8,500 attend Onam feasts

More than 3,500 Malayalees attended the Onam programme and feast organised by the Indian Association Dubai and affiliated associations at the Al Nasr Leisureland yesterday.

It was inaugurated by the Indian Ambassador K.C Singh. The main attraction of event was the colourful floral decoration competition in which eight affiliated associations participated.

While the official function began at 8am, the participants were at the venue a night before to sort out their floral designs and flowers which were being provided by the Indian Association Dubai.

The competitions were held at the main auditorium lounge of the Al Nasr Leisureland and lasted for three hours.

The first prize went to the Indian Cultural Association while the Indian Arts Society and Dubai Priyadarshani stood second and third.

Though the Indian Association Dubai did not enter the competitions, it stole the show by coming up with a superb floral carpet measuring 24 x 12 ft which took a total of four hours to unfold. It was based on the theme of Onam in Kerala.

Also adding colour to the festivity was the Mahabali procession taken out amidst the beating of traditional drums. More than 200 children from various associations took part in the cultural programme.

Speaking on the huge turnout at the function K. Shankar, from the Indian Association Dubai said: "It was a huge success. We had some people coming at the last minute to the programme, but had to go back as all tickets were sold out. About 21 dishes were served at the Onasadya (feast) with the help of 430 volunteers," he said.

A musical programme was staged by Biju Narayanan and Sujata in the evening.

In Sharjah,over 5,000 Indians, mostly Keralites living in the Northern Emirates enjoyed a special feast hosted yesterday by the Indian Association Sharjah as part of its Onam celebrations.

Clad in their traditional dresses, a large number of Malayalees including members of the Indian Association and their family members gathered at the Sharjah Indian School to participate in the grand Onam feast, one of the biggest feasts held in the UAE.

The Indian ambassador inaugurated the ceremony at the jam-packed huge tent specially erected for the ceremony. Members of the association led by their President M. K. Madhavan and Secretary General Balakrishanan K. welcomed the guests.

Some 400 volunteers served the Onam feast spread over palm leaves in a traditional style. The palm leaves were specially brought from Kerala for the event.

V. Dammodhar, founder president of the Indian Association Sharjah, was specially invited to the event from South Africa.

"I congratulate the Indian community members for organising these events. This event and the huge participation by community members is reflective of unity amongst the Indian community members living in the UAE," the Ambassador said after opening the ceremony.

Singh along with hundreds of people also enjoyed the traditional Onam meal.

M.K. Madhavan said the two-day Onam celebrations organised by the association had recorded huge community participation.

"It is nice to see such a large number of community members gathered here to celebrate the Onam festival regardless of their status and religious affiliations, and this event speaks volumes for the Indians' spirit to celebrate their traditional festivals with enthusiasm," he added.

He said the spirit behind celebrating Onam was to spread the message of equality amongst people.

"We should keep this message in mind that all human beings are equal while we are celebrating this day," he added.

"Onam, the harvest festival of Kerala, is a festival of feasting, revelry and boat racing. It is a time for sharing and friendship. The celebrations in Sharjah bring back nostalgic memories for the Malayalees living here."

Pookkalam, a floral decoration contest, which is an integral part of the Onam festival, was also organised at the association on Thursday.

A number of teams of women participated in the event to produce beautiful settings of floral designs.

A large number of people also attended the cultural and musical programme which was also organised at the association hall on Thursday night as part of Onam celebrations.

Apart from local artists, famous singers from Kerala including Kanhangad Ramachandran and Hemalatha Ramachandran performed on the occasion much to the delight of the audience.