Press Release

The City of Pompano Beach invites you to celebrate the music, food, crafts, and culture of India at the Namaste! Festival taking place Saturday, December 3rd from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on the grounds of the Pompano Beach Amphitheater and Community Park. This entertaining and immersive experience will feature 100 performers on three stages and 80 booths/exhibits showcasing Indian arts, crafts, and foods. The event is hosted by Florida Fine Arts Inc. and is produced by the Akshaya Patra Foundation. Admission is free, but please register at www.namastefl.com.

There will be many musical acts taking the stage during the festival including the first of its kind music ensemble Sunshine Ragas performing at 3:00 p.m. This band consists of over 20 young vocalists, instrumentalists, and percussionists. The ensemble will perform an original blend of Indian music with western classical, jazz and other world music genres. Desh-Videsh magazine describes Sunshine Ragas as “reinvigorating Indian music and beautifully blending diversity with tradition.”

“We are very proud of the incredible performers who be gracing the stages and sharing the beautiful culture of India through song, dance, and music,” said Sanjay Chandran, an acclaimed violinist, who founded the nonprofit Florida Fine Arts Inc., to introduce Indian Culture to Florida and the broader North American community. “Having produced similar style events in Phoenix, we are proud to bring this joyful experience to Pompano Beach.”

Other key experiences include:

• Yoga & Mindfulness by Hatha Yoga exponent Pooja Subhashchandra at 10:30 a.m.

• Chenda Melam, a unique ensemble playing the Chenda, percussion instrument used for almost all Kerala art forms like Kathakali for over 300 years, at 11:00 a.m.

• Two-time Knight Foundation Arts Challenge winner, Ranjana Warier’s Rhythms School of Dance at 2:00 p.m.

• Bollywood, Jazz and Salsa Dance by the “Queen of Bollywood Dance” Pooja Uberoi and her group at 4:00 p.m.

• “Battle of the Indian Lutes”, the first of its kind seen in South Florida, a Sitar-Veena Jugalbandi (which means, literally, "entwined twins.") by groups led by Deepti Pappusetty (Sitar) and Kavitha Jayaraman (Veena) at 1:30 p.m.

• Nach Bollywood Style, performing an energetic blend of Bollywood and Indian Folk dance, led by Amishi Patel, at 2:30 p.m.

• Bharatnatyam and Kathak dances between 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. by Narthana Dance School of Priya Nagaraj, Natya Marga School of Dance by Natya Marga School of Dance of Madhavi Menon, Nritya School of Indian Dance and Music of Hema Sharma and Natya Drishyam School of Dance of Meera Kumar.

• DJ playing popular Indian Bollywood songs ideal for dancing from 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.