The second annual Diwali Fest brought out over 400 people for a night of cultural performances and celebration on Oct. 19 at the Chestermere Rec Centre.
“It was overwhelming. There was excellent attendance, excellent performances, and very good food,” said Present of the Multicultural Youth Society of Chestermere and the Diwali Fest Event Organizer Satish Lal.
“People were very happy, very excited, and very energized,” Lal added. “This event aligns with the Diwali celebration.”
Many groups and influential Chestermere residents attended the Diwali Fest, including the City of Chestermere, MLA Leela Aheer, and members of the Wheatland Crisis Society.
“We started our program with the Canada national anthem, the first nation’s acknowledgment, then we had cultural performances, Bollywood performances, singing by local artists, and after dinner there was an open dance floor,” Lal said.
“A lot of the performers did very well in cultural dances with very colourful dressings,” he said.
He added, “This event is very important, the main message is good over evil, light over darkness and it’s signifying the triumph of light over darkness.”
Although the Diwali Fest was every successful, it is difficult to host any larger of an event in the community due to space constraints.
“In Chestermere, it’s difficult to do anything bigger than this, because the Chestermere Rec Centre main hall is the biggest hall in Chestermere,” Lal said.
The event organizers had planned to release fireworks during the Diwali Fest. However, they were unable because of the distance from the Chestermere Rec Centre to the lake.
“Planning for the fireworks didn’t go as planned, and the distance from the rec centre to the lake was too far for people to really enjoy the fireworks,” Lal said.
Lal’s goal with the Multicultural Youth Society of Chestermere is to encourage openness of the community and to collaborate with other groups or organizations within the community to celebrate and recognize each other’s culture.
“We want to be part of the community, and we want Chestermere to be involved. We’re open to helping others during events, and we just want Chestermere to be connected and be diverse,” Lal said.
The Multicultural Youth Society of Chestermere is working to keep youth involved within the community and pursue their own culture.
“We should bring awareness to everyone’s cultures, so they can really understand, appreciate, and promote each other’s cultures and respect each other’s cultures,” Lal said.
“That’s our goal, is to be aware of everybody’s cultures living around you, respect it, and celebrate with them,” he said.
Adding, “If somebody else is celebrating, we can come and join hands and celebrate together. we want to understand their cultures, respect their beliefs, and celebrate with them.”
