Ekatva - lovelier year by year

Exclusively for the benefit of those who missed yesterday the Ekatva-2019, SFV’s iconic Unity in Diversity function, I shall do a walk-through, simultaneously pacifying them not to lose heart. Given that Ekatva celebration is getting lovelier year by year, there is always a next time. Just be sure not to miss it next year. But definitely attend it, don’t procrastinate on the premise it would be still better a year later.

The vast lawn in front of Alder was selected to host the day-long event. It was divided into two parts. The morning session for prize distribution, and the evening for cultural programme. Yes, a month preceding the event the Sports Sub Committee was busy conducting a series of tournaments - Badminton, Billiards, Carrom, Chess… Sports events for all age groups included  walkathon, marathon, lemon and spoon race, and many more. Kudos organizers.

A total of 54 stalls in two rows had been erected on the path leading to Alder Gate, resembling no less than a marketplace erected for a Bollywood movie. The stalls included garments, fashion items for ladies, corporate sector, banking, finance, computer, bicycles, and food stalls of all kinds. Yes, as always, the crowd preferred to move around the food stalls.

The stage, public address system, background music, and other attendant items, all filled the bill eminently, leaving nothing to be desired.  Simply put, the way things were meticulously organized, one could rely on them to host an event of the Kumbh Mela magnitude.

Nothing attracts crowd without a teaser or two of the events to come. Kudos to Ambika Suresh for bringing forth from left, right and centre, a host of imaginative posters. Some of these included: “Kudiya Da Ciddha, Soul Sweepers, Fitness Fanatics, Dramebaaz Girls, Hipori Dance Battle, Maya Mantra, Invocation – An Ode to Shri  Ganesha, Fashion Fiesta, Precious Droplet, Dance of Yoga, Beat the Beauties, Funny Lil’ Clowns. Superb Ambika ji.

More than ever, residents were anxious to reserve in advance seats for themselves and their near and dear ones. Why go far. Aunty sent me as an advance party to reserve three more seats as she and another couple would make their presence at the venue a little later, with categoric instructions: the seats should be in the front row and in the centre; nothing more, nothing less. That is a different thing that despite being at the venue forty-minutes earlier, the seats we wangled were in the second, fifth and seventh rows.

The entire programme was simply fantastic. Given the unending number of items staged, if I write a gist of each, the write-up will assume episodic proportions. Luckily you have got a better idea from the titles of Ambika’s teaser posters.

Using a five-star parameter, I would give 3.5 to a majority, 4 to a few and 5 to one. Even on a conservative estimate nothing scores less than 3. Please don’t ask me a detailed break up. I enjoy living in this community, and would like to continue.

Also, I was absent for about thirty minutes trying out the food stalls. In the interim I have missed some important numbers. One I know was the Yoga dance. Therefore accept my rating with a pinch of salt.

As for the impact the entire evening had on me, suffice it to say that I got so much involved in the goings-on that I wondered why I shouldn’t be doing something of my own. And that reminded me that maybe next year I should repeat what we, a few senior couples, had enacted in unison in our Hebbal apartment complex a few years ago: “ऐ मेरी ज़ोहरा ज़बीं, तुझे मालूम नहीं, तू अभी तक है हंसीं, और मैं जवां…’ and a few other numbers of the 60s and 70s.

To sum up, it is like the performance of a cricket team. It is the total that matters. One player might score less than 10, another close to 50, and one 100. What matters is the total that the team puts up. In this context, Ekavta-2019 has put up a formidable total, and it is for EKatva-2020 to outperform it. Good luck.