March temperatures could not deter some 300 adults and children from celebrating Holi "The Festival of Colors" the way it is traditionally celebrated in India. An IDRF fundraiser, this fun-filled event was organized at Francis Wyman Elementary School in Burlington on March 25th, 2006.
While the participants had fun, they also had the satisfaction of knowing that their contribution was going to Jodhpur Pensioners Trust , Jodhpur, Rajasthan working for purchase and installation of machinery to perform eye surgery for poor & needy people in the area.

The event started with cultural programs. IDRF showcased some extraordinary young, local talent and extravagant shows like kids fashion show, paper dance, SaReGaMaPa and Antakshri. Lot of local singers participated in famous SaReGaMaPa & Antakshri show surprising people with their talent of singing and in-depth knowledge about singing. “Antakshri”, “SaReGaMaPa” and "Rang Barse" were the highlights. The entire show was a spectacular display of Indian tradition, culture and fine arts. The enthusiasm and effort of the parents and coaches that went into producing these programs were truly commendable.

Furthermore, ten teams participated in the preliminary round of Antaakshari. Of those, four teams were selected to compete in the singing contest. The first-prize winners were Dosti team, while the second-prize winners were Bombastic team. Prizes consisted of wonderful Oscar looking trophies.

After the cultural programs, everyone enjoyed “Colors” program with DJ hosted by Rohan Jamdhar. The participants sprayed each other with colors and danced to the tunes of "Rang Barse", "Dola Re Dola". They braved the chilly weather to enjoy this segment of the festivities for over an hour. More than 80 pounds of different colors were sprayed. Many children told the organizers that they had been looking forward to this event for a long time. iPOD raffle was also one of the highlights of the event won by Rajni Aneja.
A prize distribution ceremony was arranged for the winners of different show such as SaReGaMaPa winner Gaurav, “Most Colorful person” winner Ms. Simar, Kids Fashion show winner Sohini & Romir, Paper dance winner Rishab and Antakshri’s winner Dosti Team took place with elegant trophies which was distributed by Mr. Bipin Parekh(Host of Gunjan Radio).

IDRF volunteers collected about $3000 from entry tickets and food sales of Holi event. IDRF has raised more than $15 million in the past decade including $1.2 Million for rehabilitation of the recent Tsunami victims.
To learn more about IDRF and its work, check out http://www.idrf.org or email idrfboston@yahoo.com

The event was co-sponsored by Mehmaan Restaurant in Nashua, NH and India Palace in Chemlsford, MA.

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