CHICAGO: Though in existence for over five years, the Hindi Premi Sangh turned Hindi Lovers Club celebrated Hindi Diwas, the birth anniversary of Hindi being declared national Indian language, in a grand style for the first time in Chicagoland last week.
The three-hour celebration at Ashyana Banquet Hall in Downers Grove was a grand affair partly because sustained efforts by the organizers to make it a memorable one and also it was blessed by the Indian Consulate which extended all possible help. There were quite a few highlights of the program the foremost being Essay Speech contest among second generation children that had an interesting theme – If I were to be PM For a Day.
The other highlight was a proclamation by Illinois Governor Pat Quinn presented at the event by his aide Ms Theresa Mah. Congratulating the organizers, the Proclamation underlined the importance of Hindi Diwas saying it was the second most spoken language in the world.
A remarkable thing was that the Sangh succeeded in presenting a cultural program that was participated by associations representing different regions and communities of India – UP, Rajasthan, Orissa, Bengal, Maharashtra, Telugu, Gujarat and Sindhi community.
Indian Consul General Dr Ausaf Sayeed stole the limelight with his beautiful address in Hindi which stood in contrast with English mixed Hindi by many other speakers. Dr Ausuf said that Hindi has been the most popular language among Indian immigrants in different parts of the world while at the same time it has emerged as the acceptable link language in India with 70 to 80 percent of the Indian population speaking or understanding it.
He pitched for a unified approach to advance the cause of Hindi in India and abroad.
Earlier, Vinita Gulbani, president of the Sangh, welcomed the members and guests and related briefly the mission and objectives of the organization. She underlined the importance of language in preserving the culture and identity of the community. Vandana Jhingan, an active supporter of the Sangh, also extended welcome to all and announced the start of the program.
The commencement was with traditional lamp lighting that was done by the Club executive team, CG Dr Sayeed and an Indian guest Raj Shekhar who also later addressed the gathering in chaste Hindi. In attendance were 350 plus guests and Chicagoland elite. Krishna Bansal, an IT person seeking elective position at the Illinois Assembly was there too.
The consensus among speech contest participants was that they would put a great emphasis on the spread of education, ensuring safety, preserving law and order, and rooting out corruption. It was a well done effort on their part in trying to speak in Hindi which has become an ‘alien’ language for many. All of them got recognition certificates while the three first, second and third placed winners – Shanker Siddharth, Reha Pillai and Shreyas Khatri – got Special prizes.
The cultural program was eye catching. Orissa, Rajasthan and Maharashtra performers evoking great applause. The group dance by members of Sindhi community was a grand culmination. Gurbachan Kaur, the founding president, was recognized and she announced that the Sangh had finally got tax exemption. “This would enable us to move more forcefully in propagating Hindi in this part of the world,” she said. In this context, Vinita Gulbani announced that Hindi classes have commenced at Lemont temple and at her residence and she urged young people to take advantage of the same.
A vote of thanks was proposed by Gurbachan Kaur. Sumptuous dinner was served under the active supervision Ashyana Banquet owner Surinder Jain and all those present really enjoyed it.
Ramesh Soparawala
India Post News Service
