Holi celebrations by BJAI, the Bihar Jharkhand Association of Ireland, were held at the Caragh Community Centre.
Holi 2023
BJAI hosted the multi-cultural Holi celebration in Caragh Community Centre on Saturday, 4th March 2023.
Even though Holi is a festival that originated in India, it has now become a global festival. People from all over the world celebrate this festival of colors. Celebrating Holi marks the arrival of the spring season wherein the people give their thanks to the Almighty for the excellent harvest. The celebration of Holi lasts for two days. The first day of the celebration is called Holika Dahan and the second day is Rangwali Holi.
This cultural program included a welcome address by the Ambassador of India to Ireland Shri Akhilesh Mishra and his wife Mrs. Reeti Mishra, Lord Mayor of Naas Cllr Evie Sammon, and other guest speakers which included Ex-Mayor of Naas Cllr Seami Moore, Cllr Tracey O’Dweyer, Cllr Peggy O’Dwyer, Ms. Annie O’Shea, Ms. Gwen Byrne, Col Raymond Lane and Naas Garda officers Tony and Deidra.
The event started with lamp lighting by all the eminent guests and was followed by the singing of the Indian and Ireland National Anthem. The distinguished guests addressed the members of the BJAI family and audiences.
Children’s groups performed folk dance followed by adult traditional dance and songs with Bollywood hits. People connected with each other and danced to some peppy Indian songs played by an in-house DJ. The showstopper event of the day was Fagua, a traditional Bihari folk singing style always associated with Holi and spring.
The traditional Bihari cuisine, including dahi vadas, malpuas, and boondi were the delicacies shared among the guests. With the colorful powder being thrown around outdoors, all the guests and volunteers of BJAI had a wonderful celebration.
BJAI
BJAI was a platform formed for the people of Bihar and Jharkhand living in Ireland to interact with each other and integrate with local communities.
BJAI members have been celebrating events such as Ganesh Pooja, Shree Satyanarayan Pooja, organizing family picnics in parks, and so on to ensure the active participation of all their members.
To know more about the history and formation of BJAI, read here.