Navratri, a festival celebrated by Hindus with great devotion, last for 9 days followed by Dasheera the 10th day of liberation. An Idol of Goddess Durga is worshipped during Navratri. This festival is celebrated by all Hindus and has special significance in the Gujarati community. Festival of Navratri is full of lights, joy and festivity. Hindus celebrate this with devotion and enthusiasm throughout India. Navratri means nine nights and so the tenth day Goddess Durga, who is worshipped throughout the nine days, is immersed in holy water after the prayers. Each and every day has its importance and meaning.

For South-Indians, Navratri is the occasion to invite over friends, relatives and neighbors to see the Golu.  Golu is basically an exhibition of various dolls and figurines; that either tell a story or display the passions of the family.

Raas (Garba and dandiya) are the two beautiful form of Gujarati dance which is usually performed by men and women, who are traditionally dressed in Chaniya Choli and Kurta.

A team of 10 tireless volunteers led by Paresh Motiwala gave an early start to the festival season by organizing the Indian American Association of Sharon (IAAS)’s- Navartri/Golu. It was celebrated with pomp and style at the Sharon Middle School on October 3rd 2015..

The gym was beautiful decorated with lights and flowers. There was a beautiful display of dolls and figurines to signify the South-Indian theme of Golu.

The event was well attended with close to 300 guests showing up for the event. It was wonderful to see everyone dressed in traditional, colorful, beautiful outfits. The attached photos cannot do full justice to the colorfulness of the event.

The program started with the guests heading to the cafeteria for some delicious food, catered by Unnati Caterers. Then they headed to the Gym to enjoy and dance to the Navratri beats.

Vendors such as Vivint Solar, L.A. Fitness, Unnati Caterers, Ruchita Dagli Designs had set up their booths at the event, adding sparkle to the evening fun.

Ruchita Designs had beautiful jewelry showcased while Unnati Caterers were serving mouthwatering chaat as people were dancing away during Garbha and Dhandiya. It was wonderful watching the vendors also partake in the dances.  

The dance program started with Garbha Raas where one could see accomplished dancers as well as first time dancers swaying, twirling to the lovely garbha music. This was followed by puja and aarti. Prasad was provided by the Motiwala family.

After the puja, started the dandiya beats. Adults and kids danced with colored dandiya sticks handed out during the event. The event concluded by dancing to the popular Sanedo music at approximately 11PM.

Thus, the Navaratri festival celebrated with great enthusiasm and energy by not only the Sharon residents, but also by guests from the neighboring towns such as Franklin, Grafton, Billerica, Walpole and Norwood.

The Indian American association of Sharon (IAAS), originally started as a small informal get together with a few Indian families 33 years ago, has now evolved into a huge community event growing every year with the influx of new families flocking to Sharon.

|