Indians gear up for India Day Parade celebrations

AS INDIANS back home get ready to celebrate the 59th anniversary of their freedom from the British colonial rulers in 1947, more than two million expatriates here are gearing up for the occasion.

Unlike traditional hosting of tri-color and speeches by political leaders, Indian Americans here will celebrate the occasion by taking out colorful parades in various part of the US.

Being organized every year since 1981, the India Day Parade is now organized at more than a dozen major places across the US.

Some of the major centers where the India Day Parade is scheduled for this year are Oak Tree Road New Jersey on August 13, New York on August 20, Norwalk in California on August 12, Los Angeles in California on August 19, Dallas in Texas on August 12 and in Chicago on August 19 and 20 by two rival organizations.

In many other cities where the parades are not held, people observe the day as India Day as will be observed in Tampa, Florida on August 19.

This is a great effort on the part of the community, said Jagat Motwani, marshall of the first India Day Parade which was held in the Big Apple by the Federation of Indian Americans.

Motwani, one of the persons behind launching the India Day Parade, said: Our purpose was to bring awareness about India and Indians in the mainstream community. Our aim was to bring the entire community at one single platform. We all though, when other ethnic communities have their parades, why not we have it, he said.

Motwani, who has written several books on the Indian Americans, said the expansion of India Day Parade to all over the US to big and small cities is a great thing for the community.

In fact, the India Day Parade has come a long way. When it started, the organizers had a tough time organizing funds and seeking the required permission from the city authorities. While the organizers used to collect small amounts like $25 and $10 earlier, the situations is much better now.

Funding is not a problem now and at times, the money is in excess of what is required, say the organizers.

Mayors of the city usually attend the parades wherever they are held. Given that the community is fast spreading its sphere of influence and that India is seen as an emerging global power and with the new strategic relationship between the two countries, at times there is a rush for political leadership to join the parade. In many place the State Governors join the parade as Grand Marshals.

The parade is a major hit in most cities and in places like New York, it is now considered to be a major event of the calendar year. Thousands of people line up on both sides of the road as the parade along with many floats pass the route.

At most of these parades, it is the film stars who are the grand marshals. In New York, the parade traditionally has seen almost all the Bollywood stars as grand marshals.