Daily Gazette, The (Schenectady, NY)June 4, 2006 Local Bengalis celebrate heritageAuthor: R.J. KELLY
Gazette Reporter Edition: Schenectady/Albany; Final
Section: B
Page: B1, B5 For about 75 ethnic Bengali area residents, a rainy Saturday afternoon in Latham turned into a vibrant spring day in India brightened by songs, dances and colorful traditional clothing.
Members, families and friends of a recently formed group called Utsav, which means "celebration of life" in the Bengali language, gathered at the Calvary United Methodist Church hall for about five hours of cultural festivities.
Most of the group's members are local engineers and professionals with major Tech Valley companies, according to spokesman Rana Dutta, a Glenville computer scientist with the Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory in Niskayuna.
Although most of the songs, dances, poetry and drama were performed by children and adults in Bengali, the show opened with the singing of "The Star-Spangled Banner" in English by a dozen children of various ages holding a large American flag.
Men wearing the traditional, long tunic called ! a "kurta" and women in festive, silken saris laughed and applauded as they videotaped performances and snapped photos. The rhythmic resonance of tabla water drums and the traditional harmonium, an accordianlike reed organ, filled the room.
"Indian culture is very family oriented," said Piyali Dutta, Rana's daughter, who directed the anthem singing.
But the 26-year-old SUNY-Binghamton graduate acknowledged that it can be tough growing up in a strict Bengali family amid more laid-back American students.
"You're kind of caught between two worlds" sometimes, Piyali Dutta said.
That's part of the reason Utsav was formed, according to organizers.
Members of the group, which grew out of another area Indian organization, hope to "keep the ties with tradition" for families who have lived and worked in the Capital Region for decades.
At the same time, Rana's wife, Sampa Dutta, recognizes that the "the children are becoming v! ery Americanized."
She said local Bengali-Americans try to t ake the best from both cultures.
"I hope they'll learn about Bengal," Sampa said, "but I don't force it on them."
The younger performers, ranging from near toddlers to teenagers, didn't seem to mind as they smiled broadly through children's springtime songs and fables. Others spun slowly with delicate hand and foot gestures amid storytelling dances.
"We practiced about two hours a day for three days," said Clifton Park resident Shayan Sen, 15, before he took the stage with several other boys to dance.
Rehearsals for all sorts of performances had been rotated among the homes of area families each weekend for a couple of months to prepare for Saturday's show, Rana Dutta said. NOBEL LAUREATE
The date had no special meaning, although the events were organized to roughly coordinate with the mid-April beginning of the Bengali year 1413.
According to Utsav board member Pratip Basu, the celebration also aimed to m! ark the late May birthday anniversary of Bengali poet, playwright and novelist, Rabindrabath Tagore, who won the 1913 Nobel Prize for literature.
In an effort to pass on their native language to their children, many of whom were born and raised in the United States, Utsav also sponsors regular volunteer Bengali lessons at several area libraries, Rana Dutta said.
"If we don't, their children will be out of the picture," he said. Utsav members are also planning a variety of athletic events, Adirondack hiking and camping and Hindu cultural and religious events throughout the year, according to organizers. Reach Gazette reporter R.J. Kelly at 234-7788 or
This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
Copyright (c) 2006 The Daily Gazette Co. All Rights Reserved.
Record Number: 11209836089A8857 |
