Atlanta, GA, October 26, 2021: On the fall evening of October 23rd 2021, the Georgia Chapter of the Odisha Society of Americas (OSA-GA) celebrated Kumara Utsava at North Gwinnett High School in Suwanee, Georgia.
The festive extravaganza showcased the traditions of Odisha in with an amazing cultural tableau of music, dance, songs, drama, and other vivid art forms from all regions of Odisha. The grand celebration started with a video message from the honorable Consul General of India in Atlanta Dr. Swati V Kulkarni, wishing all the success for the event. The chief guest, Additional Consul General of India in Atlanta Madan Kumar Ghidiyal inaugurated the event by lighting lamps and addressed the audience.
During this auspicious month, we worship the divine mother invoking the feminine energy within every life force. For this Sharad Purnima, OSA-Georgia Chapter has taken great efforts to celebrate this womanhood in all her forms, colors, and manifestations.
The traditional depiction of Kumar Utsav includes maidens offering prayers to the Sun God early in the morning and as the harvest full moon adorns the sky, they worship Lord Kartikeya (son of Shiva Parvati). During the evening prayers, they offer moon-shaped prasad to the Moon God and pray for a beautiful, successful life. In the end, everybody enjoys the beautiful moonlit night with the traditional song and dance of Kumar Purnima.
The Georgia Odia families volunteered with great commitment to make every aspect of this event come alive for the 400 guests. Their commitment also included promoting welfare back in Odisha as part of the proceeds went to Adruta Children’s Home, an organization in Odisha focused on rehabilitating children in need of care and protection.
The motto of the Georgia Odia community is to bestow the next generation with the unique inheritance of Odisha through such cultural events. Days leading to this event, there were in-depth explanations provided to the younger generation regarding the scientific background and importance of these rituals.
Lastly, this event brought together the spirit of harmony and camaraderie in the community. Smiling joyful faces of all the participants were a testimony to the grand success of this maiden event of OSA-Georgia in the Atlanta region.
