A lovely display of Indian attire, great music and a lovely dinner made the Annual Diwali dinner sponsored by Gurjar and Patidar Samaj a very special evening. The event was held on Nov 6 at the Hilton Hotel in Woburn, MA.
 
The Patidar Samaj of New England Incorporated, a non-profit organization was established in 1987 to serve as a forum for Patidar ethnic community with origin in India and to promote and preserve their cultural and historic heritage among themselves, their children and patrons. The Samaj is based in New England with members from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Connecticut.

The Patidar community--representing an ethnic group often referred as Patels, Amins and Desais--finds its roots in Gujarat state, located in the western part of India. The ancestry of this community lies in a tradition of farming and civic defense of society, and has a uniqueness of culture, heritage, social customs and manner which makes it different from other diverse ethnic and tribal groups in India and its Gujarat state. The history of the Patel community in India is very interesting. It is believed that the Patels were originally from Punjab who migrated to Gujarat when they were attacked by the Afghan army in 1000 AD.

Gurjar on the other hand  in not restricted to any particular Gujarathi group. "The Indian community that makes up most of our membership comes from western state of India, Gujarat. It gets its name from "Gujjar Rashtra", the land of the Gujjars, a migrant tribe who came to India in the wake of the invading Huns in the 5th century. The history of Gujarat dates back to 2000 BC. It is also believed that Lord Krishna left Mathura to settle on the west coast of Saurashtra at Dwarka. Since the beginning of time Gujarat has been the witness to the march of civilization. From the early river valley civilizations, to the golden age of Indian history Gujarat has been home to a multitude of cultures" declares the website.

This year both the groups got together to have this wonderful celebration of Diwali as we come together as Gujarathis, said the two Presidents as they welcomed the guests.

A  music program and a fabulous dinner by Masala Art made for a wonderful evening and a lovely Diwali.

|