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Date: 11/1/2022
AMHERST – The first Amherst South Asian Fall Festival will be hosted at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Amherst at 121 N. Pleasant St. on Nov. 5 from 3:30 to 6 p.m. Town Councilor Shalini Bahl-Milne is organizing the event along with members of the local South Asian community.
According to Bahl-Milne, the festival will consist of two parts. It will begin with displays from local artists, including poetry, music and Bharatanatyam dancing, a traditional Indian style. Bahl-Milne explained that “the idea is that young people from South Asian cultures can feel proud in their heritage” by engaging in their native culture as well as learning about traditions from other South Asian countries and cultures.”
The performances will last until 4:30 p.m., at which point the festival will shift to a Bollywood-style dance party. The party will be DJ’d by Vidhi Salla, a Vermont radio host who is known for organizing Indian-themed events, and she will also be teaching participants some Bollywood dance moves. Snacks will be available, and the event will be catered by local South Asian restaurants. Festivalgoers can receive henna tattoos, and a Pakistani art truck will be parked outside for exhibition.
Bahl-Milne said that even though the festival will miss the date narrowly, it can be partially considered a loose celebration of Diwali, a holiday celebrated by several religions and nations in South Asia. She described one of the rituals which will be performed.
“We will do some rituals for Diwali such as lighting the lamp, which is symbolic with us coming inwards and rekindling our intentions. As we light this lamp, we are connecting with the light within us, to be guided by wisdom…it’s about dispelling the darkness of ignorance and connecting with our own wisdom, compassion, creativity and prosperity.”
However, Bahl-Milne pointed out that Diwali is not the only holiday being celebrated.
“While Diwali is one of the main holidays celebrated in the Indian subcontinent, there are many other holidays celebrated by South Asians during this season including Bandi Chhor Diwas (a Sikh holiday), Twin holy birthdays of Báb and Bahá’u’lláh (a Bahá’í holiday), and Ill Full Moon Poya (celebrated in Sri Lanka).”
The event will be supported and funded in part by the Amherst Business Improvement District, Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce, The Big Basket at the Mill District, The Valley Dentists, Pioneer Valley Indian Association, and the Town of Amherst itself. Bahl-Milne also mentioned that some government officials will be in attendance, including state Sen. Jo Comerford.
“Sen. Jo Comerford just confirmed that she will be attending and state Rep. Mindy Domb has been invited along with town councilors, town manager, CRESS community responders, and town staff, so the community has an opportunity to meet with the people who serve them.”
She encouraged all members of the South Asian community to attend. She similarly encouraged members of other ethnicities to come and experience South Asian culture firsthand.
“From my own experience of moving to Amherst from India in 2001 with my seven-year old son, we were trying so hard to fit into this new culture that we really tried to hide our Indianness, in terms of the clothes we wore, or celebrating Christmas and Easter, but not really celebrating our own festivals as much … Knowing what I know now, I would have wanted my son to grow up with more pride in the Indian music, dance and so forth. So I hope this is an opportunity for the young people to see how others are appreciating their culture also.”