PARDES
IndiaFest Melbourne
A Family Cultural Event
ndiafest is a family festival which brings to focus,
and share the Indian culture in a fun filled way
right here in Brevard County. This eagerly anticipated annual cultural event will be held on Saturday March 8th and Sunday - March 9th at the Wickham
Pavilion, Melbourne.
India is a melting pot of cultures within itself and Indiafest is a celebration of this - a parcel of the rich culture and
traditions. Started 18 years ago, with a curious and humble
effort of an ethnic community, today Indiafest is a symbol
of cultural enrichment here in Brevard County and is
celebrated with great enthusiasm. The general consensus
is that it is a very well run festival, bigger and better with a
fresh and new look year after year. This uniqueness comes
from the fact that a different theme is presented each year
showing the unique aspects of India’s culture, history and
traditions. This year the festival will be featuring Handicrafts
of India with demonstrations of workmanship and materials
of various handicrafts made in India by artisans.
Spot Light Theater, Bright Star for
Grieving Children, Cancer Care,
The Brevard Hindu Temple, Troubled Teenagers’ Organization, the
Miami Bridge Youth Home, IASC,
Meals on Wheels, and Red Cross.
Disaster aid reliefs for - 1998 Florida Fire Victims, Orissa Cyclone
Victims in India, 1999 Hurricane
Floyd Victims, The 2001 Earthquake Victims in Gujarat, India,
9-11 Disaster in New York City, the
Tsunami victims, 2004 Hurricane
Victims, and 2005 SE Asia Earthquake. In 2010 efforts to help
earthquake victims of Haiti raised
$225,000 to benefit Ruska Village
Orphanage. In March 2011, the
Indiafest committee presented
the “Indiafest Endowment” award
of $100,000 to Florida Institute
of Technology. The endowment
was part of the organization’s
accumulated emergency fund.
Returns from the endowment
will provide financial assistance
to one Brevard student per
year. Last year the organization
selected the Sentinels of Freedom as their special charity and
presented a check of $10,000 at
the 2013 event. The 2014 festival
is currently researching disabled
children’s organizations and once
a selection is made the name of
the organization will be available.
A portion of the proceeds raised
at the festival will be donated to
that organization.
An admirable factor of this festival is its commitment
to philanthropy and community service with a vision and
purpose of cultural education, through entertainment, and
to support charities. Indiafest is a volunteer run, not for
profit, cultural organization, known for its charitable efforts
to several local charities, including the parent organization,
Manav Mandir, and aid in disaster recovery, nationally and
internationally. Charities supported are - Daily Bread, Yellow
Umbrella, Serene Harbor, Jess Parrish Auxiliary, The Hope
Center, Early Intervention Program, Crosswinds Project, The
There’s something of interest
for everyone at Indiafest from
hands on activities for the youths,
to shopping for the adults,
mouth watering Indian cuisine,
and stage entertainment for
all to enjoy. The Discover India
Booth carries the theme of the
event and will have displays,
information and demonstrations
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58 PARDES MAGAZINE I FEBRUARY 2014
on the making of various Indian
handicrafts, some of which are
very popular in our lives today
– from paper products, wood
carvings, leather goods, jewelry,
and other day to day items. The
stage will be pumping with entertainment throughout the day
with live traditional Indian music
with the Sitar, Tabla, Santoor, and
Harmonium. There will be Yoga
and Zumba demonstrations and
then, the stage will come
alive with performances by
our local artistes dancing to traditional folk, classical, and modern
Indian music while the fashion
show will be the highlight of the
day. The grounds will feature
vendors selling jewelry, rich
colorful ethnic garments, arts and
crafts, music and videos. One can
indulge in the temporary body
art of exotic Henna designs while
the aroma of food being prepared at the live food demonstrations with easy to make recipes,
will draw visitors for a taste of the
tantalizing flavors of India.
Today, as technology has
made the world smaller and more
accessible, the integration of different cultures is