The Kerala Association of New England (KANE) celebrated the Thiruvonam, the harvest festival, in tradition and honor on September 25th, 2004 at Marlborough Middle School.

The celebration began with the lighting of the "Nilavilakku" near the Athapookkalam. This colorful ceremony is a tribute to the greatness and sacrifice of the King Mahabali, who was the ancient ruler of Kerala.

One of the most important parts of the celebration was the Onam feast. This year KANE had arranged plantain leaves to serve the traditional feast, which brought back the fond memories of this harvest festival celebrated in Kerala, the "God's own country". The homemade feast was very much appreciated by the community.

The cultural programs followed the feast and were hosted by Tinu Abraham and Simi Matthew. KANE president Mr Vaidyanathan Iyer welcomed everyone to the program.

New England Malayalees were blessed to have the very famous Malayalam writer M Mukundan as the chief guest of the event this year. He is the recipient of Kendra/Kerala Sahithya Academy awards, and many International awards including "Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres" from the French Government. M.Mukundan shared his views about the changed Gulf era in Kerala and the need for implementing an American style multicultural/ethnic society life structure, which would result in harmony among different religious and political factions there.

The opening act featured the legend of Parasuraman on how he created the land of Kerala, followed by the traditional Panchavadyam (Rhythmic music with five instruments) welcoming Mahabali to the stage. Various arts forms typifying the vast and rich cultural heritage of Kerala were portrayed in this unique presentation. Following that, more than 60 artists from all different age groups performed in the cultural programs that ranged from classical dances like Mohinyatam and Bharata Natyam to Folk and cinematic dances, Skit and Mime. The cultural programs culminated with a Grand Finale, in which about 20 girls participated. All the programs were received by the audience with big applause. The young and talented artists assured the community that its heritage and tradition would be saved for many years.

The election officer Mr. Rajendra Prasad introduced the nominated officials for the KANE 2004-05 year to the General Body. The election was unanimous and proved the solidarity and unity of the association once again. Following are the newly elected officials, Varghese Yohannan(President), Ruby Alanoly (Vice President), Athul Dwaraka (General Secretary), Revathy Pillai (Arts Club Secretary) and Suresh Abraham (Treasurer).

KANE had arranged a music concert led by well-known singers Mr. Raju Thekkekara, Ms. Juliet Sebastian and the famous tabalist Mr. Subhash. The audience enjoyed the unbelievable performances of the singers. The program ended with a few words of gratitude from General Secretary Sibu Thomas, for the support and assistance provided by the community in making the function a grant success and also for keeping the flag of KANE flying high.

Close to 700 people attended the function and it was acclaimed as one of the unique and best programs ever presented by KANE in its 34 years of history. More details and pictures of the event are available at www.kaneusa.org.

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