Sharon Celebrates India Day by Tanya Wadekar

Saturday, August 15th, was celebrated by the Indian American Association of Sharon in partnership with the Indian Association of Greater Boston to commemorate 74 years of India’s independence from British rule.

Arun Chaudhari, the founder of JagoWorld, a nonprofit organization with leadership and public speaking club, headlined and organized the event, which was hosted at Deborah Sampson Park. Mr. Chaudhari held the event in collaboration with IAGB, IAAS, and other local Sharon organizations.

We kicked off our celebration by raising both the American and Indian flags and singing their respective national anthems. Elisa Van Dijk, an incoming junior at Sharon High School, beautifully sang the American National anthem. She was followed by the adorable Suhani Saxena, an incoming 4th grader at Cottage Elementary School. Her younger brother Sameer Saxena, an incoming first grader, also at Cottage, who sang the Indian National Anthem. The IAGB hosted an Independence Day in 30 towns, but Sharon was the only one that had the national anthems for both countries sung live.

Some members of the Youth Volunteer JagoWorld Club presented thoughtful speeches. Tanya Wadekar, an incoming sophomore at Sharon High school, talked about India’s progress as an independent country. Abha Chaudhari, an incoming junior at Sharon High School, spoke about her parents’ journey from India to America. And Ronin Banerjee, an incoming freshman at Sharon High School, spoke about his views on India’s Independence Day. We ended the celebration with speeches given by the IAGB directors, Ashok Shetty and Sanjay Kudrimoti, and a reading of a proclamation saying that August 15th will now be celebrated as India’s independence day in Sharon from the select board read by Emily Smith-Lee and Hanna Switlekowski

This great event brought the Indian communities of Sharon and Greater Boston closer. In the coming years, they hope to have much more of a turn-out so we can commemorate the achievements of both great nations. Even in these dire circumstances, we could come together, either in person, through social media, or on zoom. Happy 74 years of independence to India, and we can’t wait to see what the future has to offer!