Manikganj Welfare Association organizes colorful events in New York to welcome the Bengali New Year

Manikganj Kalyan Samity welcomed the Bengali New Year with colorful events in New York. The gathering of expatriates was filled with a pitha festival and cultural performances.

The festival, held in New York on Sunday (April 12) evening, was inaugurated by Democratic Party District Leader and lawyer Moin Chowdhury.

A large number of expatriates participated in the New Year's Eve and Pitha Festival organized by the 'Manikganj Kalyan Samity'. The event became lively with the overall coordination of the Pitha Festival convener, Nurjahan Bhuiyan Ritu.

The event was decorated with 27 types of pitha. The guests praised the variety of pitha and the sincerity of the organizers. The chief guest, Attorney Moin Chowdhury, Director of the American International Bar Association, said, "This effort to make traditional Bengal visible to welcome the Bengali New Year will be written in golden letters in the history of the diaspora. Because they have played a unique role in engaging the new generation with Bengali culture. No other organization has yet been able to create the satisfaction in serving and making various types of pitha from their homes to keep Bengaliness alive in a multi-ethnic society." 

Bangladesh Society President Ataur Rahman Selim, Selim Reza, Fobana leader Kazi Sakhawat Hossain Azam and many others were special guests at the festival.

The awards ceremony, hosted by Sohel Mallick and Shukla Roy, was held to present prizes to housewives who made pitha. The expatriate women served various types of traditional pitha.

The pitha festival featured pitha of various flavors, including dudh-chitai, pati shapta, bhapa, oil pitha, pakan, coconut puli, and sandesh. Many people participated with their children and introduced the new generation to pitha.

A discussion meeting was also held at the event. The leaders of the organization spoke at the meeting, chaired by the association's president, Lutfar Rahman Zubair. At the end, expatriate artists Krishnathithi and Sajal performed songs in a Baisakhi atmosphere.