Fourteen-year-old Neel Sethi of Disney’s “The Jungle Book” fame will be one of the main draws at the 29th annual Deepavali Festival at the South Street Seaport in New York City on October 2. Sethi will meet and interact with audiences at the children’s area. Vidya Vox, an Indian-born American singer who has 53 million YouTube viewers, will perform live alongside Shankar Tucker and Jomy George at the event which will start from 12 noon and end at 7 P.M., culminating in a spectacular display of live fireworks.
Organized by the Association of Indians in America, N.Y. Chapter, the annual festival, is expected to attract hundreds of thousands of people from the region, while showcasing Indian culture in the heart of New York City.
The annual event will be a full day extravaganza celebrating tradition, culture and oneness, with numerous food and clothing vendors, corporate booths, children’s area, health kiosk, performances and activities for the whole family.
The highly sought after inter-collegiate dance competition, Naach Inferno enters its 3rd year this year as it showcases dances fusing both East and West cultures. Presented by Life OK and Star Plus, the competition will be telecasted globally. Arya International will make sure the audience learns some Bollywood dance moves and participates in open dance floor. Numerous local performing arts schools and academies will also showcase their talents on stages throughout the day.
This year, Deepavali also marks the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi. To mark the occasion there will be a special tribute to Gandhi along with an essay and drawing competition for the youth to showcase the importance and meaning of peace.
The event culminates with a VIP Hour which has in the past been attended by the governor and mayor of New York among others. This year, support from sponsors such as CheapOAir.com, Qatar Airways, Toyota, New York Life, MoneyGram, Kotak Mahindra, New York Life, HAB Bank, Navika Capital, Star Plus, Sony Entertainment, Jus Punjabi, TV Asia, amongst many others have helped made this event possible. For more information, please find AIA-NY on Facebook or visit its website at www.theaiany.org
