Click here to read Ganesh Utsav - September 2008 Event Synopsis
(Synopsis by: Anirudha Kinare)

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Click here to read Shridhar Phadake, Vijay Kadam - June 2008 Event Synopsis
(Synopsis by: Mrs. Sushama Yerawadekar)

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Click here to read Tax Free, Kadachit - June 2008 Event Synopsis
(Synopsis by: Mrs. Arundhati Kinare)

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Click here to read Gajara - April 2008 Event Synopsis
(Synopsis by: Mrs. Archana Sidhaye)

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Click here to read Gudhi Padava 2008 Event Synopsis
(Synopsis by: Mrs. Archana Sidhaye)

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Click here to read Diwali Utsav 2007 Synopsis
(Synopsis by: Dr. Ushadevi Kolhatkar)

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Our last event of “Marathi Natyamahotsav” held on April 15th at Hindu Temple Auditorium, Flushing was a grand event. MMNY hosted this type of event for the first time in its history and it turned out to be a fabulous program.

Dr. Mohan Agashe and all artists arrived at the venue at 9am and immediately started working to setup the stage, test lights and sound systems. By noon everything was almost setup and the audience started arriving. The show started on time as scheduled at 1pm. Mrs. Rupali Rajpathak welcomed Dr. Agashe and all artists. She then introduced our distinguished guest, Mrs. Deo, Indian Consulate General in New York. Mrs. Deo spoke few words. Dr. Mohan Agashe then welcomed all and gave some background about the plays.

Both plays “Makadachya Haati Champagne” and “Final Draft” were extremely well written, directed and performed. No wonder these plays and these talented artists have won so many awards in India and abroad.

About 210 people attended the Natyamahotsav. Everyone from the audience enjoyed every minute of the event. We heard lots of good remarks about this event from the audience during interval. The auditorium was fantastic and the snacks in the interval were delicious. Overall the entire show was a great success.

We thank Dr. Agashe & all artists for bringing these 2 great performances to us and hope that we’ll get more of them in future. We also thank all volunteers (Mayur Shetye, Nikhil, Anil & Gauri Keluskar, Santosh Naik, Ramdeep & especially Mr. Ram Inamdar) who helped us in this event (before and after the show). Without them the show could not have been made possible. We thank all 3 families (Sunil Naik, Rupali Inamdar) for hosting the artists at their home after the event for 2 days. And finally we thank all audience who attended, enjoyed and encouraged us and artists even in the bad stormy weather.

Click here to see India Day parade video clip showed on NY 1 TV channel.
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Click here to read Roop Pahta Lochani - May 2006 Synopsis In Marathi.
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Maharashtra Mandal, New York (MMNY) celebrated Kojagiri Poornima on Saturday, 12th October 2005 with a sensational musical performance by renowned classical singer -Mrs. Lata Vinod . This time, the program was held at Intermediate School 5 (IS 5) located on Jacobus Street in Elmhurst NY; one of our alternate venues. To enjoy the true spirit of Kojagiri Poornima, the program was held late in the evening, from 6:00pm to 9:00pm.

Mrs. Lata Vinod who is from Delaware, is a truly gifted artist who began her musical career at the age of 10 by performing in Gammat Jammat, an All India Radio show for young children. Since then, she has performed in a variety of programs in India and abroad, and has won several awards.

The theme for the program was of Kojagiri Poornima itself, making it even more interesting and enjoyable. Some of the songs presented that reflected this theme were 'Chandra Aahe Sakshila', 'Raatra Aahe Pournimechi', 'Ha khel Savalyancha', 'Chandane Shimpit Jaashi', 'Shukra Tara Manda Vara' and 'Kaivalyacha Candanyala'.

Mr. Sachin Raje accompanied Mrs. Lata Vinod as the lead singer. The two were well supported by Mr. Hemakalyan Bapat on tabla, Mr. Rajendra Vaishampayan on harmonium, Mr. Prashant Gijare on keyboard, and Mr. Satyajit Limaye on flute. Apart from being the lead singer, Mr. Sachin Raje also played tabla for some of the songs.

Mrs. Gayatri Vaishampayan did an excellent job narrating the program by cleverly blending the theme of Kojagiri with the theme of individual songs.

Dinner was served by MMNY after the program at 8:00pm. Since we were celebrating Kojagiri Poornima, Basundi was served as one of the sweets.

Due to rain and thunderstorms, the attendance was less than the anticipated number. Yet, about 100-120 members and guests did brave the difficult weather and were aptly rewarded by this enchanting performance.

The program was presided over by Mr. Ashok Tamhane. Mrs. Shubhada Dalavi presented the vote of thanks.

Visit Photo Galary to view Kojagiri 2005 images.
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Maharashtra Mandal, New York (MMNY) celebrated Ganeshotsav on Sunday, 11^th September 2005. It was held at our usual venue of JHS 217 in Jamaica, New York. This time, at around, 9:30 a.m. we performed GANESH PRATISHTHAPANA (installation of idol). Mrs. Sulabha Khare did the job of Priest and narrated the Puja while Amit & Vaishali Deshmukh and Nimish & Supriya Mohile, newly married couples, performed the Puja. The honor for performing Puja is generally given to such couples every year. After the Puja, Mrs. Veena Kulkarni and Mr. Anil Deshmukh led the chanting of GANAPATI ATHARVASHIRSH for five times. The devotees who were the members and guests for the function, had DARSHAN of Lord Ganesh. This whole episode lasted for about 2 ½ hours. Before the start of entertainment program, 2 minutes’ silence was observed to remember the victims of 9/11 (4th Anniversary), Maharashtra Flood and Katrina Hurricane. The program was given by Mr. Narendra Datar from Toronto (Canada) Mr. Datar is a well known singer who has performed at many places in USA. The musical program of Mr. Datar was a mix of Classical and Sugam Sangeet. He was accompanied on Harmonium by Raya Bidaye and on Tabala by Kishor Kulkarni. The program was enjoyed by everyone present and Mr. Datar received applause many times during the program.

The musical program was followed by MAHAPRASAD (lunch) Over a period, we have observed that people attending the Ganesh Festival fast on the day and end their fast only by having MAHAPRASAD. The food was ordered through a caterer and was served to all present by Mandal volunteers.

The last program of the day was the UTTARPUJA of Lord Ganesh. This was again performed by the same couples and narrated by Sulabha Khare. After Uttarpuja, the idol was cleaned and was put in the box for the next year.

The program was coordinated by Mrs. Neela Inamdar-President and conducted by Ashok Tamhane Program coordinator of MMNY and was helped by Shubhada Dalvi, Publicity Officer. The program was big success and it was made possible by the committee members and volunteers present at the function. Donations for Maharashtra Flood and Katrina Hurricane relief were collected on this occasion.

Approximately 300 persons attended the function.

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Click here to read Gudhi Padwa - April 2005 Synopsis In Marathi.
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Click here to read Diwali 2004 Event Synopsis In Marathi.
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Click here to read Kojagiri 2004 Event Synopsis In Marathi.
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Click here to read July 2004 Event Synopsis In Marathi.
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Click here to read June 2004 Event Synopsis In Marathi.
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Click here to read Gudhi Padwa - April 2004 Synopsis In Marathi.
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Click here to read Diwali Celebrations 2003 Synopsis In Marathi.

The last program of the Maharashtra Mandal was Diwali Festival and release of ‘Rangdeep’; our annual Diwali Magazine with Marathi Vishwa, New Jersey, and was held at our usual venue of JHS 217, Jamaica, New York. This year the lead was with Maharashtra Mandal. The magazine was released by Smt. Sumantai Bhide; noted child activist, social worker and writer of Children’s literature. She congratulated ‘Rangdeep’ Team and appreciated particularly pictures/articles by kids in the magazine. She also mentioned the story titled VAAN written by Dr, Sharadchandra Dicksheet who was also present on the occasion. During her speech she also suggested to bring out a special RANGDEEP issue dedicated to the issues of elderly persons. While responding to her suggestion, Vasant Ghag-editor of this year’s issue promised to consider her suggestion, but not for the special issue but for a separate section for elderly. All the members of the ‘Rangdeep 2003’ were felicitated thru the hands of Smt. Sumantai Bhide.

On this occasion, Dr. Ushadevi Kolhatkar gave a speech narrating in brief the ‘India Project’ of Dr, Sharadchandra Dicksheet and appealed all the present to support the project which Dr. Dicksheet has undertaken to help disabled children of third world.

The release was followed by two one act plays written by Satish Kalamkar and directed by Sharad Sathe. One was ‘Nasheeb’ which was enacted by Nitin Ashtekar, Sandeep Karanjkar, Shriram Devare and Anish Ashtekar and the other was ‘Skull Mask’ which was enacted by Varsha Gadgil and Vijay Chinchankar. Ravi Gadgil was looking after the music. All those present appreciated them. On this occasion, drawing competition for kids was organized and Aprana Gokhale and Shyle Mehta were the winners. The winners were given prizes whereas participants were given certificates. Diwali Faral donated by Dr. Arun Ankola was distributed free to all present. Raffel draw was also held on the occasion and prizes were given to two winners namely Ashok Satkalmi and Damodar Deshpande, which were donated by Neela Inamdar and Veena Kulkarni.

The next and the last program of this year is scheduled on Sunday 7^th December 2003.

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Though Ganesh Festival is celebrated on the large scale back home in the state of Maharashtra, here in US, Marathi Community is not in a position to do so. The reasons are different and can’t be discussed here. But we do want to remember Lord Ganesh and celebrate Ganesh Festival in our own little way. That is how we started celebrating it in Maharashtra Mandal, New York and over the years, it remains the most popular program.

It was in the same tradition the Maharashtra Mandal, New York celebrated Ganesh Festival on Sunday the 7th September 2003 at Junior High School 217, Jamaica. Almost 300 members and their guests were present on the occasion.

The Pooja, performed by a very respected couple – Dr. Anil & Jyotsna Ankolekar, commenced at 10:00 AM under the guidance of priest Mrs. Sunita Vaze. The Ganesh Idol from Bapu Narvekar, was decorated with Makhar provided by Neelesh & Manasi Karnik. Following the Pooja, a large gathering of those present assembled to sing traditional AARATIS. This year, Mr. Vijay Gokhale had compiled the set of these AARATIS and supplied booklets to MMNY to distribute them for FREE to those attending the program.

Over the years, we have also observed that members attending this program are more interested in Ganesh Puja and the Mahaprasad. Hence, we arrange the entertainment programs of short duration on this occasion. Accordingly, this year, a parody titled ISHKACHA SARDAR, by Mr. Suhas & Alka Pai was presented. It was a program with songs & dances depicting the story. It really started off very well since it was hinted at recent scandal in US history. However the end of the show was so abrupt that audience felt the show incomplete. However, all the participants did their roles very well. All the songs were also good, but felt very lengthy considering the contents of the show.

After the entertainment program, MAHAPRASAD was served to all present. This was well arranged and managed by Meena Raje and other committee members and volunteers.

At the end of the day UTTARPUJA was performed and people departed to meet at the next and another popular program of Diwali Festival.

Visit Photo Galary to view Ganesh Festival images.
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The 11^th BMM convention which was hosted by MMNY, was held at Madison Square Garden, New York from July 4 thru 6, 2003. Though, less than expected response, the convention was attended by approximately 3200 persons making it a big success.

Mr. Suresh Deshmukh was the Convention Coordinator and total 20 sub committees were formed to work on different areas of the convention. All the members on these committees working under stewardship of Mr. Deshmukh for more than one year has resulted in Convention turning into a big success. First time, for this convention On-line Registration facility was made available to the visitors of the website (bmm2003nyc.org) that was well designed and maintained by the Mandal volunteers. Delegates attending the convention very much appreciated the food and baby sitting arrangements.

On 3^rd July 2003, Business Conference and Continuing Medical Education Conference were held at Hotel Pennsylvania where more than 100 delegates for each conference participated.

The chief guest of the convention was well known social worker Padmashree Dr. Prakash Amte and the key note speaker was famous playwright Shri Vijay Tendulkar. While Dr. Amte spoke about his work in Tribal areas of Vidarbha, Shri Vijay Tendulkar expressed his thoughts on “giving”. Speaker of Indian Parliament Shri Manohar Joshi and the Chief Minister of Maharashtra Shri Sushilkumar Shinde also attended the convention; both of them praised the Marathi Community in America. Among the other notable personalities who attended the convention were Shri Sharad Pawar, ex-Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Shri Patangrao Kadam, Industries Minister, Jayadatt Kshirsagar, Tourism Minister and noted economist and writer Narendra Jadhav.

The entertainment programs of the convention started with Opening Ceremony presented by Dr. Deven Gabale and concluded with Closing Ceremony presented by Mrs. Sunita Dhumale. The other notable programs included Lavani by Surekha Punekar, Musical programs by Mrs. Pramila Datar and Shridhar Phadake. All were from India. There were also one act plays by local artists including a drama presented by Dr. Meena Nerurkar titled “Sur Maaze Sobati”. Many events & workshops on the sidelines of the convention were held at Hotel Pennsylvania and Hotel New Yorker.

On this occasion Sakal Papers group organized an International Trade & Business Exposition which was attended by many companies from India.

More than 600 youngsters participated in various Youth Programs held at Convention.

The Mandal is extremely grateful to every person who has helped directly or indirectly for the convention and also all the donors who made convention a successful one with their generous donations. The Mandal wishes to put on record our sincere gratitude to Mr. Ramesh Sarva who has not only made the office space available for the convention for over a year but also infrastructure and generous donation

The next BMM Convention will be held at Atlanta(GA) in July 2005.
(Synopsis by: Vasant Ghag)

Click here to see BMM Convention Images.
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The first program of the Mandal for this year was held on Sunday 27th April 2003 at our usual venue in Jamaica. It was a musical evening presented by Mrs. Lata Vinod from Delaware presenting collection of old songs giving the audience a nostalgic journey. Since this was the program generally precedes or follows after GUDHI PADWA, new year day, Chaitra Haladikumkum for women was also arranged simultaneously.

The program designed by Mrs. Lata Vinod, with a good mix of songs from Bhaktigeet, Bhavgeet, Lavani, Premgeet etc., had Mrs. Vinod and Mr. Prasanna Joshi as lead singers. They were accompanied by Mrs. Vaneeta Kubal on Harmonium and Mr. Satyajit Limaye on Tabla. Apart from Singing, Prasanna Joshi also played Tabla for few songs rendered by Mrs. Vinod. Satyajit Limaye also played Flute. Mr. Ashok Vinod conducted the program.

Though it was nice a program with everybody present enjoying, it had to be curtailed because of problems with sound system. Our sincere thanks and apologies go to Mrs. Lata Vinod & her group and also to the audience present for their co-operation in the unanticipated situation

On this occasion , Mr. Suresh Deshmukh, convention coordinator of our July 2003 convention, gave an update on the convention. The program was presided over by Mrs. Meena Raje and Mr. Sudhir Karnik with vote of thanks by Mr.Vasant Ghag.

The program was attended by approx. 150/200 members and guests.
(Synopsis by: Vasant Ghag)

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The last and sixth program of the Mandal was held on 8^th December 2002 at the new venue (PS 117-opposite of JHS 217). It was a Variety Entertainment Program combined with Special General meeting to elect 4 members on the Executive Committee posts falling vacant. The entertainment program was aimed at giving exposure to new and lesser known local artists that included kids, teenagers and adults. All of them put up a wonderful and worth-watching show. For details please CLICK HERE.
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Best Wishes to all the visitors to this site and their family members for Happy Diwali and A Prosperous New Year!

Annual Diwali celebrations of our Maharashtra Mandal were held on 27 October 2002 and it turned out to be a big event filled with joy and happiness. It was also the occasion of release of our Diwali magazine “RANGDEEP” issued jointly with Marathi Vishwa, New Jersey. Shivshaheer Shri Babasaheb Purandare was the chief guest who released this 12^th issue. In his speech he praised both the Maharashtra Mandal and Marathi Vishwa for taking out a good magazine for the last 12 years continuously. This was in a way to strengthen the ties with India and particularly Maharashtra where around 100 Diwali Magazines are published each year at the time of Diwali. He also praised the efforts done by our both mandals towards the growth of Marathi culture in USA. Editor of Rangdeep for this year Mrs. Vidya Deo also spoke and briefed the audience about RANGDEEP and a NRI convention being held in Pune form 19^th to 21^st December under the banner of Vishwasetu. She thanked advertisers and the persons who have contributed articles for Rangdeep and also appealed the audience to participate in the convention.

During this program, taking the opportunity of presence of Shri Purandare in New York, India Heritage Foundation of USA, which was instrumental in collecting the funds for the Marathi movie “Veer Savarkar” produced by late Shri Sudhir Phadake, honored Shri Purandare with a plaque for the great work he has done over the past many years. Shri Purandare first visited New York back in 1988 for fundraising for the movie and India Heritage Foundation arranged that trip.

Shri Rajan Gadkari of Maharashtra Foundation seized the opportunity of large gathering of the audience and told about the organization and various projects undertaken by them in India as well as USA.

This program was followed by a play written by Sharad Sathe jointly with Sudhir Ambekar and directed by Sharad Sathe. The story revolved around a lady named Sulabha who had abandoned her plans of marriage after a prolonged search of a suitable husband, tries to help her boss in the situation created by him thru his lies to his girlfriend. Finally she discovers herself as a new woman and gets eloped with her doctor boss. An excellent direction matched with excellent performances by Mrs. Sucheta Sathe and Vishal Chheda in the main roles and other artists. The play had music by Kishor Ranade. All the team members of the play made the play worth-watching as per feedback from the audience.

Shri Suresh Deshmukh, coordinator of the biennial convention of BMM being hosted by Maharashtra Mandal in July 2003 briefed the audience about the progress of the convention planning. The main highlight of his speech was that the registration form will be on the website within few days and requested members to register on the site http://www.bmm2003nyc.org as soon as possible to get “early bird” discount.

On this occasion the participants of Lezim program at the India Day Parade held on 18th August 2002 in New York, were given certificates thru the hands of Shri Purandare. Finally Raffle draw was held and two prizes were given to lucky winners. These prizes were given as donation by Mrs. Sadhana Karnik and Mrs Geeta Parab.

To mark the Diwali Festival, Diwali Faral was given free to all the members of audience. Approximately 300 persons attended the program.

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Ganapati, Gajanana, Ganesha – the God most worshipped by all the Maharashtrians, is not confined to Hindu religion alone. It was more than a Century ago, Lokmanya Tilak gave a social and cultural manifestation to the worship of Ganesha, which marked the beginning of Ganeshotsava – the Ganesha Festival.

It was in the same tradition the Maharashtra Mandal, New York celebrated Ganeshotsava on Sunday the 15^th September 2002 at Junior High School 217, Jamaica. Almost 250 members and their guests were present on the occasion, proving once again the growing enthusiasm of the members by participating in the activities of Maharashtra Mandal.

The Pooja, performed by a very graceful young couple – Amit and Vidisha Marathe, commenced at 10:00 AM under the guidance of priest Mrs. Sunita Vaze. Following the Pooja, a large gathering of people assembled on the stage and sung the Aaratis in traditional fervor.

After a brief announcement by Mr. Suresh Deshmukh on the progress of the preparations for proposed BMM Convention, Mrs. Meena Raje, the Program Coordinator of Maharashtra Mandal, introduced the visiting artist – Mr. Vasant Ajgaonkar, the famous singer from Maharashtra.

Mr. Ajgaonkar presented Geetramayan – Maharashtra’s evergreen musical program. In a short time, with the choicest songs, he brought forth the full lyrical prowess of Late G. D. Madgulkar (also known as modern Valmiki of Maharashtra). The great compositions by Late Sudhir Phadke took the older generation back in time while the younger generation got a glimpse of the most popular songs for last few decades. The program also turned out as an apt tribute to Mr. Sudhir Phadke, who recently passed away.

Mr. Ajgaonkar was ably accompanied by his son Mr. Koustubh Ajgaonkar on Tabla and Mr. Nagesh Shirsat on Harmonium. Mr. Sudhir Karnik, Vice President of Maharashtra Mandal concluded the session with a vote of thanks.

The climax of the day was Mahaprasad – the Grand Lunch with handful but choicest cuisine of different parts of India. It was also an opportunity for the people to mingle and exchange pleasantries. Finally, after the Uttarpooja, if was time to part company, promising each other to meet again next month at the Diwali Program.

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Summer is already on and to take the advantage of beautiful summer weather, we had our annual picnic on Sunday, 21^st July 2002 at Hempstead Lake State Park, Long Island, New York. This year we reverted back to our venue for the last many years before switching on to Valley Stream State Park up to last year.

This program was open to both members and non-members without any participation fee. We encouraged people to join the picnic with their family and friends. The assembly time was given as 11:00 a.m. but the few committee members arrived at the park well in advance to reserve the spot and also welcome the participating people. A banner of Maharashtra Mandal was also placed to enable members/non members to locate the spot.

By the way, very few people were aware that this was the Mandal’s 25^th Silver Jubilee picnic since we had first picnic way back in 1978. Since we could not arrange celebrations in time, we propose to have 25^th anniversary picnic on grand scale next year.

People started coming at the spot right from 11:00 a.m. till 12 noon. Fortunately the weather was fine on that day with less humidity and temperatures within the range on 75⁰-80⁰ F.With a lot of greenery at the spot, the day was really enjoyable. Approx. 60 persons participated.

At around 12 noon, BHEL was given by the Maharashtra Mandal to everybody present. Each one was asked to bring his/her own lunch. At around 1:30 p.m., all the food materials were placed on one table and we had a community lunch. In the meantime, people formed their own groups with some enjoying chatting with their old friends and some playing games. Our president Mrs. Neela Inamdar also practiced LEZIM with interested members that we propose to present at India Day parade in New York scheduled on Sunday 18^th August.

At around 4:30 p.m. we decided to wind up and everybody went home thinking of the next opportunity to be together.

One interesting thing. Mr. Rahul Kulkarni from New York City had joined the picnic by searching our website on the Internet, visiting the site thereafter and reading about our picnic program. When he mentioned this to the committee member there, everybody was happy and encouraged him to be a part of Maharashtra Mandal. Each one of you visiting the site is welcomed not only to participate in the programs but also be a part of Maharashtra Mandal

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The last program of Maharashtra Mandal held on 2nd June 2002 at 3:00 p.m. at Junior High School (JHS) 217, the usual venue in Jamaica, New York. It was the musical evening titled “RAAGMALA” with Marathi/Hindi songs based on Indian Classical Music presented by a group of local artists.

As you are well aware that Indian music, be it film music , or music from Marathi dramas, folk songs, spiritual songs or any other form of music, has a long tradition of classical music. Music composers from various parts of India have taken inspiration from this classical music tradition to create melody in their music. RAAGMALA was one such program which presented various types of songs based on classical music.

Initially an idea floated by Shirish Thanawala, formulated by Ravindra Raje, Suresh Benegal and presented by a group of talented artists from New York and New Jersey that included all the three persons mentioned above, RAAGMALA was not only a melodious musical evening but also a nostalgic experience to many from the audience.

The format of the program was as under:

First, the information about a particular Raga was given, then the abridged version of same Raga was played on the instruments, thereafter either Marathi or Hindi song and followed by another Hindi or Marathi song. One good thing was that not the whole songs but the short versions of songs were presented. Total 23 Ragas were covered. The songs presented showed some similarity since they were based on the same RAGA even though they were from different languages. But each song also had the stamp of the individual music composer. One popular Gujarati song “VAISHNAV JAN TO TEN KAHIYE” and two Marathi songs written by Vijay Pathare and composed by Ravindra Raje were also presented.

As far as artists are concerned, everybody did an excellent job. The main male singer Shirish Thanwala did an exemplary job. He was in the perfect tune and his songs gave tremendous joy to everybody in the audience. The three female singers were Mrs. Ranjana Katre, Mrs. Sujata Benegal and Mrs. Vaishali Patankar. Each of them rendered their songs so beautifully that there were requests for “ONCE MORE “ from the audience to most of the songs. Sudhir Karnik also presented one Gazal. Below is the list of some songs presented at the program: