NEW YORK CITY, NY(TIP): The Association of Indians in America, NY Chapter (AIA-NY) celebrated their 31st Annual Deepavali Festival at the South Street Seaport in New York City on Sunday October 7th, 2018 from 12 noon till 7pm.

The event was attended by thousands of people throughout the day, that enjoyed Indian culture and heritage, food, shopping, live performances and a spectacular display of live fireworks, sponsored by Cheapoair and Qatar Airways. Deepavali was a full day extravaganza with highlight performances by British Asian superstar Jaz Dhami; Bollywood playback singer, Shilpi Paul; Indian TV actors, Aman Dhaliwal and Karan Khanna; local NYC singer G. Sing and popular Gujarati Band all the way from India, KB Music with their lead vocalist, Jigardhan Gadhavi.

The highly sought after inter-collegiate dance competition, Naach Inferno presented by Star Bharat, in its fifth year saw first-time entrants East West Dance Academy as their winner this year. SA Grooves alongside its founders, Tanya Thanawalla & Asees Singh interacted with the audience and made the audience dance. Jaz Dhami had the entire South Street Seaport with their hands up in their air as he performed his hit song ‘High Heels’ and many more. Shilpi Paul had both families and the youth alike sing and dance to her tunes both on and off stage in the audience. Shilpi Paul & Jaz Dhami’s performances were presented by Sony TV.

Deepavali, meaning ‘A row of lamps’ is also popularly known as Diwali, or ‘Festival of Lights’.  It signifies the triumph of ‘Good over Evil’, light over darkness and knowledge over ignorance. “The AIA-NY tries to spread this message of Hope and attempts to bridge the gap in the communities with events such as Deepavali and brings the community together”, said Gobind Munjal, President of AIA NY Chapter. “We invite all local communities to become a part of this mega festival. Deepavali has become an important part of American life committing to AIA’s role in the community.”

Although the Festival caters to all ages; children, youth, middle aged and the seniors. The emphasis recently has been shifted more towards youth, as their involvement is considered essential for the longevity of the association. With that objective in mind, AIA-NY launched “Desi Next”, and arranged a lot of activities geared towards the younger generation, including bringing young artists to perform at the Deepavali Festival. “AIA’s goal to incorporate more young adults into the mainstream activities of the community was accomplished,” said Munjal.

The children area came alive with the presence of Ronald McDonald himself and his coming and playing games with the children. The Health Fair attracted many. People enjoyed the variety of Food, shopping, and free coffee from McDonald’s Mccafe. Corporate sponsors gave away freebees. Qatar Airways was raffling two free air tickets to anywhere in the world.

The event culminated with citations and addresses by the various dignitaries. Among others; Consul General Ambassador Sandeep Chakravorty, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, NY City Comptroller Scott Stringer, and John Liu graced the occasion.

In addition to the coverage of the event by ITV, TV Asia and other media partners; Jus Punjabi, 8K Radio and Radio Dil provided with the live broadcast of the entire program. The evening was indeed a memorable one for all. The grand finale of the festival was the display of live Fireworks dazzling the NY skyline over the East River, enthralling thousands of New Yorkers.

In addition to support from CheapOair and Qatar Airways, other corporate sponsors; such as McDonald’s, Pepsi, New York Life, Kotak Bank, among others; helped made this event possible.

The Association of Indians in America (AIA) is one of the oldest not-for-profit organization of Asian Indians in America founded on August 20, 1967. It is the grassroots national organization of Asian immigrants in the United States. With chapters and membership spread across the United States of America, AIA represents the hopes and aspirations of those immigrants who are united by their common bond of Indian Heritage and American Commitment. For more info, please find us on Facebook and visit our website at www.theaiany.org.

(Press Release)