HOUSTON, TEXAS, August 27, 2005: Five thousand Hindus, plus several hundred of their non-Hindu friends and neighbors, attended the 16th Annual Community-Wide Janmashtami Celebration at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston on Saturday, August 27, 2005. Attendees, celebrating the birthday of Lord Krishna, enjoyed the colorful booths, watched a well-organized cultural program with music and dance, participated in the Raas Garba dance wishing it would not end, honored Akhil Chopra, and, in general, had a great time. Jay Aiyer perhaps echoed the sentiments of many attendees, saying “The celebration was wonderful and it is proof that our cultural and religious traditions are thriving in Houston.” Highly decorated police officer Muzaffar H. Siddiqi, attending the festival for the first time, commented on the atmosphere “charged with love, excitement, happiness and people dancing and celebrating in the most vibrant and colorful traditional attire.” He also mentioned that he enjoyed “an evening full of excitement.”
Many of those attending stated that the cultural program was the best in many years. Notable was that the cultural program ended with a spectacular finale by Sreepadam School of Arts, a RadhaKrishna dance item by 13- to 21-year-old girls depicting prem/bhakthi (love and devotion) and seva (service) of Radha and the gopikas for Krishna. “All the performances made me think of professional dancers” was the comment of Evelyn Turner. Another first-time attendee, Dale Andrews, said, “The cultural dances were magnificent.” Anu Upda said ” It was a wonderful experience to see people, young and old coming together to celebrate Janmashtami which was enjoyed by everyone”.