Community Connection
By Adit Kumar
A capacity audience at the Vedic Cultural Centre on March 27, 2010 witnessed the Shradhanjali - a live musical concert - in tribute to Shri Prakash Gossai who passed away on June 15, 2009. The event was hosted by Vishali and Hemant Panwar of Panwar Music and Dance Productions and the facilities were made available free of charge by the Centre for the purpose.
The show featured performances by the teachers Vishali and Hemant Panwar and their students. Applauses rang out repeatedly in deeply felt appreciation of the performances of the teachers and the close to one hundred students ranging in ages from kindergarten to teenagers. Clad in intricately designed costumes, the students stole the hearts of the audience with their captivating performances, be it song or dance.
Vishali who was also one of the emcees of the program, told Indo Caribbean World that it was Shri Prakash Gossai who is responsible for her family being in Canada today and the concert was their (she and her husband's) way of showing their appreciation for his selfless acts to them and all of his followers. She added that Prakashji was a humble man who never divulged how he helped them and she was proud to let the world know of his magnanimity.
Vishali said that she and Hemant were attached as teachers of music and dance to the Indian Cultural Centre in Georgetown, Guyana and after their contract ended about three years ago Shri Prakashji encouraged them to bring their talent to Canada. She said he accompanied them to New York where he hosted a concert and introduced them to the North American audience. He then brought them to Canada where he was responsible for them landing a job at Vishnu Mandir to teach music and dance. Last year, she said, they branched off on their own launching Panwar Music and Dance Productions which "aspires to enrich the lives of youth, adults and communities that it touches." The success of the evening's Shradhanjali offering speaks volumes of the respect and appreciation the Panwars have earned in Toronto.
Hemant Panwar confessed his love and appreciation for the Guyanese community telling Indo Caribbean World that he went to Guyana as an Indian but left Guyana as a Guyanese.
In attendance was Guyana Consul General, Danny Doobay, who took part in lighting the diya to symbolically declare the program open. Others present included Prakashji’s daughter, Pratiksha Gossai, directors of the Vedic Cultural Centre and close friends of Prakashji who took turns in lighting the diyas.
The first item on the program was a Ganesh Stuti (song) done by the kindergarten students and they immediately stole the hearts of the audience with their rendition. This was followed by a Krishna bhajan and a Ram stuti. A film bhajan in Raag Bhopali by the mid teenage group was followed by songs by Hemant Panwar. He selected a few favourites of Prakashji in his medley of songs. This was followed by a Sargam dance by the Brampton students, Raag Yaman bhajan and a Shiv bhajan by students of the Scarborough branch.
Accompanying musicians were Bhaarat Tiwari on pakhawaj, Ravi Singh on tabla, Jeetu Singh on flute and Siraj Autar on keyboards.
Following the intermission there was a DVD presentation on the accomplishments of Shri Prakashji followed by a message from Danny Doobay who noted that Prakashji could have continued in the teaching profession and earn accolades but he opted for a spiritual path and finally served as an advisor to the President of Guyana. Other speakers including Pratiksha Gossai, extolled the virtues of Prakashji in their presentations.
The second half of the program featured dances and the program culminated with a kathak in which Vishali Panwar joined her students in bringing the curtains down on a wonderful tribute to a remarkable soul.
Shiv Misir, one of the close associates of Panwar Music and Dance Productions, told Indo Caribbean World that they are looking at acquiring a building in central Toronto to hold the music and dance classes. At the moment classes are held in Scarborough, Brampton and Richmond Hill.
Pranav Ashram will hold an evening of bhajans, geets, classical and semi-classical songs on Sat April 10th, 2010 at 6.30pm at the Ashram, 102 Rivalda Rd. Music instructor Dev Bansraj and his son Dev (Jr) of Saaz-o-Awaaz Academy of Indian Music and his Ashram students will be performing. Call Ashram at 416-741-4335 or Ramesh Ramkalawan 416-254- 6522.
A well attended multicultural information fair for seniors and their caregivers in the York Region was held on March 23, 2010 at the Vedic Cultural Centre from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm.
The objective of the fair was to provide information for care givers and care-giving services that may be available in the community and raising awareness of the services which seniors are entitled to as well as providing health and wellness information that seniors could use to enhance their lifestyles and improve their overall well being.
This educational health information session was skillfully combined with entertainment to bring the message of health and wellness across to the enthralled audience. In addition to the presentations on health matters there were song and dance items performed by seniors and youths alike. One senior demonstrated deep breathing exercises and various yoga postures that seniors could practise in their everyday life while another senior engaged the audience in ‘laughing yoga’ and showing how breath control and laughing could help in stress relief.
There were two workshop sessions one each before and after the lunch break. The first focused on health services to seniors while the second presented by Markham Stouffville Hospital addressed diabetes control, food and nutrition and simple exercises that seniors could engage in. The audience was told that most foods could be taken but in moderation. A reduction in intake of sweets was recommended and steaming foods rather than cooking in traditional ghee and oils was promoted. There was a caution against missing meals and the audience was encouraged to use foods from all the food groups. Whole wheat products were promoted versus foods prepared from bleached white flour. Simple aerobic exercises were demonstrated and for those with knee and mobility problems, stretching and muscle toning exercises were shown that could be performed while sitting on a chair. Seniors also had their blood pressure taken and blood sugar levels tested alerting them of the readings. Several information flyers were distributed promoting healthy life styles and practices and indicating the warning signals for the onset of disease and what could be done to prevent them.
Program organizer, Mulraj Sethi, President of Arya Samaj Markham Seniors Association, told Indo Caribbean World that the event was funded by the Ontario Seniors Secretariat which provided funds to the Ontario Society (Coalition) of Senior Citizens’ Organization for the hosting of five health fairs aimed at educating seniors across Ontario. This event, he said, was targeted to the South Asian community and addressed some of the health concerns that specifically affect that community with particular reference to the diseases to which they were prone, their eating habits and lifestyle activities.
Mr Sethi said that a number of prominent senior citizen organizations collaborated to make the event a success including Arya Samaj Markham Seniors Club, the Vedic Cultural Centre, Social Services Network of York Region, York Region Indian Seniors Club and the Markham Stouffville Hospital.
The program was declared open by Mr Sat Chopra, Chairman on the Vedic Cultural Centre. There were over 30 booths on display including those by the Canadian Diabetes Association, Alzheimer Society of York Region, Canadian Cancer Society, Ontario Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse and the Vishnu Mandir, among others.
President of the Alumni Association, Mr. Rishi Singh, a senior management consultant in the USA, said that this is the first of several initiatives which the JCCSS Alumni Association is contemplating. He noted that alumni of the school are now at the forefront in nearly every field of endeavor all around the world, and that they want to show their gratitude by giving back to the school. He added that this and other future contributions, are intended to improve the quality of the students' experience which in the future will translate to loyalty for their alma mater.
Headmistress of J.C. Chandisingh Secondary, Ms. Barbara Hamilton, stated that in 2009 many students who wrote IT for CSEC had to travel to the University of Guyana, Tain Campus to do their practicals and this was a major setback for the them. However, she noted that with the addition of a computer lab, more students would be able to write the examinations this year and perform better. She said that many times students would have to remain in the late hours at internet cafes to complete homework, where they are unsupervised. But now, with the school having its own computer lab, they can stay at the school under the supervision and guidance of teachers.
According to the headmistress, these computers will enhance the IT lab at the school and assist students to complete their homework on it.
Minister of Education, Shaik Baksh, who was present at the handing-over ceremony at the J.C. Chandisingh Secondary School, Rose Hall, Berbice stated that the school will now benefit from a functioning Information Technology (IT) laboratory which will facilitate the delivery of education. He said that this kind gesture by the Alumni and Mr. Ramnarayan supports the Ministry’s Education Strategic Plan (ESP) which caters for all secondary schools to be furnished with IT labs by 2013. All secondary schools will be pursuing Information and Communications Technology (ICT) by then and have fully equipped IT labs. Sixty schools, he said, have already met that mark. The ESP also caters for 50% of primary schools to have IT labs and currently 60 of 200 primary schools have already achieved this. He noted that although the equipment has been provided, there needs to be proper maintenance and said systems have been put in place where much more accountability is present with the Ministry’s officials regularly visiting and conducting audits.
The Minister urged the students to utilize the opportunity they are being afforded since having an IT lab would ensure that the digital divide among them is narrowed.
The program was chaired by the Pt. Rajpal's eldest son Ashwini Kumar who welcomed the guests and explained, where necessary, the relationships to the Rajpals of older family members in attendance which the younger members of the family would not have been aware of.
Guests came from the GTA, (many of them originally from Cane Grove, the Rajpal's hometown), New York, Winnipeg and London. The attendees, a mixture of adults, seniors and kids, included families from far and near, friends and admirers of the celebrants and members of the Arya Samaj community of which Pt Rajpal was an untiring activist throughout his life.
Contributions in the form of congratulatory messages, nostalgic anecdotes, or plain laudations of the virtuous nature of the two celebrants were offered by friends, families and the grandchildren of the couple. Some rendered bhajans and praises in musical form to account for a well balanced program.
In their contribution the grandchildren attested to the good relationship they had with their Ajaa/Ajee and Nana/Nani. Their Ajaa/Nana would teach them "a little bit of Hindi and a little bit of Yoga." After the lessons he would walk them "to the Shell gas station to buy us slurpees." Returning home, their Ajee/Nani would have prepared some kind of delicious meal which they all partook of and enjoyed. "After this we would usually end off the day by learning and later on, singing a bhajan," was their unanimous testimony.
The Rajpals who migrated to Canada in 1979, first settled in Winnipeg and later moved to Toronto. Their children are scattered across Canada and the United States. They have five sons and one daughter: Ashwini (Asne) Kumar, Vidya Sagar, Surendra, Roma, Rajendra and Ravi. Their eleven grandchildren are: Mellissa Rajpal (London), Mark Rajpal (Edmonton), Michelle Rajpal (London), Usha Rajpal (Brampton), Vijai Rajpal (Seattle), Sanjay Rajpal (Brampton), Chandrika Rajpal (Brampton), Anil Rajpal (Seattle), Tiffany Essau (Winnipeg), Aruna Rajpal (Brampton), and Anjali Rajpal (Brampton).
The family wishes to thank those who attended the occasion or in one way or the other contributed to its success.