Indians Celebrate 7th Hamara Desi Christmas

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STAFFORD: Houston’s one and only Indian Christmas celebration was hosted last saturday, December 20, at the Stafford Civic Center. As always the auditorium was packed to an audience of an awe inspiring program by Houston Indian Fellowship.

The Houston Indian Fellowship (HIF), a group of Indians from across the metropolitan Houston area, conducts an annual Christmas Celebration to share the joy and cheer of Christmas with Indians in Houston from different walks of faith in addition to other events such as cricket championships and painting competitions in order to bring the community together for a time of fun. They also provide free health care for the needy.

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The admission for the event was free and it was followed by complimentary dinner for all the attendees.  The dinner was catered by the acclaimed Annam Indian Cuisine.

HIF, by hosting this event and providing free health care to the needy, strives to bring Christmas cheer to people from different faiths and regions of India.

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Texas House Representative, Rick Miller, graced the occasion as the chief guest of the event. His simple speech with the underlying message of the true meaning of Christmas deeply moved the audience.

This year’s celebration included the Life Story of Jesus, a themed presentation including skits, songs and Bollywood-style dances, portraying the real meaning of Christmas.  The event kicked off with a beautiful dance to the tune of the famous number Jingle bells followed by a Bollywood-style dance by students from the University of Houston. The audience was even given a small lesson on ‘Dancing Bollywood style’.

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The children of HIF enacted the Nativity scene, a drama with beautiful costumes, re-telling the story of the birth of Jesus 2,000 years ago in a little town called Bethlehem. The stage was overflowing with vibrant colors as a variety of classical Indian dances and songs telling of God’s Love were presented. A beautiful rendition of the miracle of Jesus feeding 5000 people with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fishes was presented as a dance to the song “Paanch Roti” by Anil Kant. The highlight of the event was an awe inspiring enactment of the Crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus – the true reason for and meaning of Christmas.

The audience was clinging to the edges of their seats as HIF performed these programs. The message behind this performance was to show that the real meaning of the Birth of Jesus is in the redemption of mankind on the Cross by the Love of God. Christopher Deepak wrapped up the event with a succinct Christmas message that showed the Love of God and the true joy of Christmas to the audience.

Shirley Israel a member of the Houston Indian fellowship awarded the winners of the painting competition. Samsung tablets were given to the first prize winners in each category and the second prize winners were given a gift card.

Finally everyone in the audience joined Santa and the HIF team to the dance number ‘We wish you a Merry Christmas’ in sharing Christmas joy and Cheer. The boisterous MC Sharon Samuel hosted this year’s event with elegance and grace.

The audience was raving about the event. “Wow! This is the best Desi event I have been to in the Houston area! A well organized and well catered event. The programs were crisp, clear and professional’.

Reuben Joseph,  one of the coordinators said ‘We come together and pool our talents to come up with an enjoyable event! this gives us a wonderful experience and we have a lot of fun doing it’. Deepak Israel,  a member of HIF proudly stated, “This event brings an opportunity to celebrate the Christmas Season of joy and cheer with fellow Indians who come from different walks of faith. He said to ‘Expect a greater and bigger event next year!’  Dr. Robello Samuel, integral member of HIF, said “Seeing the joy of Christmas on the faces of the audience gives me great satisfaction as that is the whole idea behind the celebration!”

The sponsors for this event were Red Oaks Hospital, Annam Indian Cuisine, New York Life and other individuals. The University of Houston students along with other families and friends helped behind the scenes – all of which helped make this celebration a memorable one.

Houston Indian Fellowship would also like to invite anyone interested in performing or helping at the 8th annual Hamara Desi Christmas event scheduled for the 19th of December 2015 to please contact Dr. Robello Samuel at 832-275-8810 or Deepak Israel at 832-419-0967 or via email to info@hamaradesichristmas.org. You may also visit them at  www.hamaradesichristmas.org