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RICHMOND, VIRGINIA, October 7, 2004: The Festival of India has moved from John B. Cary Elementary School to the Arthur Ashe Center to the old Richmond Centre to the Richmond Coliseum and now to the Greater Richmond Convention Center. That’s the difference between attracting about 1,500 people throughout a weekend as the festival did in its early years, starting in 1981 and the 15,000 to 20,000 expected this weekend. This year’s event, taking place Saturday and Sunday and sponsored by the Hindu Center of Virginia, will offer about 100,000 square feet of space with room for 68 booths. Of those booths, 23 will provide authentic Indian cuisine. The rest will sell various types of jewelry, Indian artifacts and fashions, particularly saris, from vendors coming from states as diverse as New York and California. Ranjit Sen, co-chairman of the event, spearheaded the festival its first 13 years. He credits word-of-mouth, along with something even more natural, as a main reason for the increase in the number of festivalgoers. “I think more people learning about ethnic cultures is becoming very popular in America,” Sen said. “Just by being there, you can get a flavor of India with the food, the culture, the language, the sounds, the colors.” Another thing that has changed over the years is the variety of visual treats. Along with festival chairwoman Rama Jadhav, Sen has worked to bring “a different layout and different decorations” to this weekend’s affair, which has adopted the theme “A little piece of India in America.” Both days of the event also will feature traditional Indian music and dance and the opportunity for patrons to learn more about the culture of India.

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