Chhenra Collage (A collage torn) – Bangla Play

September 21, 2002 4:30 pm.
Cubberly Theatre, Palo Alto.

Email: banglanatak@yahoo.com
Ph: Ipshita, Gargi, Sayantani, Ruchira
Tickets: $10

Talk with Rangaswamy Elango and Professor R. Rajagopal

ASHA for EDUCATION and ASSOCIATION FOR INDIA’S DEVELOPMENT
present
________________________________________________________________

RANGASWAMY ELANGO and Prof.R.RAJAGOPAL

Two dynamic individuals working in rural development work in
different parts of Tamil Nadu
_______________________________________________________________

Venue: Gates 104, Stanford University.
Date: 15 September 2002.
Time: 4pm – 8pm.

Schedule:

4:00 PM: Rangawamy Elango: Panchayat President, Kuthambakkam village, TN.

An experiment in SELF-GOVERNANCE (swaraj), SELF-RELIANCE AND ECO-FRIENDLY DEVELOPMENT

Elango is here to tell the story
.of Kuthambakkam.
.of his struggles as a dalit.
.of how villages lost their self-organising capacity after colonialism.
.of how the constitutional amendment on panchayati raj (local self-governance) shows a new way towards realising self-reliance and self-sufficiency.
.of how Kuthambakkam is an inspiration to about 400 other village leaders in TN.

Contact: Kaustubh Desai
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6:00 PM: Prof R.Rajagopalan: Director, International Ocean Institute,

International Ocean Institute, Operational Centre (India) at IIT Madras is a division of the Foundation for Sustainable Development (India). This Foundation is a Trust set up in August 1998 by IIT Madras in partnership with the International Ocean Institute (IOI), Malta. IOI is a global NGO working to promote awareness, research, consultancy, training and education for the sustainable use of the oceans and the development of the poorer coastal communities. IOI India has been
functioning at IIT Madras since 1993. Currently Asha funds IOI projects in five villages. Prof.RR’s target is to secure funding for at least five more villages before the end of the  year.

Each meeting could follow the format:
o brief introduction,
o 10-minute film on the Asha projects,
o two more 10-minute films on our women-oriented activities and ecology projects
o Q&A on the status of children’s education in India (optional)

Visit http://www.ashanet.org/stanford for details

Contact: sunderk@stanford.edu (Sunder)

Work an Hour 2002

July 4 – Sept 5, 2002
WAH closed on September 5, 2002. This year Asha raised over $90,000 from about 1300 donors. Thank you to all friends and volunteers of Asha who supported us in this.
Asha’s largest annual event where you can donate at least an hour or more of your salary towards 4 education projects for the underprivileged children in India. This event runs from July 4 to August 15, 2002. This year the target is $100,000. Asha-Stanford is coordinating the event this year.

Prithvi Concert

Asha for Education presents Prithvi – A Bay Area band performing songs from Hindi films and popular albums

June 9, 2002 at 6 p.m.
Santa Clara Convention Center,
5001 Great America Parkway,
Santa Clara, CA 95054,
Ph: (408) 748-7000.
Tickets: $10 (regular seating), $15 (preferred seating).

Rabindra Sandhya

June 2, 2002

Rabindra Sandhya 2002

A Celebration of Tagore’s Creativity

Kresge Auditorium at Stanford, CA; June 2^nd 2002, 3: 00 PM Exact

An Asha-Stanford Production

Second year of Rabindra Sandhya

One of the most magnificent and creative lives in the history of mankind, Rabindranath Tagore inspired and invoked new attributions to innumerous lives with his creation; the everlasting gifts of infinite joy. In his relentless pursuit towards finding an expression for his exuberant ecstasy, at his very existence on earth and the inner riches of the human soul, his literary and other achievements made him a legend in his lifetime.

This Nobel laureate poet was also a master musician, a world-class painter, a radical educationist, a conservationist, a freedom fighter and a social reformer. His vast treasury of poems that touched all the possible realms of human emotion and life made him universally acclaimed as an incomparable poetic genius. His literary creation included numerous essays, travelogues, letters, diaries, short stories, novels and dramas with contemporary socio-economic and political issues.

His involvement and experimentations with performing arts brought a new cultural revolution in Bengal at the dawn of twentieth century. He created an extraordinary new school of music, wrote various dramas with new forms and concepts and introduced several ravishing musicals that still charm this 21^st century world. Tagore’s creation is an everlasting resource for artists in the various fields of entertainment even today.

Tagore’s creations were appreciated by contemporary geniuses all over the world; but unfortunately not much initiative had been taken to present this brilliant treasure to the greater world outside the limits of Bengali speaking sub domain. The present world of information revolution calls for a change of this scenario. Everyday we are encountering the riches and depths of various cultures and forms of entertainment hitherto unknown to us. Knowledge and the joy of adoption of diverse cultural portfolios are enriching our lives. Similarly the linguistic barrier needs to broken for worldwide appreciation of Tagore’s creations; but translation of Tagore’s works or presentation of his creative arts in a universal form, is an enormous and daunting task. It is really a job for an institution and a genuine result can be achieved only by a concerted and focused effort.

In Rabindra Sandhya 2002, we are taking a small step towards this very big goal. Your support and encouragement will definitely take it one step further.

Rabindra Sandhya 2002 Program

Rabindra Sandhya 2002 is a five-hour long program, conceived to offer a glimpse into the vast panorama of Tagore’s creativity. Please look into the following Program detail, in order to decide the program of your interest.

Different Moods of Rabindrasangeet: Solo Presentation of Tagore’s Music

Individual Musical Performance by talented and expert singers from the Bay area. Our artists will present a unique bouquet collected from the orchard of Tagore’s music, portraying different categories, moods and forms.

Gahi Eksaathe (We Sing in Unison): A Chorus Presentation of Tagores Music

An assortment of popular Tagore Songs, which have captivated the hearts of thousands by their motivation and inspiration; and provided expressions to our budding emotions and consoled us when we were dejected. Gahi Eksathe is a revisit to those golden moments: We request the audience to join in the chorus for sharing the joy of Tagore’s music.

Ritur Khela (Play of the Seasons): A Children’s Performance

From his early child hood, Rabindranath possessed an association towards the nature and its elements. In his poems and lyrics sometimes the sudden rain clouds are like a lively boy playing in the fields, sometimes the spring blossoms peep like a shy girl. Children aged between 6 to 13 years will sing, dance and tell us how they play along, with the seasons in the Tagore world.

Naba Rabi Kirane (In the Rays of the Rising Sun): An Expression

Rabindranath (Incidentally ” Rabi” means “The SUN” in Bengali) was a worshipper of the beauty of the rising sun. Throughout his life Tagore felt a strong affinity towards the daily drama of luminance piercing darkness; he cherished to himself as a part of the crescendo of this celestial symphony. It filled him with a profound sense of belonging to this universe and inspired him towards many of his creation. As a powerful fountain of clear water comes out from the dark, hard rocks beneath, the morning sun ushered the Muse of his poetry and lyrics to his world, rejuvenated his life, his mood, his creation; which was otherwise laden with immense responsibilities, hard work, worries and grief over the loss of his dear ones. Naba Rabi Kirane is a celebration of this spirit of ecstasy through his own poetry, music, and dance.

Program Schedule

  For more details of the event or to buy tickets please go to

­  www.stanford.edu/group/asha

Asha-Stanford is a Stanford University student group, which is dedicated towards supporting basic education in India and in spreading awareness about the importance of education. Asha-Stanford is also affiliated to Asha for Education, a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit charitable organization that is an umbrella organization for over 40 similar student organizations in universities around the world.

Holi 2002

March 30, 2002

Over 2000 people attended Holi 2002!
This event was held from 11am – 3pm on Saturday, March 30, 2002 at the Wilbur Field, Stanford University.

Asha volunteers

FREE supply of colors and water to drench friends with!

Dance wildly to bhangra, hip-hop and Holi music by the Bay Area’s most popular DJ!

Fun-packed games with exciting prizes!

Delicious lip-smacking Indian snacks (samosas, bhel and more) by Flavor of India Cuisine