Skip to content Skip to navigation

Assam2008 held in USA

The NRI Assamese get together, Assam2008 of North America was held again this year on the 4th of July weekend. This annual event is part of an on-going effort to bring together the scattered Assamese community in North America for a celebration of Assamese heritage and culture. As always there is good fellowship, fun filled activities, cultural programs, special workshops, special presentations and of course lot of good food - catered and home baked. It was a 3 day event. The 1st day, July 3rd started with reception, registration, and then a group dinner at very nice restaurant where people can chat & socialize. The evening would have ended with dance to DJ Music. However, due to some family tragedy in one of the families this event was cancelled for the night. July 4th & 5th were filled many activities including options for families to go site seeing tour of nearby Valley Forge National Historical Park and Long Wood Botanical Garden during morning and early after noon.

Our guest artist for the event was well known Ms. Tarali Sarma, the only Assamese National Film Award winner for Best Female Playback Singer for the film Akashi Torar Kothare in 2004. She is a regular performing artist of All India Radio & Dooradarshan. She is a singer, composer, director, & philanthropist. Tarali not only performed on both days, but she also participated with our local talented artist Sankumani Sarma in a duet and played the harmonium in another song. She simply got everyone involved in singing and dancing on both days. Everyone had a blast having a good time and enjoyed her down to earth personality. We wish the best to Ms. Tarali Sarma and her family. Folks also bought Tarali’s latest CD like a hot cake.

In addition to our guest artist there were plenty other very talented artists who performed many different cultural items from flute recital, karate, Satriya dance, Assamese modern dance, Bihu dances, Husori, Hindi songs, Gazals, of course lot of Assamese songs, Bihu songs, Boro dances, too many to mention here. Thanks to all the talented local artists, without their support and participation we could not hold these events . The cultural show on 4th was started with a chorus specially composed for the event. Thanks go to Mrs. Anuja Bala Devi of Guwahati for composing. Music was given by her son Mr. Sankumani Sarma. Thank you Sankumani!

Some of the other highlights of the event was a workshop on CPR & Heimlich Maneuver, something everyone should know. Thanks to Dr. Nirode Das for this work shop where many got hands on training. FASS, Friends of Assam and Seven Sisters, USA representative Mr. Rajen Barua gave a very informative presentation on FASS and on the myriads of much needed projects the group is working on. He also showed the 1st ever Assamese audio-video show of a folk tale for children by Ankur Bora. And last but not least released "Learn Assamese with Flash Card", which sold like hot cakes.

By Dhruba Das, Pennsylvania, USA

Comments

Utpal Kumar Sharma's picture

Hi everybody there in US. Myself is Sankumani's elder brother from Guwahati. I was very happy to see the good works done by u people in US for Assamese culture and heritage.

Pages

Add new comment

Random Stories

APFEJ expresses concern at China Dams

8 Jan 2012 - 2:21am | Nava Thakuria
The Asia Pacific Forum of Environmental Journalists (APFEJ) has expressed concern at the ongoing construction of a number of hydroelectric dams in Brahmaputra inside Tibetan region of China. The...

Wild tuskers kill 5 of same family

24 Apr 2009 - 1:29am | editor
Five persons of the same family were trampled to death by wild tuskers in Dhubri district on Thursday night. According to information, the incident took place at Bansali gaon under Mancachar Police...

Aryabhatta Science Centre Kalaigaon launches campaign against witch hunting

23 Feb 2009 - 1:05pm | Jayanta Kumar Das
Aryabhatta science Centre, Kalaigaon has formally launched a campaign against superstitions and blind beliefs, particularly against ‘witch hunting’ recently at a work shop cum seminar at...

Tribute to Mithu Chaudhury

25 May 2017 - 7:25pm | AT News
The member-journalists of Guwahati Press Club on Thursday (25 May) remembered soft-spoken journalist Mithu Choudhury, who died last week after suffering from various ailments. Choudhury , 53, lately...

Other Contents by Author

Guwahati: Thirteen suspected ISI agents were arrested by Army in Assam’s North Cachar district on Friday. Four of whom were Hindus while others are Muslim.According to information, acting on specific inputs, the Army arrested the agents from different parts of the Haflong. Most of these arrested people hail from Rajasthan.They have been identified as Lakshmi Narayan Sarma (Rajasthan), Md Islam (Rajasthan), Md Isan Sheikh, (Rajasthan), Md Rekibuddin (Rajasthan), Mahabir Sarma (Rajasthan), Bajrang Sheikh (Rajasthan), Abdul Khaleq (Karimganj, Asom), Zakir Hussain (Karimganj), Abdul Salam (Karimganj), Naresh Sarma (Karimganj), Meijul Lashkar (Karimganj), Abdul Talukdar (Karimganj) and...
HCL Infosystems Ltd plans to open up around hundred new HCL Career Development Centres (HCL CDC) designed to fine tune skills of technology workers, including employees of corporate houses. This effort is part of the company's drive to part-bridge the demand supply mismatch of trained workforce, which is widening by the day. The accent of these centres would be to train engineers in diverse skills helping them handle the entire spectrum of business. The other primary objective of these Centres would be for retraining of work force in the Corporate Sectors which is being looked at by most major companies to meet new technology challenges.
Our Guwahati Correspondent : Over 1.5 lakh people in seven districts of Assam have been affected in the first wave of floods with the Brahmaputra, Barak and their tributaries flowing above danger levels.People in flood-hit Lakhimpur, Dhemaji, Sibsagar, Dibrugarh, Cachar, Karimganj and Hailakandi districts have taken shelter on national highways, officials said, adding the BSF has been engaged in rescue operations.Nearly 84 villages in Karimganj with a population of 42,386 have been inundated with water over-crossing a dyke.In Cachar district, flood waters entered some parts of Silchar town as a dyke breached in Roypur. Three relief camps have been set up in the affected area, the officials...
Our special correspondent Guwahati : A full scale fratricidal clash may rock Assam if the words of surrendered ULFA leaders are any indication.In a statement released here on Wednesday evening, some SULFA leaders have warned the ULFA to abstain from killing their colleagues like Rinku Chaudhory to avoid consequences.Signed by Sunil Nath, Jugal Kishor Mahanta, Saurabh Gogoi, Rosevelt Rabha, Mridul Phukan, Sailen Dutta Konwar, Amal Das and Pratap Das, the statement further urged the government to ensure security to the surrendered ULFA cadres. The ULFA has claimed responsibility for killing their former colleague Rinku Chaudhory. Hira Sarania (ULFA spokesman) has confirmed that he has been...
The “Bir Chilari Award” for the year 2006 was awarded this year to the former Chief Minister of Assam, Late Sarat Ch Sinha on 16th of June, 07 at Rabindra Bhawan, Guwahati . The award was accepted with thanks by his wife. Sarat Ch Sinha was on outstanding figure in political circles nationally as well. He was formerly a congressman who later formed the Congress (S) with Sharad Pawar.
Guwahati: The recent killing of Rinku Chaudhory forces the city police to step up a close watch on the Guwahati based surrendered ULFA leaders even as the banned outfit is reportedly changes its cadres. According to information, the police administration will maintain strict vigil on the city areas where the SULFA leaders reside. They will also monitor the movements of the people in and around the SULFA members in the city. Moreover, the police gets ready to make a survey on the rented houses to identify if there is any ULFA people reside with false identity. According to apprehension, more ULFA activists are there in the city’s rented houses to step up attack in the form of...
Our special correspondent from Guwahati : It was a tragic day for the Barman family. Jatin Barman,a resident of Guwahati has stabbed his wife, Bina Barman to death in the middle of the city at Ganeshguri before hanging himself at their residence. Unconfirmed reports state that a property dispute is the reason for the murder. Onlookers were shocked on seeing the body which has been almost slit into two. The couple is survived by their three college going children.
We talk about global warming. But nobody who is in Guwahati can believe this now. Guwahati is flooded and in all the main areas like the GNB road, Zoo Road, Maligaon, Santipur etc. The most important aspect of the floods in Guwahati is that it rained only for some time and the entire city was brought to its knees. And this is just the beginning of the monsoons. Traffic crawled throughout the day and school children and office goers had a tough time. Residents are crying hoarse complaining about the apathy of the Government in dealing with the scenario. Montu Talukday a resident of Silpukhuri commented “This is a regular occurrence every year and I have to fold my trousers and...
New Delhi: We all remember it. The moms and the aita’s used to talk about it in the kitchen. “Bhut jolokia or 'ghost chillies' of Tezpur figure has found a mention in the Time Magazine's latest issue as the world's hottest chilli. The magazine's cover story that takes a look at the culinary specialities and peculiarities around the world has zeroed in on the burnt orange pods, developed in a military laboratory in Tezpur, as packing the deadliest punch. The article on 'Global Warming' notes that the bhut jolokia, also called the Naga chilli, carries the sort of heat that one normally would find only in the hottest chilli sauces made from pure pepper...
At a time when the world is reeling under the consequences of global warming how can Assam be spared? Global Warming is contributing to the decrease of level of rainfall in Northeast in a big way commented a few leading scientists while speaking to our correspondents. The scientists on conditions of annonymity said that they have been ringing the alarm bells but till date it has fallen in deaf ears and the Goverments of Northeast are yet to take any concrete measures to prevent this. The Northeast is known for its torrential rains where earlier Cherrapunjee, in Meghalaya had the primacy of place as recording the worlds highest rainfall and now this stature has shifted to Mawsynram again in...