Divali festival souvenir magazine 2011
Indo-Caribbean Divali Publication Ltd. ( IDP) wishes to announce the publication of its latest souvenir magazine - Divali 2011, Trinidad and Tobago. The theme of this edition of its annual magazine is “Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Divali Nagar.”
After Carnival, Divali is the second largest open-air national festival in multi-ethnic Trinidad and Tobago. The Hindu Festival of Lights is celebrated by lighting of thousands of deyas [clay lamps] on decorative designs of split bamboo tubes. The lights twinkle in the shadows of free public performances by actors, models, drummers, dancers, musicians and singers. During the days and nights preceding Divali, non-Hindus and non-Indians actively join in the celebration by lighting deyas, wearing Indian clothes, and partaking in eating traditional Indian foods and sweets.
The Divali Nagar in central Trinidad has become the hub of all Divali celebrations in the island. Indeed the Nagar is the most frequented entertainment centre in the country during Divali second only to the Grand Stand in the Queen’s Park Savannah during Carnival. Performances take place on a grand stage at the centre of the park for nine nights attracting thousands of local visitors and foreign tourists. Sales and promotion booths include a commercial bank, clothes, fabrics, carpets, electronics, furniture, cars, household items, and of course a wide variety of food stalls. There are also educational booths providing information about alcoholism, yoga, astrology and the various sects of Hinduism. The bazaar [trade fair] also provides a perfect forum for showcasing the talent of both foreign and local performers in the field of song, music, dance and drama. The activities culminate with a magnificent display of fireworks.
Read Online
October-November 2011
11 x 8 ½ inches
80 pages with advertisements and articles
ISSN 1683-4143
Glossy pages and cover
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- About Divali Festival in Trinidad and Tobago
- Editorial: Divali Nagar – world’s first Hindu theme park
- Greetings from the Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago - The Honourable Kamla Persad-Bissessar
- Greetings from the Minister of Arts and Multiculturalism - The Honourable Winston Peters
- Greetings from the Minister of Tourism - The Honourable Rupert T. Griffith
- Divali Festival in Trinidad and Tobago - After Carnival, it is the second largest national, open-air festival
- Divali heralds the joy of Christmas celebrations - Non-Hindus and non-Indians light over ten million deyas in a single week
- Divali also boasts of Ramleela - It is perhaps the oldest living form of outdoor folk theatre in the Caribbean
- Divali Nagar is the hub of all Divali celebrations in the Island - As an entertainment center, the Nagar is second in popularity to the Grand Stand
- Annual themes for twenty-five years - The Divali Nagar develops and exhibits a new theme each year
- Commercial booths - Pepper roti made on a chulha in one of the food stalls, is extremely popular
- Going to the Divali Nagar is like a pilgrimage - Divali Nagar is venerated for its history of human aspiration
- A chief guest is honoured at the Divali Nagar each year - The NCIC has honoured twenty-five special guests during its celebrations
- The Prime Minister with divine radiance - She radiates divinity of Mother Lakshmi, the Goddess of Light
- Sponsors of the Divali Nagar - The cost of providing this free entrance is supported through sponsorship
- Artistes perform on a main stage in Divali Nagar - The best singers, dancers, musicians, choirs and orchestras perform
- Fireworks at the Divali Nagar - The celestial display in the heavens looks like magical necklaces and meteoric showers
- Hans Hanoomansingh, pioneer of Divali Nagar - “He deserves T&T’s gratitude for the enduring service he has given
- The Paradise that is Divali Nagar - Divali is seen as a second major draw to the island, a kind of autumn Carnival
- NCIC won several accolades and awards for culture - In 2008, NCIC received an award from the President of India
- A premier destination during the Festival of Lights - Think about what artists like Minshall and Mc Farlane could do for the Divali Nagar
- The evolution of NCIC - NCIC was formed in 1966, 45 years ago - a dream realized by N. Ramaya and B. Gopie
- Reflections on Divali Nagar 15 years ago - By Hans Hanoomansingh
- Salesmen peddle cotton candies, balloons and glow sticks - Children love the soft, sticky taste of candies and the buoyancy of balloons
- A vision for Divali Nagar to develop into a Hindu theme park - The Nagar can become a world tourist attraction
- Divali before Divali Nagar - The festival was confined to homes and one-night celebrations
- Several names had been suggested for Divali Nagar - Divali Jalsa, Divali Hungama, Jyotir Jalsa and Divali Nagar
- The Divali Nagar is the first Hindu theme park in the world - Perhaps theme park developers in India were inspired by the Divali Nagar
- Divali Nagar in the USA and Canada - Divali Nagar has inspired other Nagars in the rest of the world
- At the Divali Nagar, palmists and astrologists are sought and consulted - These methods of foretelling in the future are an ancient science
- Hindu theme parks in India - “We want to introduce children to the great characters of out Indian epics”
- The Christian theme park in Orlando, Florida - The Nagar is not the only fair which blends the sacred and the secular with entertainment
- Divali Nagar – a vision of an Idyllic Trinidad and Tobago - By Raoul Pantin
- Divali Nagar has become an international, tourist destination - Tourists and artistes visit from all parts of the world
- Traffic jam to and from the Nagar is inevitable - It is the sacrifice that one must make in order to see the only Hindu seasonal theme park
- The United Nations should give recognition to the Divali Nagar - It can be considered the largest voluntary and cooperative project in the Caribbean
- Divali Nagar [City] in the holy Ramayana 6000 years ago - People poured from the cities, towns and countrysides
- Mehindi artistes are busy in the Divali Nagar - They decorate the hands and palms of mainly young women with artistic lines of paint
- Theatrical performances at the Divali Nagar - Drama groups perform on the smaller indoor stage
- Hare Krishna devotees inspire youths to chant and dance - They draw the largest crowd outside of the main stage
is a full-time anthropologist at the University of Guyana (UG) and Fellow of The Eccles Centre for American Studies, British Library (2022-23). He is a former Assistant Professor at the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT). He obtained his Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of Florida (UF). As a doctoral student, he won a Florida Caribbean Institute Award, an A. Curtis Wilgus Grant, and an Organization of American States (OAS) Fellowship.
Mahabir received a National Award (Hummingbird Silver Medal) for his contribution to education in his country in 2011. He was among 50 recipients who received a Distinguished Alumni Award from the UWI Alumni Association.
Mahabir is the author of 12 books to date.