Jamshedpur, May 15: A day ago the Madrassi Sammelani reverberated with religious chants to celebrate Shankara Jayanti. The next day, the classic Kanjeevarams gave way to sequined tops and designer jeans while a peppy tune from Dhoom blasted all around.
This time, the Tamil community stepped in their dancing shoes and decided to bend the back with the DJ Nite, making its maiden appearance at the Sammelani.
The food mela at the DJ Nite, aptly called Temptations, was the icing on the cake. A mosaic of Indian cuisine from across the pockets of the country featured on the list. The mouth-watering golgappas from the chatpata chaat streets of Mumbai to the chole-bhature of the Punjabi haats and lip-smacking dahi vadas from down south, the food fair saw a fare to titillate the taste buds.
The main course also saw a distinct shift from the traditional Tamil paradigm with sambhar and dosa making way for Chinese cuisine along with curd rice providing a hint of the roots. The famous bengali ?pias? and Tamil Nadu?s ?Jangri? (read imrati) providing the sweet ending to the ravishing main course.
?We have been holding innumerable functions for our members from religious ceremonies to dance competitions. But all these were restricted to the traditional Tamilian fervour. Now, we felt the need to introduce something contemporary for them. The concept of a DJ Nite was met with an astounding response,? said Shankar, general secretary, Madrassi Sammelani.
The organisers had roped in Mukhtar Singh, a local DJ, for the DJ Nite. ?Though we?ve held several fashion shows and choreography events earlier, the flavour was confined to our community only. This time, we wanted to move away and do something different. Most of our community members visit clubs and discs on an individual level. This programme would bring the entire community together in such an endeavour,? Shankar added.
Denying the DJ Nite was an anathema to the conservatism that was imperative to the Tamil culture, Shankar stated that Tamils, known to be conservative, were also open to all the amenities of modern life. The DJ Nite was also an attempt to bring all those families into the mainstream who were languishing in the margins.
?When our younger generation, most of whom study in English medium schools, are getting a taste of the modern life, why not the grown-ups?? argued Shankar.
Malthi Venkatraman, a member of the sammelani, said by opening up its horizons, the Sammelani is in no way deviating from the culture.
