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Northern RDF Posted by: "Sri Gopal Mohanty" mohanty@univmail.cis.mcmaster.ca Sun May 13, 2012 8:10 pm (PDT) Yes, I was there yesterday at OSA RDF in Flint. Hara and Sumitra Padhi gave me a ride. Like last RDF in Flint hosted by MI Chapter it was raining this time also. Yet men, women, youths and children gathered with bubbling spirit. Our entry was greeted with old smiling faces and new ones too. Soon we were led to the snack area. Trays of items were lined up - not one, not two, may be 5-6 - pakoda of course, to a degree of surprise there were idli and sambar. Well, you know Odias love food; it should be good, no yar,it has to be finger licking good. Did you attend Detroit OSA Convention in 2007? Those who did, I bet you remember a name Anjali (Mishra) whose ever smiling face could not have been missed by you in the dinning area. MI Chapter knows her well. The mouth watering items were all provided by volunteers. Well, you see she can charm people to volunteer ( a lesson to learn). We bow to the volunteers and to Anjali! ( I am sure just like last time she might have arranged the place as she lives in Flint). If you ask is she wife of Dr. Ramesh Mishra, I bet she is. But make no mistake in thinking her identity that way. She stands on her own with charm and dignity in the food area and and very likely you will miss DR. Ramesh Babu in the entire mela. As I entered the snack area, Swapnalata ( Mama) Mishra (Rath), the RDF/Basantotsava Coordinator greeted me and asked me to come to the stage for checking. She is at least one who keeps the life line of MI drama alive and active. By the way you won't know her until she steps into the stage where she gets totally transformed. Obligingly I went there through back stage. The place was overcrowded (it is a school facility and has ample space) overwhelmingly by children who were first to perform. No, no they are not part of RDF. Yet, our OSA is an extended community and most certainly the children are very much part of it. Cleverly MI Chapter combined RDF with their annual function Basanta Utsava - Celebration of Spring. The cover page of the programme announces: Odia Natyamela Nothern Region & Basantotsava May 12, 2012 Flint, Michigan presented by Orissa Society of Americas, Michigan Chapter An Initiative of OSA. The first act was superbly done by the children, starting with 'Bande Utkala Janani', followed by brief enactment of famous historical figures like Fakir Mohan, Madhusudan Das, Subhas Bose and ending with a song 'Ei Desha Ei Mati' all without instrumental backing. We argue to no ends that our children can not handle Odia and and ..., but these children were so confident that their songs had a natural flow all the way without any stop or any shyness. They did not want your excuses and apologies from you or me or their parents either. MI Chapter, please pat them on my behalf. In the introduction we were told that the base of our culture is our language and we must not forget to talk in our language when we meet among ourselves and while conversing with our children. Observing the significant sign of cynicism in our community , I am not sure what to say when I witnessed the performance. MI Chapter members and others, please keep your promise! Whose idea was it? Of course our Mama Nani's and organized by talented Swati Mishra. Basanta Utsav and DRF were going hand in hand. The first part consisting of dances was exclusively presented by the children and the second by adults. What attracted me was a Sambalpuri dance performance by five small girls, so cute and so artistically synchronized in their movements with some spontaneously singing the words of the song that I felt as if they were born in Sambalpur vicinity. Thanks to Reshma Das for teaching this piece. So, my friends, what are you waiting for? Your child is ready! MI people, please take more credits than I can describe here for your efforts in all items. The most challenging situation was met by Marisha Mohapatra, daughter of Basant Mohapatra from Cleveland, who was running temperature just a couple of days back. Her story is not only she came but performed neither an Odia item nor a Bollywood one, a fashionable trend of today. She performed an excellent Kuchupudi item. In fact, Cleveland participation was a daring one to be confronted by Basant Mohapatra and Birendra Jena. Basant Babu, a physician by profession but a comedian on stage by passion was mentally tortured when his plan to bring a drama from Cleveland was shattered due to some local problems. Nevertheless he along with Birendra Babu showed courage to show up at the Festival at the last moment. What can I say to these two fellows except feeling proud of them? Yes, there was no drama by Ohio Chapter. But because of audacity of these two guys they could only perform some small hilarious skits. Their presence was more than enough for the RDF and for the host. Now the story of Canada is similar but somewhat better. Although promised to send a drama team, CanOSA is overly busy in their own function Bishuba Milana and Diamond Jubilee celebration of the Queen's reign to be held on May 19 and politely declined to participate in RDF. However, there was a saving grace. In a recent event Sahitya Pathachakra there was a small skit " sAhitya chASa" written by Niyati Mohanty that was presented and it seemed perfect for the occasion. Abani Pattanayak and Rashmi Das volunteered to participate even with a very short notice and did an excellent performance in SAhitya ChASa presentation. Thus CanOSA was on board and all is well that ends in well. Cheers to canOSA party. The theme was: should pure Odia to be used for everything and everywhere? The husband is in favour of it in order to protect the purity of the language and the wife argues the opposite in order to enrich the language. There were some funny situations arising out of either position. Is it not a perennial fight on this issue and never resolved? MI's hilarious drama "Babaji Kaian Kanji" was to conclude the evening. A good for nothing fellow unable to earn livelihood becomes a fake sadhu and starts swindling people. Finally he gets caught and is beaten up. It was written and directed by Jogesh Panda, one of the most drama enthusiasts in NA. Do you remember his 'daskathia' presentation in the last Detroit Convention? MI team has proved to be solid in their dramatic skill. Partcipants: Jogesh Panda,Sudipta Mishra,Subhasish Mohanty, Debasish Acharya,Aksaya Ray, Biswajit Pattnaik,Puspa Nayak, Rohan Ray,Sia Pradhan, Smriti Panda, Pushpita Bhuyan, Swapnalata Mishra (Rath) Then came the dinner. Did my curiosity lurk or was I reassured by Anjali's goal for perfectness? Whatever it was, the evening became a wholesome experience for me. I am sure it was so too for others. Pitabasa Panda, President MI Chapter and his team of volunteers: You all made our long trip from Hamilton a delightful experience. I remember earlier half-day OSA Convention by your Chapter. That was long back but the sweet memories linger on. Those days a drama preparation was done then and there. The excitement and pleasure were boundless. I was also reminded that MI Chapter has been the savior when OSA has been in trouble, for instance showed the courage to host OSA Convention when NE Chapter in spite of its willingness could not hold it. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I know you all are tired and may be saying never again. But watch your itching mind. That will never stop. Neither it stopped in Basant Babu and Birendra Babu, nor it will stop in Abani and Rashmi. They will be makers of OSA's glory, taking small steps in OSA's journey avoiding occasional set backs like legal bickering and skeptical criticism. Two more Festivals are in progress: Eastern and Central. A word of hope: My friends specially in Southern Chapter and in California, you can as well do RDF. Nothing is straight forward nor is simple. It was never so for South Western, Northern, Eastern and Central RDF groups. They have done it so can you. Join in the journey of OSA's glory. Cheers, Sri Gopal ------------ --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- - Sri Gopal Mohanty Emeritus Professor Department of Mathematics and Statistics McMaster University Hamilton, Ontario Canada

Dear Community Members, Thank you all for a successful Drama Festival and Basanta Utsav 2012 program. Welcome to all the new community members and we are happy that you are part of the Odiya Society in Michigan. Special thanks to Anjali Nani for Venu/food and overall arrangement. Thanks to Dr. Ramesh Mishra for helping us in arrangement. Thanks to Mamanani for all her effort to make this cultural event a great success. Thanks to Jogesh bhaina for the MI-Drama coordination and his team for the wonderful Drama. The greatest thanks goes out to all the people who (Mona, Tuli, Gita, Swati, Maitrinani, Ananya, Versa and Krushna) made the wonderful Snacks. Thanks to Punyatoya Sarangi and Debasish Acharya for taknig care of our Guest chapter people. Thanks to Biswajit Puhan, Sanjib Das, Parag Mishra, Akhaya, Jyoti, Sanjib Sahoo, Subhasish Mohanty, Subrat Mohaptra, Sunil Patnaik, they all brought their unique talent to make this event successful. Thanks to all our teenagers for their contribution. Anya, Poonam, Karisma and Nayna and Rishav , you guys did a wonderful job. Thank you to all the volunteers. Your selfless dedication to our community is an inspiration for all of us. If we missed anyone inadvertently, we are truly sorry. Everyone helped in their own way. Warm Regards Pitabasa Vivek Pramod

Dear Community Members, Namaskar. Please attend the Basanta Utsava and Regional Drama Festival 2012 and make it a big success. The snacks and dinner will be served in this program. There will be other guest chapters for Drama and children’s programs. There is no fees for food. However, we will have a registration counter for the new members or the members who have not paid the MI-OSA membership dues this year. This is an opportunity to enroll themselves in MI-OSA. Date: May 12, 2012 Program Time: 4-7:30PM Venue: Carman Ainsworth Middle School. 1409 W. Maple Ave Flint, MI 48507 Detail Time line: Stage and Technical Preparation: 2PM-3PM (Volunteers should be there) Snacks and social Time : 3PM-4PM Program Start Time : 4PM-7:30PM Dinner Time : 7:30PM-8:30PM Clean up : 8:30PM- 9PM Regards Pitabasa, Vivek and Pramod

Dear MI-OSA Memebers, A mass archana in honour of Dola Poornima and Holi Celebration at Parashakthi temple has been scheduled on behalf of Jay Jagannatha group. Date March 11th Time 11.30AM to 3PM Foe further information please contact any of us: Swapna Rath 586 463 9168 Sunita Mohapatra 734 397 0494 Swati Mishra 248 844 2395 Interested to know how to join in the Jagannatha activities Please contact Swapna Rath @ 586 463 9168 or send an email to Jay_jagannatha@ yahoo.com osa executive team

Dear All Swaraswati Puja has been performed on 29th Sunday 2011 with our members at Masonic Temple,Troy . Our Member Jyoti Nayak has been shared picture taken by him during this event. Please find the below links for the Saraswati Puja Photos. Picasa LInk:-- Swariswati Puja Pictures
Shutterfly Link Swariswati Puja Pictures

Here are the upcoming event dates for 2012. More details for each event will be available weeks before the event date. Hope this will help all of us to plan ahead.

Event	Venue	Date
Saraswati Puja	Masonic Temple, Troy	Jan 29th, Sunday
Basanta Utshava and Regional Drama Festival	Kasi Temple, Flint	May 12th, Saturday
MI-OSA Picnic	To be determined	July 14th, Saturday
Ganesh Puja	Masonic Temple, Troy	Sep 22nd, Saturday(actual)
Kumar Purnima 2012	To be determined	Nov 10th, Saturday

Dear community members,
We will be performing the Saraswati Puja on Sunday January 29 , 2012 at 11:00 am.
Venue:
Troy Masonic Temple 1032 Hartland Dr, Troy, MI 48083 (248) 524-1110
Date: Sunday, January 29th, 2012
Schedule:
Puja Setup: 10:30 am -11:00 am (Volunteers need to arrive by 10:30 am)
  Puja: 11:00 - 12:30 PM (Includes Pushpanjali, Stories and Bhajans)
Lunch 12:30 pm onwards and cleanup
New people Introduction.
Thank you Note
(All of you can feel free to bring fruits and flowers as offering to Goddess Saraswati.)
Food Contact: Sunita Mahapatra and Jhilli Subudhi.

Dear Friends I am happy to announce that the 43rd OSA convention is going to be held in Seattle, Washington from 5-7 July 2012. The yearly OSA convention is known as our annual pilgrimage where we all get together as an extended community, socialize with one another, renew our bonds and celebrate our odia culture and heritage. Once a year, we are so proud to come together in one spot where we create a memorable experience of love, fellow feeling and social bonding. Our friends from OSA Pacific Northwest ( PNW) chapter are already working hard to give the participants a wonderful cultural experience, showcasing our Odia heritage and tradition we have preserved in the Diaspora. Please visit the OSA website http://www.orissasociety.org. for further details. The chapter (PNW)I website for the OSA 2012 convention is in the making. Mr. Amulya Das has been nominated as the convener of the OSA 2012 convention by the Pacific Northwest chapter. My heart felt congratulations to Amulya Das for his willingness to come forward and help lead his chapter in organizing this convention. On behalf of OSA executives, I thank OSA 2012 Convener Amulya Das, OSA Pacific Northwest Chapter president Priyadarshan Patra, and all the volunteers of PNW chapter for their tireless efforts to have a successful convention. The local chapter officials are in constant contact with the OSA officials in planning the convention. On behalf of the OSA administration, I extend my invitation to all of you, your friends and extended family to save the date, 5-7 July 2012 and plan to attend the OSA 2012 convention. We will keep you posted; please continue to check our website for more news on the venue, cultural programs, seminar and other exciting activities planned for the 2012 OSA convention. You will receive separate message and update regarding our 2012 OSA convention from convener Mr. Amulya Das. Happy Holidays! With warmest wishes, Dr. Annapurna Devi Pandey President, OSA

2011-Financial statement has been uploaded in our office bearers section.Please find the details -Executive Team

We have more pictures capture from Kumara Purnima 2011 event by Subrat Mohapatra
Picture: Here is the KP2011 Pictures link of the Pictures we missed earlier.

Thank you for taking part in the survey for membership fee. Our new fee structure will effect from Kumar Purnima 2012.

Dear Community members,
We had a grand success and we are overwhelmed by our community's dedication , spirit of volunteerism and desire to help. All of us had a grand time and we had a huge participation with your help. We are grateful to all of you. You have made this a success.
There were so many people who pitched in to help and it was such a beautiful thing to witness our sense of camaraderie and group spirit. Once again thanks to all our volunteers. We would like to acknowledge their contribution.
Membership Renew/new Registration
Dr. Sisir Senapati, Supriya Mishra, Bijay Satpathy
Food Cordinator
Prunotoya Sarangi, Ranjita Das
Technical Coordinator
Biswajit Puhan, Subhendu Das
Master of Ceremonies(Comperes)
Parag Mishra, Ananya Pattanayak
Stage Volunteers
Sanjib Sahoo, Srikant Sahoo, Sidharth Maharana
Stage Decoration
Puspa Mohapatra, Puja Acharaya
Video Recording
Jyoti Nayak,Prabhakar Mishra
Photography
Jyoti Nayak
And a big thanks you to all our Cultural Coordinator: Geeta Sahoo and Swati Mishra.
We also had volunteers from our school kids and we have given out certificates to them. All the Performances were excellent and displayed the incredible talent in our community. We had a surplus of excellent and tasty food in spite of large attendance. This was our first Kumar Purnima of the new executive community.
We are truly happy and grateful at the support we have got from all of you.Also thank you for participating in the survey and giving us your decision on membership fee for 2012.
It was nice to see performances from the toddlers as well as the parents participating in the programs. It brought forward the festive and community spirit.
During the cleanup operation many of you helped ( Akshay, Raj Subudhi, Debashis Acharya, Hruday Mahapatra, Punyatoya / Sachi Sarangi, Subhendu / Ranjeeta, etc ). We apologize if we have missed out anybody's name inadvertently here.
Many of our senior Brothers and sisters in the community showed up and we are delighted at their presence. This Odia community includes all people from the young to the senior and we are happy at the involvement of all.
We could not end as per the time and we apologize especially to our seniors for that. Some of you had to wait a bit longer to get the food and we are sorry about that. We will improve on this.
We tried to ensure participation of all our community members this time. We will balance this need with the need to end on time.
Thank you for your cooperation and support.
Warm regards

Pitabasa Vivek Pramod