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Little dancers dart across the hallway outside Waetjen Auditorium at Cleveland State University (CSU) excitedly, flowers in their carefully plaited hair, resplendent in shimmering silks, stage makeup and gold. They are getting ready for their dance performance at the 41st Thyagaraja Festival at CSU. Every year for the last 41 years, rasikas or lovers of music and dance have flocked to the Thyagaraja Festival, making Cleveland North America’s capital for classical South Indian music and dance.

The largest Indian classical music festival outside India this year had 100 dance dramas, music ensembles and East and West fusion numbers, dance and classical music competitions from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.. for 12 days. This year 120 professional artistes from India, some of them famous maestros, and about 30 musicians and dance maestros from the U.S., Canada and Australia performed at the Festival. Besides, there were 1,800 youngsters who participated and came to soak up the cultural traditions.

St. Thyagaraja was the famous composer of classical Carnatic music. The three Clevelanders involved in initiating the festival in his homage are R. Balasubramaniam (known as “Cleveland Balu”), his wife Gomathy and V.V. Sundaram. Incidentally, “Cleveland Balu” was also a former President of the Federation of India Cultural Associations (FICA), the Treasurer of the Cleveland Cultural Garden and the Editor of the Lotus during the late 70’s and 80’s. What began in the basement of a church in Richmond Heights has blossomed into a global phenomenon. Today the Aradhana Committee, consisting of the next generation of classical music and dance enthusiasts, puts together this music and dance extravaganza.

For youngsters, the festival, once a way to learn about their culture, has now also become a networking event to meet friends with similar interests and cultural heritage from across the country and Canada. For months they train via Skype with gurus in India. Ten year old Aditi Anand has been attending the

festival for the last six years.

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41st Thyagaraja Festival .....................1/2Editor’s Note

FICA FinancialReports..........................3

Community Events.....4

CIFF42 & Recipe Corner...............5

Stores & Restaurants & Newton.....................6

Book of the Month & Seniors Get together.....7

Future Events..............8

INSIDE

Lotus TeamEditorCheryl D’Mello

Editorial TeamBal KaramchandaniRaghav SharmaSwati DesaiSujata Lakhe Barnard

Business ManagerAjay Chandra

1967 - 2018

A Monthly Publication of the Federation of India Community Associations

April - May 2018

8,000 Rasikas Flock to 41st Thyagaraja Festival

Subscribe to receive “The Lotus” for free in your inbox at: ficacleveland.org

CHERYL D’MELLO

COntinuED On pagE 3...

Sustaining Sampradaya, the Festival’s education series, trains youngsters such as these to carry on their music culture as seen here at Waetjen Auditorium at Cleveland State University.

Notice of General Body Meeting, May 5, 2018

Dear Members of Indian Communities of Greater Cleveland and Greater Akron,

With all your support, FICA had a successful year in 2017. We had many tremendously successful events such as the Golf Outing, Anand Mela, Republic Day and other activities.

We look forward to making 2018 an even bigger success, but before we embark on that journey, we would like to invite you all to FICA’s General Body Meeting to be held on May 5, 2018. Executive Committee, Shikshadaan, Project Seva, Indian Cultural Garden and Building Committee chairs will share results from events in 2017, and also their vision for 2018.

The Meeting will be held at the old ICC building at 12412 Cedar Rd, Cleveland Heights, OH 44106, from 11:30 a.m. till 1:30 p.m., followed by a light lunch.

We look forward to seeing you all then!

Ritu Mahna, President, Federation of India Community Associations (FICA)

2 Who We Are

www.ficacleveland.org

FICA STAFF

THE LOTUS

AdministrationBoard of TrusteesSudarshan Sathe ( Chaiman B.O.T.)[email protected]

Mona Alag ( Vice Chair Person B.O.T.)[email protected]

Rajan Gautam ( Secretary B.O.T.)[email protected]

Executive BoardMrs. Ritu [email protected]

Mr. Samir [email protected]

Mr. Gaurav [email protected]

Mr. Hemant [email protected]

Ms. Sujata Lakhe [email protected]

Dr. Rajesh SharmaMr. Yatish DesaiMr. Ameet BathiyaMrs. Smita SamantMrs. Shaifali BathiyaMr. Utkarsh HazarnisDr. Vandana Singh

Member At LargeDr. Priyanka Sharma

Lotus Editor Cheryl D’[email protected]

PublisherFICA

India Cultural GardenRaj Pillai - [email protected] | 440/724-4398

Shiksha DaanSanjay Garg - [email protected] | 440/590-1261

Project SevaHarsha Rane, Chairperson440/567-0972

FICA Sister Organizations

Association of Asian Indian Women of NEO www.aaiwo.org | Lynette Sequeira

American Federation of Muslims of Indian Originwww.afmi.org | Dr. Razia Ahmed

Association of Indian Physicians of Northern Ohio (AIPNO)www.aipno.org | Dr. Mona Gupta

American Society of Engineers of Indian

Origin (ASEI)www.asei-usa.org | 440-734-1830

Bengali Cultural Societywww.bcscle.org | Soumitra Ghosh

Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation Sreedhar Nair

Gujarati Samaj of Grtr. Clevelandwww.clevelandgujaratisamaj.org | Nilesh PatelGuru Gobind Singh Sikh Society www.clevelandgurudwara.org

Guru Nanak Foundationwww.gurunanakfoundationrichfield.com

India-Ohio Chamber of Commercewww.indiaohiochamber.com | Radhika Reddy

Indian Christian Association, Michael Sreshta

Jain Society of Greater Clevelandwww.jsgc.org | Jitu Shah

Kasturi Kannada Society www.kasturikannadasangha.org |

MeenaHumchad

Kerala Association of Ohiowww.kaoh.org | JayaKumar

NEO Marathi Mandal (NEOMM)www.neomm.org |Shekhar Ganore

Marwari Association | Sushila Mohanka

Orissa Society of America | Dr. Prasanta Raj

Punjabi Cultural Societywww.guidestar.org | Burjinder S Dhanoa

NEO Telugu Assn (NEOTA)[email protected] | Prasad MuvvaNEO Tamil Sangam (NEOTS)www.neo-ts.org | Jayabalan Sankarasu-bramnian

South Asian Bar Association of Clevelandwww.sabanorthamerica.com | Neelam Gill

NEO Sri Lankan Association (NEOSLA) [email protected]

Editor’s NoteBreaking the (Spelling) Bee: Go Indians!!

Cleveland has been busy with festivals – the Thyagaraja Festival came and went quietly, publicized only through emails and word of mouth. The 42ndt Cleveland International Film Festival was splashed all over town.

The Lotus was the media partner for the feature length documentary, “Breaking the Bee.” I sat in the packed hall, following the amazing story of four dedicated Indian-American children challenged by the Scripps National Spelling Bee Championships, with their stressed out, hopeful parents on the sidelines.

It is obviously a family affair, as parents and siblings work together for thousands of hours as personal coaches and cheer leaders. Not to forget of course, the existence of the North South Foundation which provides a platform for the Indian-American kids to show their talents regionally.

Film Festival attendees got to meet the Vukoti family: Akash (7) who competed in his first Spelling Bee at the age of two and his sister Amrita (10) with their parents Krishna and Kala who are featured in the film. Former Clevelanders, they flew in from San Angelo, Texas.

What was obvious was that this was not about tiger parenting. “In order to get to that level, it has got to come from the kids,” said one of the producers Chris Weller. Read more about the movie in our article by Sujata Lakhe Barnard. For more information and to watch the trailer, go to: http://www.breakingthebee.com/

Cheryl D’MelloEditor, The Lotus, Email: [email protected]

The Association of Asian Indian Women of Ohio (AAIWO) offers free confidential

professional counseling for

women and children in the Asian Indian

community.Please call their

helpline: (440) 218-6959

“Carnatic music is very expressive, you can show different emotions through the music. The more deeply you get into it, the more fascinating you find it,” she said. “We have this life and this other culture we are exposed to. We go back to India at least once a year to learn and perform. When I was younger, I did not understand the music, but now we find value in it.” For the young rasikas, the goal is to one day perform at the festival.

A group of five young girls, five parents and their teacher Sivagami Vanka,from the Kalabharthi Bharatnatyam School journeyed from Oregon to breathe in the sights and sounds of the festival. “The girls have a passion for dance, you can’t force this kind of thing” said Vanka, who started her school in Cleveland 30 years ago.On the last day, local dance guru Sujatha Srinivasan who directs the Shri Kalaa Mandir-Center for Indian Performing Arts in Cleveland presented a Bharatnatyam performance. Her students, Nithya Kasibhatla won the Grand prize of $1500 and a chance to perform at the Chennai Music and Dance Festival in India, and Sita Vakkalanka and Sweta Balaji, won top prizes in their categories among 270 competitors.

The festival has been supported by the residents of Cuyahoga County through a public grant from Cuyahoga Arts and Culture, and for the first time this year, in part by an Artworks grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.

8,000 Rasikas Flock to 41st Thyagaraja

FestivalCOntinuED fROM pagE 1

3FICA MattersTHE LOTUS


Inflow(Outflow)

Description Amount Description Amount

Operation Account ID-2016 to Cleveland Cultural Garden 466.00CMA old payment 70.00

Membership 9,759.02 Annual GBM 473.34Donations 5.00 Insurance - Premiums 2,242.05Office Expenses - Reimbursement (Phone) 40.12 Office Expenses - Phone, PO Box etc 1,234.95

Registeration & Memberships Fees 250.00InterCle 35.26

International HoF 1,130.00 International HoF 1,020.00 110.00Lotus - Donations & Ads 4,240.00 Lotus - Layout, Printing & Mailing 15,426.08 -11,186.08Social Media 73.05 Social Media - App etc 1,216.92 -1,143.87

Web Hosting 2,100.00Golf Outing 33,711.38 Golf Outing Expenses 15,256.96 18,454.42Independence Day - Anand Mela 2,147.35 Independence Day - Anand Mela 2,428.09 -280.74AIPNO Chirag Event 800.00 AIPNO Chirag Event 1,000.00Republic Day - Tickets & Sponsors 68,592.77 Republic Day - Expenses 34,058.00 34,534.77Interst Income 17.42Total Inflow 1,20,516.11 Total Expenses 77,277.65 43,238.46

Petty Cash No activity 0.00 0.00Total Inflow 0.00 Total Expenses 0.00 0.00

India Cultural Garden New Contributions 35,854.70 Monthly Maintenance (DiPadova Landscaping) 3,470.00Membership 100.00Reimbursement 192.84

Total 35,854.70 Total 3,762.84 32,091.86

Project Seva Donations 15,780.30 Food, Toiletries and Bank Charges 10,737.64Total Inflow 15,780.30 Total Expenses 10,737.64 5,042.66

Shiksha Daan Donations 10,209.63 Student Loan to CSU Student 2,000.00Rent for Noble Rd Facility 1,650.00Food/Snack for Students 1,086.59Education Supplies 1,371.81Website Fee 86.00College Now Greater Cleveland 2,300.00Misc. Expenses 16.19

Total 10,209.63 8,510.59 1,699.04

Disaster Relief Fund No activity 0.00 No activity 0.00 0.00

BCS Obligations No inflow 0.00 Payment to BCS as per M.O.U 1,420.00Total 0.00 1,420.00 -1,420.00

No Activity 0.00Total 0.00 0.00 0.00

Interest 35.26Total 35.26 0.00 35.26

InvestmentCharles Schwab Bank Interest 5.66 5.66

Net Inflow(Outflow) 80,692.94

Income StatementFor Period 03/01/2017 - 02/28/2018

Inflow Outflow

ICC Bldg

InvestmentTD Ameritrade

2017 2016Operation Account 43,238.46 -352.34

Petty Cash 0.00 0.00

India Cultural Garden 32,091.86 1,117.92

Project Seva 5,042.66 905.89

Shiksha Daan 1,699.04 268.97

Disaster Relief Fund 0.00 0.00

BCS Obligations -1,420.00 861.00

0.00

35.26 600.00

Charles Schwab 5.66 1,077.19

Net Inflow(Outflow) 80,692.94 4,478.63

ICC Bldg

InvestmentTD Ameritrade

Inflow (Outflow)

Year Over Year Comparison

Community PartnerAs you may already know that FICA of NEO, (www.ficacleveland.org,@FICAcleveland) has been recognized by the United Way as a Designated Charitable Organization and is eligible non-partner agency with United Way of Cleveland. I would greatly appreciate if you can reach out to your place of work and friends and request them to consider designating Federation of India

communities association of North East Ohio (FICA of NEO, @FICAcleveland) to receive part of their annual donation. United Way will then channel their donations to FICA aft er deducting some service fee. This will create a revenue streamfor FICA to support our mission of promoting the rich cultural heritage of India in greater Cleveland; to facilitate ongoing dialog with civic leaders regarding issues of importance to Asian Indian families in the region; to facilitate the mainstreaming of Asian Indian families by creating a platform for the community’s active participation in the civic life; to collaborate with local organizations to promote goodwill and understanding between diverse communities; to partner with business groups that promote ties between

Indian and US fi ms and foster economic development.

Financial Reports Prepared by Hemant Kanodia, Treasurer, FICA of NEO.For any questions, please contact Treasurer at

[email protected]


4 THE LOTUSCommunity Events

Ekal Vidyalaya hosts Prem RasIt was a melodious evening for the audience at Prem Ras, the annual event hosted by the Cleveland Chapter of Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation of U.S.A. Led by Kaushik and Pranita Deshpande, the talented group captivated the Cleveland audience on April 8, 2018 at the Independence Middle School Auditorium in Independence. They were able to collect funds to support running 200 + schools in rural India.

Ekal’s mission is holistic development of villages through empowerment of tribal and rural communities in India with basic education, digital literacy, skills development, health awareness, learning modern and productive agricultural practices, and rural entrepreneurship. This organization is having a positive impact on the lives of millions of students across remote parts of India by taking education to such places where it is not easily accessible or available. It was only befitting that for an event with such a noble cause that graduating seniors, Aman Jain, Anushree Aneja, Jaidev Gupta, Pranay Iyer, Rohit Narhari, Vinay Bodapati and Rohit Rambhatla lit the lamp. Countless volunteers made this event a huge success. The TV coverage and photography for the event was done by Mahesh Desai from TV Asia. Food was provided by Cuisine of India. Ekal expresses deep gratitude to every one who took the time and effort to attend the event, especially those who sponsored schools which will help propel the number of schools raised towards the 200+ mark.

Since 2012, Ekal Cleveland has also been helping the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon with water distribution efforts . If you are interested in volunteering on Sunday, May 20, 2018, please email Anil Kumar Singh at: [email protected] or call: (440) 463-6598

BY Swati DESai

Photo-courtesy of: Mahesh Desai Left to Right: Harshad Kalbate (tabla), Kaushik Deshpande (singer), Pranita Deshpande (singer), Eknath Deshpande (instrumentalist), Dipak Sonawane

(keyboard)

R. Balasubramaniam (known a “Cleveland Balu”), his wife Gomathy and V.V. Sundaram, founders of the

Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival

Local dancers Nithya Kasibhatla, Shriya Srinivasan, Sita Vakkalanka who won awards, with their guru Sujata

Srinivasan at the Thyagaraja Festival.

Local dance guru Sujatha Srinivasan gave a dance performance on the last day of the Thyagaraj Festival

Teaching Excellence Award WinnersPriyanka Banerjie, Adjunct Faculty in Earth Science and Dr. Jaydip Das Gupta, Biology Lecturer, both at Cuyahoga Community College, Eastern Campus were among those awarded the Teaching Excellence Award in Honor of Ralph M. Besse this year in March. The award recognizes faculty College-wide for their commitment to academic integrity, stimulation of intellectual development and investment in students within and beyond the classroom.

Priyanka Banerjie Dr. Jaydip Das Gupta

Akash and Amrita Vukoti, former Clevelanders, and winners of the Spelling Bee.

Film Festival Photos by William G Barnard IV

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2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour1/4 cup sooji (cream of wheat)1/2 tsp. coarser black pepper1/2 tsp. chilli powder1 tsp. salt1 tsp. sesame seeds half crushed1 tsp. crushed cummin seeds (not Cummin powder)1/4 tsp. turmeric5 1/2 tbsp. oil

Mix all ingredients(except oil) and then add 1/2 cup water. Make dough and leave it covered for 30 to 40 minutes. Knead the dough and make 30 to 35 small balls. Roll out all the

balls into round pooris. Make three to four ¼ centimeter slits on each poori with a knife. Roll out the pooris then fry them in the oil on medium high temperature. Spread paper towels on a plate and remove fried pooris on it, keeping them there for 1/2 hour. Store the pooris in a tight container lined with paper towels to absorb the excess oil.

Khari PooriRECIPE CORNER

HaRSHa EnginEER

The 42nd International Film Festival took place from April 4-15, 2018 at Tower City in Cleveland, Ohio. Starting with eight featured films in 1977, the Festival has grown to inc lude 215 feature films and 253 short films representing 72 countries during its 12-day run attended by 105,656 viewers. In addition to high quality films, 14 virtual reality films, 6 interactive media projects , and a handful of additional interactive platforms were featured in immersive storytelling exhibition called Perspectives.

You never know who you will see at the festival. Mariska Hargitay of “Law and Order-S V U ” f a m e a t t e n d e d t h e screening of the movie “I Am Evidence” which she produced. I t w a s d i r e c t e d b y Tr i s h Adlesic and Geeta Gandbhir. Gandbhir ’s numerous awards include two Emmys.

“Breaking The Bee” was sold out for all the shows. The Lotus was its media partner. It featured Spelling Bee winners along with Sanjay Gupta, Fareed Zakaria, Hari Kondabolu, Kevin Negandhi, Nupur Lala, etc. The Lotus had partnered with the movie; it won best film in Ad Hoc Docs Competition.

For nearly 100 years, the Scripps National Spelling Bee has been an American institution. Since 1999, 18 of the last 22 National Spelling Bee winners have been Indian-American. The movie seeks to ask through interviews with prominent Indian-American journalists, doctors, and comedians, how a group who make up just 1% of the U.S. population can dominate this area of expertise. The film captures beautifully the heart-warming milieu of the home life and strong bonds the families form as they prepare for the Bee.

A special treat at the festival was the visit by the Vukoti family. Akash and Amrita were featured in the movie. I asked Akash and his sister how much TV

they watch and Akash made a gesture with his hand to form a zero with his thumb and index finger! Coming to Cleveland was a little bit of a homecoming, as their dad Krishna Vukoti (a pharmacist with a PhD) worked at the CWRU School of Medicine as a Researcher during 2010-2015. The family lived near Shaker Square before moving to the Canton area. Chris Weller and Sam Rega from New York City were the producers for the film.

Audience Choice Award for Best Short was won by “Bagheera” a movie from India which got honorable mention in the Best Live Action Short category. Best

Documentary Short was won by the Indian themed “Period. End of Sentence.” It will qualify

for consideration in the Short Films category of the annual Academy Awards®. Best Women’s Short was won by “Spice Sisters,” from Australia. Apart from these award winning movies, there were several more Indian themed movies of excellent caliber such as “Newton” (FICA was the media partner for this movie) and “Ask the Sexpert”. “What Will People Say” from Norway, was set in Pakistan, but shot in India, mostly in Rajasthan.

It was a great festival and I thank all the community members who came earlier enough to receive free vouchers to see the movie “Breaking the Bee” and “Newton.” Please note CIFF43 will take place from March 27 to April 7th 2019 at Tower City again. If you missed it this year, be sure to try and attend next year!

Indian themed films win awards at CIFF42Sujata LakHE BaRnaRD

Spelling Bee winners at CIFF42 with family and producers Chris Weller and Sam Rega, the Lotus representative, and FICA community members.

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6


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Free Resources for the College Admission Process

Need information about how to go to college, scholarships for students and adults returning to school? Confused by the FAFSA? Ask your high school counsellors and also visit College Now. College Now was the first organization of its kind in the nation. Advisors provide support and

resources to middle school students, high school students and adult learners to prepare for and explore educational opportunities after high school, including 2-year and 4-year degree programs and technical/vocational certificate programs. You can get Free help and advice from professionals. Visit

their website: https://www.collegenowgc.org/ or make an appointment today

College Now Greater Cleveland, 50 Public Square, Suite 1800, Cleveland, OH 44113 | Phone: 216.241.5587

Stores & Restaurants

Community Religious Centers

Indian Groceries Available at:

• Asian Plaza, Cleveland: (216)241-3553• Asian Imports, N. Olmsted: (440)777-8101• Everest Grocery Store, Lakewood: (216)226-3715• India Grocers, Parma Heights: (440)885-0215• Indian Grocery, Cuyahoga Falls: (330)928-7060• Indo American Foods, North Randall: (216)662-0072• Indo American Convenient, Mayfield Heights: (440)446-8200• Laxmi Groceries & Spices, Parma Heights: (440)-842-2402• Lakshmi Plaza, Mayfield Heights: (440)460-4601• Park to Shop, E30th Cleveland: (216)781-3388• Patel Brothers, Parma Heights: (440)885-4440• Rimi’s Indian Bakers, Grocers & Gifts, Westlake: (440)777-0116• Rumis Market & Deli, Carnegie Ave: (216)229-7864• Sunny’s Asian Food & Spices, Solon: (440)248-0801

Indian Food Available at:

• Annapurna, Parma (440)390-1858• Bombay Chaat, Euclid Av., Cleveland (216)331-4598• Bamboo Garden N. Olmsted (440)734-0500 University Circle (216)505-5470• Bombay Grill, Akron (330)664-0689• Café Tandoor Cleveland Hts. (216)371-8500 Westlake (440)835-7999 & Aurora (330)562-5334• Crown of India, Strongsville (440)638-4977• Chapati at Chester Ave., Cleveland (216)303-9780 University Circle (216)505-5470• Chennai Delicacy, Parma Hts. (440)481-3737• Choolah, Orange Village (800)459-8860• Cleveland Tiffin Punjabi Dhaba, N. Randall (216)220-7002• Cuisine of India, Parma Hts.(440)842-5907• Greedy Girl, Cleveland Hts.(216)465-9877• Hot or Mild, Mayfield Hts.(440)446-8200

• Indian Delight, Cleveland(216)651-4007• India Garden, Lakewood (216)221-0676• Indies Indian Food, Col. Arcade, Cleveland (216)357-3266• Indian Flame, University Circle (216)791-5555• Jaipur Junction, N. Royalton (440)842-3555 Hudson (330)653-6640• Namaste India Garden, Lakewood (216) 221-4800• Ruchi Indian Cuisine , Aurora (330)562-6446• Saffron Patch, Shaker Hts. (216) 295-0400 Akron (330)836-7777• 6 Flavors , Parma (440)345-5599• South India Cuisine, Mayfield Rd. (440)720-0393• Taj India Palace, Richmond Hts. (440)461-3737• Tandul, Tremont (216)465-2442 • Taste of Kerala, Woodmere(216)450-1711• Taste of Kerala, Mayfield Hts. (440)461-9212• Udupi Dosa Corner , Parma Heights (440)743-7154

• BAPS Swaminarayan Temple2915 Laurel Rd., Brunswick(330)220-4020

• Guru Nanak Foundation (Gurdwara)4220 Broadview Road, Richfield(330)659-3748

• Gurdwara Sahib Bedford38 Tarbell Road, Bedford(440)232-1702

• Greater Cleveland Shiva Vishnu Temple7733 Ridge Rd., Parma(440)888-9433

• Islamic Center of Cleveland6055 W. 130th St., Parma(216)362-0786

• ISSO Swaminarayan Temple13354 Pearl Road, Strongsville(440)238-2222

•Jain Temple & Center3226 Boston Mills Rd., Richfield(330)659-0832

• Shri Venkataswara Temple4406 Brecksville Road, Richfield(330)576-5626

• St. Gregorios Malankara Orthodox Church1252 East Aurora Road, MacedoniaDr.T.Mathew (216)591-9632

• Swaminarayan Shubh Sanskar Sanstha Cleveland4402 Wallings Rd., North Royalton(440)628-9270

• Syro Malabar Holy QurbanaOur Lady of Peace, Shaker Square(216)795-7161

Newton - Making Election Day Exciting

Before heading out to another day of the Cleveland International Film Festival, I finished filling out my forms for being a poll worker for the primary election happening on May 8, 2018. Sujata and I have been working as poll workers since the 2016 general election. We enjoy working as poll workers. It gives us the opportunity to fulfill my civic duty for my village, county, state and country all in one day, but I would not say that it is the most stimulating day. The job consists mostly of checking voters’ ID’s, seeing if they are registered to vote in the current polling place, and making sure they properly insert their ballot into the ballot box.

It was ironic that the movie we were going to see at the Film Festival was Newton (2017), directed by Amit Masurkar, a film about an election official on election day in India. It asks the question, what Election Day would be like if your precinct was in the jungles of Chhatisgarh with the looming threat of Naxalite rebels trying to disrupt the election?

The film focuses on Newton (Rajkummar Rao), a reserve election official who gets the job of running said precinct after his predecessor refused to run the poll because a candidate was assassinated six months before by Naxalites. When Newton arrives in Chhatisgarh, he is given a security detail that is commanded by Aatma Singh (Pankaj Tripathy), who is apathetic to the voting needs of the 75 registered voters in the tiny village. Newton and Singh represent two extremes, the idealistic believer of democracy and the cynic who believes voting is not for everyone.

Through the film Newton finds that running a free and fair election is going to take some work. Throughout the film we are shown threats to democratic elections including apathy, coercion and violence. We are given an understanding how these threats affect the voters and the democracy as a whole. These are themes that we have been seeing in the United States’ elections and any democratic election.

The Federation of Indian Community Associations (FICA) was a community sponsor of Newton at the 42nd Cleveland International Film Festival. If you missed Newton at the Film Festival, you can still stream it on Amazon Prime. And don’t forget to vote on May 8, 2018.

WILLIAM G. BARNARD, IV Twitter @wgbiv, Instagram @bill_barnard

Rajkummar Rao as Newton

7


THE LOTUS Book Review

‘My Basmati Bat Mitzvah,’ by Paula J. Freedman, tells the story of 12-year-old Tara Feinstein, a half-Jewish, half-Indian American girl growing up in New York City. As she approaches her bat mitzvah, we follow Tara as she navigates friendship, school, Hebrew school, and the question of whether choosing to have a bat mitzvah (a coming-of-age ceremony for Jewish girls) requires her to lose the Indian part of herself.

Tara Feinstein seems real. Not because I know any Jewish-In-dian-American 12-year-olds and have asked them, but because she is flawed and honest. Tara is a bold girl who sometimes has trouble controlling her temper, which gets her into trouble. (This itself is a delightful twist from the stereotypical Indian charac-terization). Her relationships are complex, she occasionally has ungenerous thoughts, and we can only hope that she too learns and grows from her experiences.

One delightful part of this story (I don’t want to give anything away), is that Tara is unabashedly herself. Her Indian mother (who had converted to Judaism) preferred--when she was gro-wing up--to blend in and hide her Indianness in public, some-thing very familiar amongst the generation of Indian Americans caught between cultures. The story definitely touches upon that awkward struggle that Tara’s mother had faced, and how it sha-ped her parenting decisions, specifically--in the context of this story--in terms of preparations for the bat mitzvah. Where Tara’s mother wanted only to blend in and dragged Tara out shopping for an appropriate dress, Tara decides she wants to wear a sari and serve Indian food at her bat mitzvah (hence the title). It is in these moments when the sto-

ry really shines, when we witness the Indian rituals that Tara enjoys, dressing up with her best friend Rebecca and playing Bollywood, burning agarbatti and paying homage to the Ganesh statue in her room. These gestures connect her to her grandparents, and we see that she understands better than most that it’s not the devotion to a particular god that links her to India, but love for her family.

Overall, the story is delightful and easy-to-read. It is well-crafted, with a story that, while following a somewhat predictable sto-ryline, is peppered with lovely touches that keep the story inte-resting. And while this is a middle-grade chapter book, it would behoove parents to read it. If you, as a parent, have ever argued with your child (I know, there are only a couple of you out there), sometimes it helps to remember what it was like to be younger.

While this story delves more deeply into Tara’s Jewish side (she is, after all, preparing for her bat mitzvah), the Indian aspects of her identity shine through. It’s not like we can define how Indian we are based on some checklist or questionnaire (though I would-n’t be surprised to find one online), and this book helps remind readers that no matter where we are, or how many generations removed, no matter how Indian we feel, the connection to India is undeniable.

Nivi Engineer is the author of ‘The Indian Girl’s Definitive Gui-de to Staying Single’, The Story of a Story, The Saviors of Scar-borough, Impatient, Redrafted, and Picklemas.

‘My Basmati Bat Mitzvah’ by Paula J. Freedman

BOOK OF THE MONTHnivi EnginEER

It is Wednesday evening, March 28, 2018 and the Patel Hall at Shiva Vishnu Temple in Parma, Ohio is full of an attentive audience ranging from 55 to 85 years of age. Dr. Atul Shah M.D., a pulmonary clinician and academic authority/teacher from the Cleveland Clinic is addressing the group about lung diseases and answering questions.

”How do we keep our lungs healthy?” asks someone. “Can yoga protect us from lung diseases?” questions another.

Sonal Pakvasa has come all the way from Akron to hear the talk. She teaches yoga for adults at the temple on Sundays. Bharat and Usha Gosalia from Strongsville come frequently for the events organized for seniors. They heard about the group from friends. Bhupendra and Neelam Bavishi from Rocky River call the group “young seniors.” They enjoy listening to the talks which are “usually health related,” and attending the entertainment programs. Today as usual, there was a catered vegetarian meal before the lecture. Each individual paid $12.

It was about seven years ago the temple authorities approached Shirish Engineer and Chander Kachoria and asked them to reactivate a group for seniors. Today, a committee of five people plans the educational and entertainment activities.

“We have 300 members,” said Engineer. “The cost of individual memberships is $15 for a lifetime.” They offer seniors educational opportunities and entertainment. Outdoor trips have included bus tours to Niagara Falls, to a temple in West Virginia, casinos, boat rides and picnics.

“The programs are very well organized and very informative,” said Nirupama Vakharia who has been travelling all the way from Westlake for four years to attend events. “It is more of a get together,” she said.

The S.V. Temple Seniors group is open to people over 55 of any religion. The programs offer an opportunity for adults and seniors to come together and relax with people their age and from similar backgrounds. While other seniors meet for card games and coffee, this group is happy to hop on a bus and see new places, do things, and learn something new. For more information or to join, please call any of the committee members: Chander Kachoria (216)798-5454, Shirish Engineer (216)524-8461, Anil Shah (440)350-1533, Joti Patel (440)884-7373, Kokila Patel (440) 490-3842.

Getting Our Seniors TogetherCHERYL D’MELLO

Ashish Patel Realtor

RE/MAX: The #1 name in Real Estate

Buy or Sell Home in Cleveland Call me for your Real Estate needs

Cell: 440-728-8875 [email protected]

8 Future Events


THE LOTUSJoin Shiksha Daan at the Cleveland Marathon, May 19 & 20

• Join the Shiksha Daan Team for the Cleveland Marathon 5k walk on May 19 and 20 and raise funds for its activities. Sanjay Garg, Chair, Shiksha Daan Committee will be running in the half marathon on May 20. To register for the event, go to:https://events.com/r/en_US/registration/rite-aid-cleveland-marathon-cleveland-may-143256Select Team, Enter “Shiksha Daan” then register for the 5k and/or any other event as part of the Shiksha Daan team. All team members will receive a Shiksha Daan T-shirt if you inform Sanjay Garg.

Please consider donating to Shiksha Daan to show support for the Cleveland Marathon team participation. Last year over $3000 was raised through Shiksha Daan team participation. You can donate through a credit card at: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=29VLUYD4QKQALor send a check made out to “FICA - Shiksha Daan” to Shiksha Daan, C/O Vinod Nagpal,18195 Brickmill Run, Strongsville OH 44136.

Shiksha Daan is a project of FICA which is a 501(c) (3) registered organization, so contributions are tax deductible. For more information, contact Sanjay Garg at (440) 590-1261 or email: Shiksha [email protected].

Cleveland Asian Festival, May 19-20, 2018, E27th St. & Payne Ave., Cleveland. 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Free admission, free parking, shuttle bus rides and free tours of Asiatown Cleveland. Cultural performances, martial arts demonstrations, food, games, competitions, health screenings, 100+ vendors and exhibitors, 25+ local restaurants and caterers, eating contests, Colors of Asia Fashion Show, Asian Pop Dance Competition, etc.

For more info, go to: http://clevelandasianfestival.org/2018/

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