Flowerful Bathukamma Festival in Houston

Houston, Texas: For the fourth year in a row, Houston successfully celebrated Bathukamma Sambaralu (a Festival) with record attendance at Sri Ashtalakshmi Temple on October 20th, 2012. Over 1,000 people joined the festivities from the Greater Houston area. The weather and pious atmosphere at the Temple provided an ideal stage for this outdoor community event. Bathukamma Sambaralu in Houston was designed to commemorate the festivities of all nine days including Bathukamma preparation, singing, dancing, and a festive dinner. The event was organized with the help of numerous committed volunteers and donors to promote Telugu culture and heritage.

Bathukamma is a popular festival in several southern regions of India that brings people closer for a common good to share, enjoy, and celebrate life. 'Bathuku' in Telugu means life and 'amma' means mother. In addition to celebrating life with much pomp and pageantry, this festival honors and prays to Goddess Gauri. The festival begins on the 1st day of Aswiyuja (Ashwin) and end on 9th day - maha navami.

Bathukamma is the most 'flowerful' festival that is celebrated with family and friends. Bathukamma is a beautiful flower stack arranged with seasonal flowers on a plate like base in several concentric layers, of potter's clay like a cone. Preparing Bathukamma is a joyful activity for the entire family. Bathukammas prepared by Houstonians showcased their passion for native culture and heritage. Over 50 bathukammas in distinct colors and sizes were specially made for the occasion by the participating families. The event festivities started with families bringing Bathukammas to the temple. All Bathukammas were placed on the center stage. The flower arrangements were colorful and creative; some were small and unique while others were large and impressive.

The event started at 6:30 pm with puja by Sriman Ugandhara Swami, resident priest of Sri Ashtalakshmi temple, by invoking Goddess, the life giver, for societal prosperity and good wishes. People gathered around Bathukamma stage to participate in this community event to receive the blessing of Goddess Gauri. This stage became the center of the festivities for the evening. The music and dance festivities started with melodious and energetic Bathukamma song by Lakshmi Medi, Madhavi Voma, Saritha Meela, and Pratima Boorgu.

All women and girls in colorful and ethnic sarees and dresses danced as a group around the Bathukammas. As the evening progressed, the circular group dances expanded as over 300 ladies and children participated in the synchronized dancing with hand claps. Occasionally men also formed their small dancing groups and participated in the festivities. The songs praised Goddess Gauri' patron Goddess of womanhood while describing stories of common woman, their dreams and aspirations. Overall we showcased Telugu native culture in every moment of the festival e.g. an outdoor setting, beautiful weather, native flowers and colors, ethnic attire, simple yet powerful prayers, native music and dance, ethnic food, volunteering and more importantly a sense of natural bonding between us. Everyone danced for non-stop 2 hours to the rhythm of music. The uniqueness of this festival is that everyone is an active participant from the beginning to an end.

Moonwalks were also arranged for the kids to enjoy while parents were actively participating in the music and dance. The bathukamma music team energized the participants with pre-recorded songs.

The awards were announced at 8:30 pm by Karunakar Chowdavarapu for the best three Bathukammas. The winners for 2012 best Bathukammas -Prabha & Karuna Davlapur, Rama & Rama Rao Medi, and Anita & Vijay Devireddy. All Bathukamma participants also received memento as a token of appreciation. Finally, nimajjanam (immersion of Bathukammas in water) was done at a specially arranged pool. The evening ended with delicious festive dinner exclusively prepared by Mayuri Restaurant and Masala India Cuisine.

The credit goes to everyone for taking this event so personal by enthusiastically participating in the celebrations. Thanks to the entire team of volunteers who served the event with special care and a smile on their face always. Acknowledgements were made for the donors, sponsors, Voice of Asia, Indo-American news, India Herald, Andhra Mirchi Radio, and Radio Hungama. Special thanks to Sri Ashtalakshmi Temple committee for supporting the event.

Bangar Reddy Aaloori, Karunaker Chowdarapu, Shanker Pabba, Lakshmi Medi and Chary Jonnada, the founding members of Bathukamma Sambaralu, thanked the people for their active participation and contribution. Bangar Reddy praised Houstonians for their rich legacy of maintaining culture and heritage. The Chair and Co-chair of the event Chary Jonnada and Rajender Aparasu thanked the organizing committee members and team leads for various activities ranging from food to stage set-up. They also thanked individual donors and dedicated volunteers that contributed immensely to the grand success of this free event.

Festivals like Bathukamma provide an ideal platform for people to come together to share joy and celebrate life with blessings from Goddess Gauri. It was a perfect ending for a great outdoor event!

For more details about the event please visit http://www.bathukammasambaralu.org