! 

We left our home at 9:15 AM, it took about 30 mins 

to get to ICC because of how far New Tampa is from 

Lynn road, where the ICC is located. On reaching 

ICC, my brother 

and me helped out 

a few devotees who 

were setting up 

the Chariot which 

would be carrying 

By: Sairam Sundar 

Lord Jagannath, 

Lord Balaram, who 

is the brother of 

Lord Jagannath and 

Devi Subhadra, who 

is sister of the Lords. 

I felt a little sullen 

to realize that fixing 

up the chariot was a 

“Man’s job”. I was fascinated by the dedication and 

passion of the devotees who have come down all the 

way from Alachua. 

A few minutes later we stepped inside the ICC 

building. Thousands of chairs stood before me, all 

empty as we were early to reach. Lights were twinkling 

from the spot lights and few volunteers were setting 

up the stage. Shivram was enjoying his moments as 

he was going up the stairs and to the second floor as 

there was a lot of space to move around and have fun. 

A spicy and sweet aroma of typical Indian food filled 

my nostrils, it was all emanating from the Kitchen 

where my Mom was volunteering, that’s the reason 

we were here early. 

As time went on we realized that the crowd as 

gathered and the deities were nicely setup on the stage 

and prayers & pujas were performed and devotees 

have lined up to perform Aarthi. We were describing 

and admiring the decorations lay on the deities and 

took out turns to perform the Aarthi to the Lord. 

Finally it was time 

to carry the deities 

to the Chariot and 

we followed up in 

a hurry, to garb the 

best possible location 

to witness the event. 

Fortunately, my 

Mom and me found 

the best possible 

location, Can you 

believe!, we were 

sitting behind the 

Lord Himself and By: Shivram Sundar 

offering the Pardha. 

The Chariot was decorated with balloons, flowers 

and confetti and other good stuff. With one big 

heave, the Chariot was pulled by the devotees from 

both ends and we were driving down the road. The 

rest of devotees and their families & children were 

following the Chariot chanting Hare Rama, Hare 

Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Hare, Hare …it was hot 

and humid and there was a frequent need for water 

breaks for the devotees. 

Continued on next page 



Continued from previous page 

After a miles’ drive around the temple area, we were back to the ICC building. We were tired and hungry and 

slowly strolled into the dining room. There was a long wait line of devotees to be served, luckily they split the lines 

into two separate lines. After we got our food and started to enjoy the Mahaprasad and other delicacies. Mmmm… 

Yummy!!! 

It was almost evening as we sat down to watch our Guest and President present their takes on the festivities 

and my Mom was presented with a souvenir for her contribution as a volunteer. A lot of people clapped and we 

were proud of her. Finally we ambled back to our car to drive home. It was a long day of Rath Yatra but believe me, 

it’s a Big Experience!!!. We shall go again next year to experience the festivities and receive Lord Jagannath’s kind 

blessings for leading a blissful, joyous and prosperous life. Chant with me and my brother, Shivram… Hare Rama, 

Hare Krishna, Krishna, Krishna …Hare Hare … 

BRED FROM AFAR 

As we’ve seen in our lives, each hought is an 

offshoot of another thought, each step in our life 

is reached by having stepped off of another, each 

inspiration is the culmination of a seed planted from 

a prior experience. One such experience led me to 

what has today become a significant part of my life. 

One November night in 2003, I stood at the side of 

the state of the very event where you received this 

book. While anxiously waiting with my teamates o 

perfom at the 16th Annual India Festival compeition, 

all I could see from the stage were the tops of the 

heads of towering guys and girls spinning atop 

human stunts I had never seen before. Because the 

stage was raised hight off the floor to the level of my 

head, I could barely see what was going on, except for 

those few things that caught enough of my attention 

and curiosity. the only glimpse I could get of those 

dancers was when they ran off the stage, around the 

back, and back onto the stage from the opposite sides 

they came from to continue their dance in a new and 

suprising formation. The elaborate costumes they 

wore were ones I had never seen before, the energy 

they danced with I have never experienced before, 

the great amount of connection I felt even without 

seeing most of their dance, I had never felt before. I 

could only hear the audience roaring and cheering at 

a volume that I hadn’t heard for an other team that 

night. It was only when the show’s DVD came in the 

mail some time later did I see the entirety of their 

awe-inspiring dance and learn who they were... Gator 

Bhangra. From that moment, I knew that when I 

attended the University of Florida, I would audition 

for this most exciting team, even though I had never 

done Bhangra before. 

I was infinitely excited when I found out after 

auditioning my freshman year that I had made the 

team! I was able to partcipate with this team that 

had inspired me to step outside my comfort level of 

dance that i had created for myself throughout my 

years of learning and performing various styles of 

Indian dance. I met so many amazing people and 

lifelong friends through my team and experienced 

the feeling of comaraderie and teamwork that I had 

only ever imagined. I also learned of a world that 

is almost underground to mainstream society, what 

we’ve grown to call the “Bhangra Circuit” in the past 

few years. There are countless Bhangra teams and 

academies all around the United States and Canada 

that share heir love for he dance form. Compeitions 


and exhibition shows all around the North Amrican 

continent bring these groups together in a community 

where peope not onl ymeet on eanother and create 

networks for years to come, but also exchange 

experiences and knowledge of Punjabi and also our 

broader Indian cultures. Being a Gujarati, I still feel 

like I’m learning more about myself and my roots by 

engaging in discussion and performance connected 

to the Punjabi culture. These experiences, along with 

those from my experiences with Bharatanatyam from 

South India, Kathak from North India, and various 

fold dances from 

around India, that more 

than being Gujarati, 

Punjabi, Tamil, or 

any other regional 

individual, I am an 

By: Juhi Desai 

Indian. Although I 

am still very young, 

I’ve experienced many 

instances when people’s 

over-identification 

with their specific 

region of India ends 

up dividing them. 

Through the Bhangra Circuit and the broader Indian 

dance communit, I have been fortunate to have been 

surrounded by people who come together not for a 

common characteristic, but a common experience - 

the experience of dance and expression. 

From the very night I shared a connection with a 

group unknown to me who later became a part of my 

family, a snowball effect of stepping stones disguised 

as experiences opened me up to a world I feel at home 

in now. They opened me up to an understanding of 

my ethnicity that I came to understand in a most 

special way. Even as a proud Gator Bhangra alumnus 

now watching my “children” who grew before my 

eyes while co-captaining the tam with my friends, I 

am fortunate enough to be able to continue Bhangra 

with another close-knit team in New York City where 

I now live and work, Shaan Mutiyaaran Di Bhangra 

Club. I am still able to go to the huge competitions 

and events wehere I see the good freiends I’ve made 

through this dance and continue to make new ones. 

New friends, new memories, and new learning 

experiences that bring me closer and closer to the 

country thta bred me even from afar. 










NARENDRA, RASHMILA, 

JAIMINI, BIJAL AND 

DHRUV PATEL 






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PRESERVING NATIONAL 

CULTURAL IDENTITY 

Challenges and Solutions 

National Cultural identity: every individual 

irrespective of his present location and country of 

stay, represent a culture, which is more or less is 

his identity. Few centuries back, most of the world 

was unified with no borders. People used to move 

from one part to other without visa or passport. 

That is why we see lots of cultural similarities in the 

cultures around the world such as Romuva people 

in Lithuania have more than 30% Sanskrit words in 

their language and good number of people follow 

fire worship similar to our yagna. Even if Jews were 

distributed over 70 countries around the world; they 

always retained their Israeli identity for more than 

two millenniums. Hindus have been in many Asian 

countries for more than two millenniums but still 

retain their Hindu cultural identity. 

Various characteristics needed for defining 

the Cultural identity: One of the major criteria to 

national cultural identity is the attachment to the 

land and the ancestors lived there, the traditions 

which have been followed for generations, scared 

places and their reiterations in daily prayers, sense 

of belongingness, affectionate feelings towards 

people from the land and readiness to sacrifice for 

the values. If you look at the Hindu families which 

have settled over more than 120 countries, all of them 

show these characteristics. Similar feelings have also 

been expressed by Jews and many other cultures and 

its people. 

Understanding the Difference between the 

State and the Nation: The concept of nation is well 

described in Vedas and has been a Hindu contribution 

to the world. We have several references to nation in 

our scriptures. The state concept was more a western 

concept and had been only connected to piece of land 

and more with political reference. Nation is more 

connected with culture. Israel remained a nation 

for two thousand years even though there was no 

land for the Israelis. Same thing is with many Native 

American nations here in Americas. As on today there 

is no politically recognized Hindu nation but India 

has been a Hindu nation since ages. Erstwhile Russia 

was a state with several nations included and after 

the cold ware several nations were formed including 

Latvia, Lithuania and so on with very strong cultural 

traditions existing for hundreds of years. 

Differentiating between Religion and Way 

of Life (Dharma): Two thousand years back, there 

were thousands of cultures and traditions to mention 

a few, there were more than 1000 African cultures, 

more than 500 Native American Nations, Australian 

Aboriginals, Maoris from New Zealand and hundreds 

of other ancient cultures and traditions worldwide 

including the Sanatana Dharma from India, all these 

were a way of life. They did not have one book, one 

founder or messenger or one way of worship. They 

believed in dialogue between the less knowledgeable 

to the more knowledgeable, like Bhagvadgeetha is 

a dialogue between Bhagwan Krishna and Arjuna. 

Oral tradition has been the way all these Dharmic 

traditions have been maintained over thousands of 

years. To understand the cultural identity we need 

to differentiate between the religion and the dharma. 

This will help us in understanding the difference 

between the religious identity and Cultural identity. 



Preserving the National Cultural Identity: 

We need to be clear about the concepts mentioned 

above. If will be easy to find out ways to preserve 

and sustain our onwn identity as well as relate it to 

national identity. If I am a citizen of USA means my 

state identity is US citizen and I need to follow all 

the laws of the land and be patriotic to my country 

of adoption. Hindus around the world have been 

citizens of more than 115 countries, but we will 

never hear any incidence of unpatriotic activities by 

Hindus and I attribute this quality to our cultural 

identity which our Hindu identity and Hindu values. 

In many countries Hindus have contributed in the 

independence struggle of that country and we all very 

proud that Mahatma Gandhi has been instrumental 

even today to inspire many world leaders because he 

practiced the Hindu values all through his life. 

Some of the simple ways we can preserve and 

sustain our Hindu identity as well as establish 

ourselves as part of the great Hindu cultural nation 

are: 

• This process will help all countries and 

cultures around the world who believe in 

Dhamic traditions and cultures who had 

great ancestral heritage and cultures 

• Creating and protecting diversity of the world 

is God’s work 

• With this feeling everyone has to work on 

preserving, protecting and dedicating oneself 

to the idea of renaissance of the cultural 

identity 

• Let us join hands in helping each other to 

achieve the dream of cultural renaissance 

of all the ancient cultures, world diversity and 

heritage 

Compiled by Yashwant Pathak 

• Creating pride about one’s national Cultural 

identity 

• Creating a feeling of oneness within individual 

and society with the nation concept 

• Creating a feeling of belongingness; a feeling 

of I owe to the Nation 

• Creating a feeling of I am responsible for the 

preservation, protection and upliftment of 

my own culture, way of life and nation 

• Involvement of Youth’s in all this process 

• Creating a team of youths and Adults who 

dedicate themselves for the cause 



INDIA FESTIVAL 2010 

WITH BEST COMPLIMENTS 

Bawarchi 

Indian Cuisine 

“Never been a better place” 

727.789.9760 

34832 U.S. 19 N. • Fountains Plaza 

Palm Harbor, FL 34684 

We cater all types of events, 

including birthday parties, 

anniversaries, weddings, etc. 

Lunch Buffet: Tue-Sun 11:30am to 2:30pm 

Dinner: Tue, Thurs & Sun 5:00pm to 9:30pm 

Fri & Sat: 5:00pm to 10:00 pm 





Kamlesh H. Patel, CPA 

BestWishes to India Festival 

from 

Kamlesh, Gira, Roma & Rina Patel 

and Ana Zamora 

New Corporations 

Accounting Services 

Individual & Business Tax Returns 

Online Payroll Services 

QuickBooks Consultants 

*Paying too much for payroll services? We have special packages for you, 

Call for free quotes* 

18926 Dale Mabry Hwy. N. Suite 101, Lutz, FL 33548 

(813) 949-8889 Office (813) 333-5975 Fax 

Email:kpatel@khpcpa.com Website: www.kphcpa.com 

*One stop for all your Accounting & Insurance needs 

KP Insurance Agency, Inc. 

BestWishes to India Festival 

from 

Kamlesh, Gira, Roma & Rina Patel 

and Ana Zamora 

Health-Dental-Life-Disability 

Bonds:Erisa, Fidelity & Medicare 

Long Term Care 

Auto-Home-Flood 

Business Property, Liability & Umbrella 

Workers Compensation 

*Paying too much for Individual/Group Health Insurance? Call for free quotes* 

18926 Dale Mabry Hwy. N. Suite 101, Lutz, FL 33548 

(813) 949-8889 Office (813) 333-5975 Fax 

Email:kpatel@kpinsuranceagency.com Website: www.kpinsuranceagency.com 

*One stop for all your Insurance & Accounting needs 



Meethi Gudiyas ( Junior Folk Dance) 

Meethi Gudiyas Too (Minor Garba) 

You all are amazing 

We love you all 

Best Compliments from 

Drs. Girish and Kirti Patel 

To India Festival 2010 and Gujrati Samaj of 

Tampa Bay 

Girish, Kirti, Luv, Preet, Sneha 

Kirti Bhargava-Patel MD Girish Patel MD PA 

Northeast Family Practice 

Gastroenterology 

8730 4th Street N 2112 16th Street N 

St. Petersburg, FL 33703 St. Petersburg, FL 33704 

(727) 576-4229 (727) 821-7111 











Best Wishes to 


Health Point Pharmacy 

7095 66th Street N. 

Pinellas Park, FL 33781 

727-541-2900 

727-541-2901 

Riverview Health Mart Pharmacy 

9858 US 301 S. 

Riverview, FL 33578 

813-677-3800 

Best Compliments From 

Parag B. Shah • Falgun Patel 

Arpita P. Shah • Purvi Patel 





THE INDIAN DIASPORA 

“Who are they?” 

The Indian Diaspora today constitutes an 

important, and in some respects, unique strength 

in global culture. The origins of the modern Indian 

Diaspora lie primarily in the subjugation of India 

by the British Raj and its incorporation into the 

British Empire. Many Indians were lured and taken 

over as indentured labor, just another fancy word 

for slavery, to far-flung parts of the British Empire 

in the nineteenth-century, a circumstance to which 

the modern Indian populations of Fiji, Mauritius, 

Guyana, Trinidad, Surinam, Malaysia, South Africa, 

Sri Lanka, and other places attest in their own 

peculiar ways. 

Over two million Indians were relocated 

throughout the world as indentured laborers from 

the 1830’s until 1917. They mostly came from parts 

of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Chennai, and Gujarat, just 

to name a few. When the laborers’ obligations were 

fulfilled, many remained behind to claim the land 

they were promised on which they had farmed as 

their own, although many did not have the chance 

to return to their homes either due to illness, lack of 

money or the opportunity because the British refused 

to bring them back. Many of the laborers saw this as 

their fate and tried their best to make a life for their 

families. Currently, there is over 25 million People of 

Indian Origin (PIO’s) living outside of India in over 

100 countries. 

As if in emulation of their ancestors, many 

Gujarati traders once again left for East Africa in 

large sums in the early part of the twentieth century 

developing communities where the settled especially 

in Kenya and Uganda . In the post-World War II, 

the spreading of Indian labor and professionals has 

been a nearly a world-wide phenomenon. Mostly 

Indians and other South Asians provided the man 

power that helped in the reconstruction of war-torn 

Europe, particularly the United Kingdom and the 

Netherlands. In recent years, unskilled laborers from 

India have been the main force in the transformation 

of the physical landscape of much of the Middle East. 

In the meantime, in countries such as the United 

States, Canada, New Zealand and Australia, Indians 

today have made their presence undoubtedly felt 

in the professional arena in ways of engineering, 

medicine, research, business, finance and technology. 

Who and what is an Indian today? How are we 

to characterize the Indian diasporas community as 

‘Indian’ given that it is constituted of such diverse 

elements as South Asians, Muslims, Canadian 

Sikhs, Punjabi Mexican Californians, Gujarati East 

Africans now settled in the U.S. by way of England, 

South African Hindus, Indo Guyanese and Indo 

Trinidadians and so forth? In the United States, at 

least, the Indian community has been given a place 

of considerable privilege, and many Indians could 

preserve their ‘Indianness’ and being ‘American’ BUT 

it was not until the last 15 years that we have seen the 

wide spread acceptance of Indians and the impact we 

have made in the United States and Canada. 

Indians in America unlike most other Indian 

communities across the world, still maintain some 

sort of link with the motherland since many of the 

residents in the US are first or second generation 

who immigrated as students and professionals. Many 

continue their link with the motherland through 

the most unlikely process of bonding, the Hindi 

feature film, a phenomenon unique to the Indian 

Diaspora: what Hollywood is to the Western Europe, 

“Bollywood” is to the Indian Diaspora in the Middle 

East, East Africa, and the Caribbean. The modesty of 

the family values, the Hindi film is said to explain its 

appeal to the world; and though we may well contest 

that interpretation, it is worthy of note that Hindi 



films found in grocery and video 

stores across the U.S. often carry 

subtitles which makes it possible 

for our children to still somewhat 

enjoy them. 

Indian “arranged marriages” 

might furnish another such facet of a ‘common 

culture’. Websites and newspapers published by 

Indian communities flourish everywhere, and they 

consistently carry a section with matrimonial ads. 

Though these very ads help Indians to ‘locate’ one 

another, they pose difficult questions about ‘otherness’, 

in relation to ‘Americans’. This practice of trying to 

find a mate has been a long standing tradition and 

does not seem to be on the way out anytime soon. It’s 

just part of our culture and still seems to be a large 

part of who we are. 

The sacred practices of Hindus, Sikhs, and 

Muslims in the U.S. and other overseas communities 

might be assisting in transforming the nature of 

religious faiths in India. Hindus all over the world are 

showing signs of resurgence of Hinduism; without 

a doubt, it is even arguable that they seem to know 

the meaning of Hinduism better than do Hindus 

in India. Why do overseas Hindus, particularly the 

North American Diaspora, appear always to out- 

Hindu the Hindu? Indians are perhaps trying to hold 

on to our culture and identity for our children and 

grandchildren. In thinking of the Indian Diaspora, 

many questions come to mind: relations between 

parents and children; race relations between Indians, 

blacks, and whites; how Indian food and music 

play in the preservation of Indian communities; 

the responsibility, if any, of the Indian Government 

to overseas Indians; and the future prospects of the 

Indian community in the U.S. 

The one thing we can surely all agree on is that 

Indians have made a tremendous impact where ever 

they have settled and I suspect our impact in the 

United States and other parts of the world continue 

to impact those communities. 

By: Dr. Ram P Ramcharran 



2010 

13906 Lake Shore Blvd., Ste. 330 


(727) 863-7766 

11373 Cortez Blvd., Ste. 206 

Brooksville, FL 34613 

(352) 596-3066 

7575 S.R. 52 

Bayonet Point, FL 34667 

(727) 861-9800 



GROWING TO THE BEAT 

Finding the courage to step forward with 

unshakable confidence and focus does not come to 

most people naturally, as it did not with me. However, 

the months spent in preperation for my Arangetram, 

the final step in learning the art of the South Indian 

classical dance known as Bharatanatyam, overturned 

every doubt I used to have about myself. Fear of the 

unknown, rejection, and failure used to haunt me in 

every endeavor I pursued, fears that no longer hold 

me back. On the night of April 18th, 2009, I was 

reborn into a person that ventures into adversities 

with the drive to succeed. 

I have performed the South Indian classical 

dance known as Bharatanatyam since I was six. it 

is an acient dance that ahs 

been practiced in South India 

for thousands of years. The 

years of training taught me 

the importance of practice 

and hard work, without 

wchich success is difficult to 

achieve. Ater several years of 

practicing, performing, and 

perfecting this art, dancers 

By: Shivani Desai 

perform the Arangetram, 

a kind of graduation from 

Bharatanatyam that tends to be difficult to obtain. 

Most dancers lose the will to strive toward this goal 

early in the training. i had doubts about my own 

Arangetram as well; I doubted that I could never 

accomplish anything so grand. This self-doubt 

carried into other aspects of my life as well. I feared 

failure, which helf me back from trying anything that 

had a slight chance of succeeding. I was hiding my 

true potential from myself and the world. 

As for how I prepared for my jouney, it bagan 

in the summer of 2007, when my guru, Ms. Radha 

Balasubramanian, came to visit me and taught 

me a few dances. After this, I practiced on m own 

whenever I could find time. The perparation really 

went into full force when my guru came to live with 

my family in March of 2009. For a month and ahalf, 

I would come home from school and practice for up 

to four hours until I had built enough endurance to 

practice each dance without stopping for too long in 

between. As my Arangetram approached, my friends 

and family willingly helped me prepare with their 

own contributions. Even though it has been a year 

since that day, I still cannot believe that I was able to 

accomplish such a feat. 

The months it ook me to prepare for my 

Arangetram were a jouney of self discovery. I found 

that practicing everyday upon coming home from 

school was not impossible, as I once believed. long 

with practicing everyday, I remained exceptional in 

academics, follwed through with my responsibilities 

as the vice president of Leo club, made time to practice 

my violin for orchestra, and had time left over to 

enjoy with friends. My self-doubt was turned into 

stronger self-confidence, and becaue of the numerous 

extra activities I was involved in, I learned to manage 

my time effectively and to pinpoint my focus onto my 

priorities. When the night of my Aragetram came 

upon me and I performed in front of my close friends 

and family, I knew that I had achieved something 

that I had thought was impossible for me to do. my 

months of effore had contributed to my success, and 

experience I use to remind myself that I am capable 

of making my dreams come true. 

When I look back at the work that preceded my 

Arangetram, I realize that the activities I am now 

a part of seemed impossible to me a yar ato. My 

Arangetram led me to my presidency of the Leo 

Club, competitive dance choreography for programs 

like the Tampa and Orlando Indian Festivals, and 

my conviction that I would attend the University 

of Florida. I do not let my experiences leave me. 

instead, I carry them with me. The confidence, focus, 

and drive I acquired from my Arangetram will be 

with me in my journey through life. 



MY SOUL SEARCHING 

TRIP TO KAILASH 

Kailash- Mansarovar. The most exotic place, 

away from civilization, in the midst of political 

Turmoil and still no signs of unrest. 

I always wanted to go to Kailash but not right 

away. I wanted to go in the late 1960s. But one day my 

sister called and said we are going to Kailash. I said 

that I am not ready yet, not fit enough either. 

But we planned to go anyway. It was a sixteen day 

trip from Nepal. We reached Katmandu and rested 

for a day. Then we prayed at Pashmpatinath Temple 

for our safe 

journey. The next 

day we left from 

Katmandu to the 

Kodai border in a 

bus. The journey 

was scenic. We 

stayed one night 

at Dhulikar. 

Dhulikar is at an 

elevation of seven 

thousand feet. At 

the border it used 

to be Tibet and 

Nepal. But now 

it has changed to 

China and Nepal. 

Chinese guards 

were strict and they searched all of our papers and 

documents. We were allowed to go to outer rural 

China. When we did we were divided into groups 

of four. The elevation was around six thousand feet. 

From there we left for Jhugu which is a nice hill top 

town. There we got permits and then left for Nylam. 

The road to Nylam was paved and we reached there 

in four hours. In Nylam there were nice Tibetan 

colorful walls and small streets. At 12, 000 feet we all 

started getting headaches and were severely in need 

of oxygen. Diamox 250 mg twice a day really worked 

for me. 

During the next day we climbed 500 feet so we 

could view the Himalayan peaks. This was our trial 

run. That took us one hour and a half to climb that 

high. It was a steep climb. During the next two days we 

stayed two nights and moved Pryang. All the greenery 

was gone. There was less oxygen in the air, so it was 

all deserts, sand mounds surrounded by mountains 

with tundra. 

High gust winds 

were present with 

temperatures 

ranging from 

40- 50 degrees. 

Prayang was so 

windy that our 

motel has glass 

enclosures. We 

were at 13,000 

feet. We rested 

one night and we 

moved to saga. 

You could see 

some evidence of 

miracles created 

by the Chinese 

government. For example, a huge three story hotel in 

the middle of nowhere. It was 14,000 feet elevation. It 

was hard to go up the stairs. Everybody was breathless. 

We spent a day there and moved to Mansorvar. 

The roads on our route Were getting better and 



we could see Kailash. Our excitement was rising. 

Mansorvar is a huge sweet water lake with blue water 

and endless beauty. We did Parikramar in the jeep 

and bathed in the holy waters of Lake Mansorvar. The 

water was freezing cold. We did Pritrutrapan pooja. 

Brahmaji’s thoughts and Sarovan was created. One 

hundred and fifty meters away was Rakashtal, created 

by Ravan’s prayers which is a salt water lake. 

You can sit on the banks of Mansorvar and 

imagine Lord Shankara and Parvatiiji bathing. We 

stayed at Chidanada swami Ashram in Mansorvar. 

We stayed in one room with eight beds. When we 

were at the hostel we were at 15,000 feet. Everybody 

was moving slowly, when we hiked. We stayed two 

nights and left for Darchen. That’s the base town 

before Kailash. We visited Astapad and Mount Meru. 

It was an amazing site. 

The next day we all started for Kailash. We passed 

through ‘Yam Dawra’ and proceeded to Panilerama 

route. We all got horses and asked the Pitthu person 

to carry our hand luggage. The bright shiny sun and 

yet cold mountain air gave us a heavenly feeling. 

When we started the journey it was 11:30 And some 

people walked others rode horses. The terrain was 

rough, and there were scattered little streams of 

water and rocks. The land was all plateau with little 

uphills. It was around 18kms and we reached our 

first stop Dirapuk. Swami Chidamadaji had built a 

beautiful Ashram. Now we could finally see Kailash. 

With its lovely layers of snow and strips of granite 

shining through, Mt Kailash left us in awe. You feel 

omnipotent when you view it. Merged with the 

surrounding sunset the mountain became golden. 

It is the most lasting impressionable memory of my 

journey. 

The next day we hiked 25kms and it was a 

tiresome journey we started. As soon as we walked 

out we have to go down in the river. We crossed the 

frozen river and climb up 50 feet. It was so difficult, it 

left us breathless. The path was curvy uphill around 

Kailash and in five hours we reached Dolma la pass. 

At an elevation 19,000 feet we can see Gaurikaund. 

A most blessed site. The oxygen level in the air was 

only 20%. One step was taking five minutes and we 

had to go down the Mountain. There was no path, 

rough terrain and we have to watch our every step. 

We crossed frozen Rivers, and climbed down at least 

three thousand feet. It was the most difficult part of 

our journey. We Were then walking by river and 

rocks. The path was getting better but we to have to 

finish 25 km. That Day we passed through a campsite. 

A belt of mountains and the river Kailash disappeared 

as we Descended the mountain. Amongst the snow 

flurries we reached our campsite after 12 hours. We 

drank Tea and had Khichdi for dinner. This campsite 

is named Zukhapuk. 

The next day was our last day. We had only 10-12 

kms left. Our group had a journey left of Uphill and 

downhill. We reached a plateau of 15,000 feet. The 

river gorge was beautiful on the left and Very scenic. 

Our journey returning from Kailash returned us to 

civilization. We were elated and had some Lemon 

juice. Then we headed to saga. We bathed finally after 

five days. It was a most challenging trip. 

Going to Kailash shows you how fragile our lives 

are. If god only reduces one element, our Existence 

is a challenge. It gives you serenity, divinity, and 

wisdom to be desire less. No phone, Television, utter 

silence really helps one to look within themselves. 

Om Namoh Shivay. 

By: Dr. Gaurangi Patel 







MEETHI GUDIYAS - Junior Folk Dance 

(L to R) Bottom row: Mira Patel, Rena Upadhyay, Priya Patel, Anjali Mistry, Rashmi Gupta 

Middle row: Saritaa Singh, Shailee Banskota, Aditi Patel, Mausam Mehta 

Top row: Dr. Kirti Bhargava-Patel (Director), Sneha Patel, Shreya Patel, 

Amanda Jagannath, Celine Shameer, Nandita Shah, Divya desai, Alexa Azeez 

MEETHI GUDIYAS - MINOR GARBA 

(L to R) Top row: Rashmi Gupta, Shailee Banskota. Middle row: Ameesha Singh, Anjali Mistry, Priya Patel, Rena Upadhyay, 

Sneha Patel, Gayathri Kotha. Bottom row: Anamika Naidu, Medhavi Banskota, Jasmine Jagannath, Saumya Sahay, 

Shobha Addy Forefront: Priya Desai 



UCF GARBA KNIGHTS 

(L to R) Top row: Elisha Patel, Roshni Hira, Sneha Patel, Ruchi Kapadia, Krutika Patel, 

Ritisha Chhaganlal, Falini Shah, Khushbu Purani, Priya Patel 

Bottom row: Chandni Patel, Aiesha Betancourt, Nisha Mehta, Simmy Patel, Kavita Patel, Hiraly Patel, Isha Talati 



ST. PETERSBURG - JUNIOR FOLK DANCE 

SUNSHINE OF TAMPA BAY - GROUP ADULT FOLK DANCE 



OM DIVINE - JUNIOR RAAS 

(L to R) Sitting : Ravi Panchigar, Jay Patel, Vasu Sorathia, Sneh Patel, Kishan Avaiya, Ankit Shingala, 

Tanay Sorathia, Sarav patel, Om Patel Ohm patel 

Standing: Juhi Desai, Shivani Desai, Shree Sanghani, Karishma Chapalamadugu, Aarti Patel, Ria Sanghani, Ria Shah, 

Nandidni Goel, Bhoomi Patel, Maansi Patel, Janvi Pansuriya, Siya Sanghani, Yash desai, Anuj Desai 

Top right corner: Kevin Avaiya 

BHARTI SAMAJ OF CENTRAL FLORIDA 

MINOR Non-Competition Bollywood Song 

(L to R) Girls: Kayla Patel, Miti Shah, Yesha pandit, Tulsi Patel, Aneri Patadia, Payal Master, Aarti SutharXXXXXXX 

Boys: Nandan patel, Kevan Patel, Nilay Gandhi, Amol Patadia, Neel Shah 



TARANA DANCE ACADEMY - JUNIOR NON-COMPETITION 

Director/Choreographer: Dasuni Chathurika 

Participants: Aditi Acharya, Sajani Mantri, Sukanya Mukherjee, Triana Persaud, 

Indira Samadel, Lakeram Samadel, Nanjalee Singh 

TARANA DANCE ACADEMY - JUNIOR CLASSICAL 


Participants: Anjali Shah, Resham Patel, Indra Sahadeo, Sukanya Mukerjee, Amruta, Nikita, Shreya 



TARANA DANCE ACADEMY - JUNIOR CLASSICAL 


Participants: Divya Chopra, Priya Chopra, Rana Sayroo, Bindiya Desai, 

Vanessa Singh, Deena Singh, Sabrina Brijbassi 

PRINCESS - MINOR Non-Competition 

Director/Choreographer: Namrata Amin 

Participants: Khushi Patel, Sapna Patel, Iisha Harshe, Dhristi More, Sathwika Mansa, Rutvi Vora, Shreya 

Mallazi, Diya Patel, Shreya Kothapalli, Diya Vishwanathan, Anika Shah, Megana Tatenani 



Bhartiya Samaj of Central Florida - JUNIOR FOLK 

Director/Choreographer: Priti H. Patadia 

Participants: Aarti U. Suthar, Aneri H. Patadia, Kayla V. Patel, Mily P. Gandhi, 

Miti S. Shah, Payal Y. Master, Tulsi M. Patel, Yesha V. Pandit 

NAACH SENSATION - MINOR GARBA 


Participants: Arthi Solayappan, Charvi Sharma, Esha Babu, Isha Patel, Kiran Ganga, 

Sandhya Pannaganti, Soumi Gokul, Tara, Divya Arora, Riya Patel, Mansi Patel, Mira Rajani, 

Reeya Arora, Sparsha Padi, Pallavi Kantipudi, Davina Patel, Meghna Tirupathi 


MINOR BHANGRA ALBELA 

Choreographer: Dasuniavi 

Director: Mona Patel & Ami Desai 


Director: Snehal Padhye 

Participants: Anushri Gade, 

Khushi Shinde, Shruti Shivan, 

Shivani Padhye, Isha Trivedi, 

Shreya Agrawal, Ayushi Mavud, 

Saanvi Prasad, Alisha Das, 

Neha Kashyap 

NAVRANG 



KHUSHI - JUNIOR NON-COMPETITION 

Director: Suman Agrawal Choreographer: Shreya Agrawal 

Participants: Shreya Agrawal, Sanskruti Tomar, Nidhi Bangalore, Maya Gummaraju, Zesha, Sparsha 

BHARTI SAMAJ OF CENTRAL FLORIDA 



Jalwa - ADULT FASHION SHOW 

Director/Choreographer: Payal Patel 

Participants: Pragya Bhatia, Yashika Setia, Surabhi Jain, Rutu Maniar, Ritu Dubey, Mital Patel, Tanvi 

Shah, Bhavi Patel, Jasmine Anand, Payal Patel, Pooja Pandya, Archana Patel, Maria Desai 

SRI GANDHA KANNADA KOOTA 

Participants: Jayashwi Ramanathan, Manashwi Ramanathan, Snarna Lokesh, Anandhi Rangarasan, Akshatha 

Bhat, Shilpa Shekar, Vanishree Shastry, Shyla Prakash, Geetha Sharma, Chaitra Bhanani, Padmaja Ramaiah 



ROOH DI PUNJAB - Junior BHANGRA 

Director: Minaxi Patel 

(L to R) First row sitting: Suhani Patel, Meera Navadia, Divya Gandhi 

Middle row: Wishwa Shah, Monic Amin, Aakash Panjabi, Miraj patel, Sunny Aroda, Chandni Patel 

Last row: Mouli Joshi, Niritta Patel, Riya Shah, Mansi Thakker, Shriya Patel 

Kini Soni - MINOR BHANGRA 

Director/Choreographer: Rita Patel 

Participants: Ashi Patel, Riyanna Patel, Anya Patidar, Ruchi Korder, Jeena Patel, Anika Patel, Milani 

Patel, Heather Amin, Karina Shah, Riya Patel, Ronin Patel, Jaysan Shah, Dev Kapadia, Dev Upadhyay, 

Vishnu Premkath, Dev Shah, Rushubh Shah, Dev Patel, Keshav Shah, Sohom Shah 



OM Divine - Junior Bhangra 

(L to R) First row sitting: Deep Patel, Vishal Panchigar, Anuj Desai, Jay Patel, Tejas Patel, Nihir Patel 

Standing: Shivani Desai, Urvashi Patel, Riddhi Patel, Dhara Patel, Chaya Bhat, Karishma Patel, 

Shefali Patel, Neeshi Patel, Anisha Patel, Bansari Kaasindra, Ruchi Patel, Juhi Desai 

Junior Folk Dance 

ROOP NI RAANI 

Director: Rita Patel • Chore: Rita Patel 

Participants: Simran Patel, Bijal Patel, Maya Patel, Janki Patel, Shreya Shah, Vriti Seth 

Shivani Patel, Neha Sharma, Heta Patel, Resham Patel, Radha Patel, Sonia Panjabi, Dylan Trivedi 

Kirti Premkath, Vaibhav Gandhi, Bharat Ponnaganti, Parth Patel, Varan Seth 







Best Wishes 


Gujarati Samaj of Tampa Bay 

from 

Dr. Hitesh Patel 

Dr. Anjni Patel 

Nupur, Nehal and Niven 





OBSTRUCTIVE SLEEP APNEA 

(OSA) 

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA); An often 

unrecognized but well researched and publicized 

disease of craniofacial anatomy. Dentists now have 

a tremendous opportunity to recognize, refer and if 

interested, co-treat properly diagnosed sufferers with 

medical-dental collaboration. “Changing Lives” has, 

for OSA aware dentists, become “Saving Lives”. 

If you have snoring problems of if you get up in 

the middle of the night gasping for breath call your 

dentist. It is root cause of stroke, heart attack and 

metabolic malady. OSA is linked to multiple sstemic 

diseases. If you have difficulty with sleep quality, 

insomnia or excessive daytime sleepiness or snoring, 

contact your dentist. You can get sleep apnea 

appliance by your dentist and also see American 

board of cerified sleep specialist. It is very important 

to follow up. 

The muscles of chewing, speech, swallowing are 

all interrelated, they affect obstruction of airways 

when patient is asleep. This is a new specialty in 

neuromuscular dentistry. C.T. scans are used for 

diagnosis. 

With evolution teeth are getting smaller as a result 

of bony box of teeth and supporting skeleton are 

deficient leaving the attached soft tissue inadequately 

and inappropriately supported. In addition, allergies 

from air and food supply, over treated ortho cases 

with extraction increases airway obstruction along 

with skyroketing human obesity. Airway is king 

and tongue volume is queen. Simply if you have any 

problems let your dentist be aware. 

By: Gaurangi N. Patel, DDS 









AMAZING TRIP 

TO INDIA 

What better way is there to spend a vacation 

then go to India ? India is an amazing country with 

variety of things to do and places to see. My trip to 

India is one that I will never forget. I went on the 

medical mission trip with a group 

of doctors, visited the many parts 

of north and south India , and my 

favorite part of all, shopping! 

Going to India for a Medical 

Mission trip was a thrilling experience. 

I had the opportunity to help people 

in the small rural villages where 

not many people visit. Organized 

by Doctors Goodwill Foundation, 

I worked with a group of doctors 

and students who were interested in 

the medical field. The sensation of 

helping under-privileged people is 

incredible. Through out the mission 

I was exposed to many different types 

of people that are in India , and the different ways 

of living compared to the United States . As I got to 

help the society and see what the Indian people in the 

small villages have to deal with I was more aware of 

the people around me. 

The sites in India are breathtaking. No matter 

where you are in India , it can never be boring. 

There is always something to do and places to see. 

One of the places I saw when I went on my trip 

was the magnificent Taj Mahal. It was a memorable 

and over-whelming experience. I stood as a mere 

ant in the shadows of the colossal Taj Mahal. The 

Indian architecture is truly extraordinary. I visited 

many temples as well. The hand carved temples 

and the statues of Krishna and the other Gods were 

fascinating. I never imagined how a temple could 

have such an impact on my own culture. I learned 

about the different Gods and their purposes, which 

allowed me to gain more knowledge 

that I didn’t know before. The 

best part about going to India is 

shopping and eating the exotic food. 

Riding the rickshaw into town is 

adventurous because hundreds of 

cars are zooming by honking their 

horns for no reason. As I went down 

the main street I saw a plethora 

amount of clothing departments 

and places to eats. The first thing 

I ate was Pani Puri. Even though 

everyone in the US says its “bad” 

and you might get “sick”, I decided 

to eat it anyways and find out. It was 

delicious and I ended up not getting 

sick! There are a variety of foods in 

India that will never keep one hungry. I would live 

there to eat food all day. After eating came shopping. 

I bought countless amounts of saris and punjabis in 

all different colors. Every time I go to India my closet 

grows bigger because of the clothes I buy. 

India is a captivating place and my visit there 

made me discover new things. The medical mission 

opened my eyes to new wanders about the world and 

people. The different sites allowed me to get a better 

perspective of what India is really made of and the 

meaning behind it. Shopping and eating in India is an 

experience like no other. There is a guarantee of you 

coming back home with 1000 pictures and wanting 

to go back. 

By: Meera Bhalani 



BestWishes to 




best wishes to 

india festival 2010 

from 

Dr. Ganshyam & Saroj Patel 

phone: 813-454-2408 

fax: 813-931-1998 









LUTZ OFFICE: 

18928 N. Dale Mabry Hwy., Suite 101 

Lutz, FL 33548 

P: 813-909-1146 

F: 813-909-4334 

NEW PORT RICHEY OFFICE: 

1838 Health Care Drive, Bldg. #2, Unit 2 

Trinity, FL 34655 

P: 727-375-8528 

F: 727-372-7040 

SONIA NIJHAWAN 

Licensed Mortgage Loan Originator 

NMLS # 136302 

917-501-8976 

shijhawan@firstresmortgage.com 





AMAZING GRAINS 

ON THE BLOCK 

Quinoa 

Is actually a seed, but can be prepared like whole 

grains such as rice or barley. Quinoa is my favorite 

grain for three reasons: First, it takes less time to 

cook than other whole grains – just 10 to 15 minutes. 

Second, quinoa tastes great on its own, unlike other 

grains such as millet or teff. Add a bit of olive oil, sea 

salt and lemon juice and - yum! 

Finally, of all the whole grains, quinoa has the 

most protein, so it’s perfect for vegetarians. Quinoa 

provides all 9 essential amino acids, making it 

a complete protein. Quinoa is a gluten-free and 

cholesterol-free whole grain, and is almost always 

organic. 

Quinoa was a staple food for thousands of years 

in the Andes region of South America as one of just 

a few crops the ancient Incas cultivated at such high 

altitude. 

Cooking quinoa:   Cover it with water or vegetable 

broth and boil until soft, about 15 minutes. Or, place 

1 part quinoa to 2 parts water in your rice cooker. 

Nutritional content of 

quinoa:  1/3 cup of cooked 

quinoa has 160 calories, 2.5 

grams of fat, 3 grams of fiber and 

6 grams of protein. 

Upma, pulao, salads, soups, stuffed peppers 

can be made from quinoa. 

Bulgur Wheat (fada/dalia) 

Bulgur is wheat that has been parboiled, dried, 

and cracked. 

Making wheat into bulgur is an ancient process 

that originated in the Mediterranean region and 

has been an integral part of Middle Eastern cuisine 

for thousands of years. It may, in fact, be man’s 

first “processed food.” In approximately 2,800 B.C., 

the Chinese emperor Shen Nung declared it one of 

five sacred crops along with rice, millet, barley and 

soybeans. 

1 cup cooked bulgur contains 150 calories 6 gms 

protein 8.2 gms fiber , 32.8 mcg folate 

Bulgur wheat is healthier 

option than brown rice, contains 

four times more folate and 3 

times more fiber and ½ the fat 

than rice. 

It can be substituted for rice in pulao, khichadi. 

Salads like tabbouleh salad taste great when made 

with bulgur wheat. 

Amaranth (rajagro/rajgeera) 

Amaranth has been cultivated as a grain for 8,000 

years It was a staple food of the Aztecs, and was used 

as an integral part of Aztec religious ceremonies. 



The fiber content of amaranth is 3 times that of 

wheat and its iron content, 5 times more than wheat. 

It contains 2 times more calcium than milk. Using 

amaranth in combination with wheat, corn or brown 

rice results in a complete protein as high in food 

value as fish, red meat or poultry. 

Amaranth also contains tocotrienols (a form 

of vitamin E) which have 

cholesterol-lowering activity 

in humans. Cooked amaranth 

is 90% digestible and because 

of this ease of digestion, it has 

traditionally been given to those 

recovering from an illness or 

ending a fasting period. Amaranth consists of 6-10% 

oil, which is found mostly within the germ. The oil 

is predominantly unsaturated and is high in linoleic 

acid, which is important in human nutrition. 

It can be used to replace 25% of the flour in your 

own recipes. Traditional dessert of milk and flour, 

cookies or puris mixed with potato are rolled from 

amarnath flour. 

½ cup of amaranth flour contains 374 ,kcals, 14 

gm protein, 9gm fiber, 7 gm fat, iron 42% of daily 

value. 

By: Bhavi Nirav, Registered Dietitan, Certified 

Yoga Therapist 





Proud to Serve 

Our Community 

for 22 Years 











With Best Wishes From 

Dr. TIYYAGURA S. 

Reddy MD, PA 

GASTROENTEROLOGY 

His Family & Employees 

7614 Jacque Rd. Suite B • Hudson, FL 34667 

Ph: 727-863-2105 • Fax: 727-862-2512 









Best Wishes to 

Gujarati Samaj of Tampa Bay 

From 

Manojkumar Patel M.D. FCAP 

Dermatopathologist 

Mrs. Ashaben Patel, Viral and Nisha 

Bay Area 

Dermatopathology 

DERMPATHDIAGNOSTICS.COM 

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated 

Tel: 813-971-0775 

































54 



2010 India Festival Committee 

apologizes in advance for any 

names or photos that may have 

been missed accidentally. Please 

contact Chetan R. Shah at 727- 

688-6149 or at iafteru@aol.com 

for any question, concern, or 

missed information. 







Your Health! 

Your Choice! 

Choose CARES for Home Care 

(Medicare – Insurance – Private Pay) 

Other Services: 

Senior Enrichment Centers • Telephone Reassurance 

Adult Day Care • Bill Payer • Senior Health Clinic 

Not for Profit • 1-800-833-3285 

with 

Best Wishes! 

from&Dr. Raj Naik, Mrs. Rekha Naik, 

Dr. Jenny Naik, Roshni, Jasmine & Dev 

the team at BEST GROUP IPA, INC. 

Now offering contracts with: Humana, WellCare, Coventry, Universal, 

Freedom, Optimum, Careplus, Physicians United Plan, & Advantage Care 

1100 S. Fort Harrison Avenue, Clearwater, FL 33756 

Phone: 727-442-3126 • Fax: 727-499-9449 

































Gurajati Samaj of Tampa Bay 

Welcomes 2011 Executive Committee 

Dr. Ashok Modh...........President 

Chetan Shah..................Vice President 

Bhogilal Patel................Secretary 

Jyoti Gandhi..................Treasurer 

Smita Patel....................Social Secretary 



Best Wishes 

to 

Mahender M. Reddy 

MD 

Internal Medicine 

7330 State Road 52 



from 

TheTampa Bay 

Community 

www.gujaratisamaj.org 128A 147 GUJARATI SAMAJ OF TAMPA BAY


www.gujaratisamaj.org 128B 148 GUJARATI SAMAJ OF TAMPA BAY

India Festival 2010

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