IT associations sway to the garba fervor

Nine days of fun and dance, nine to days to make merry. This is what navratri means to most people in the western region. And this infectious camaraderie seems to have caught the imagination of IT associations as well. Two major IT associations of Gujarat organized garba mahotsava, which started from 14th October. While Ahmedabad Computer Manufacturer Association (ACMA) held the function only for one day on 22nd October in Ahmedabad, the Baroda Information Technology Association (BITA) held the mahotsava throughout the nine days. 

“This is the fourth year that we are organizing such an event. There is a core group of BITA members who form a garba committee, and they look after the music, ground leveling and light arrangements,” said Priyatosh Gupta of BITA. He said that their main reason to have the BITA Garba Mahotsav is to preserve the tradition of the
navratri. 

Sanjay Tayal of ACMA shares this opinion of maintaining the tradition and making youngsters more aware of their roots, while dancing the night away. “We have held the event for the third consecutive year with Samsung as our official sponsor,” he said. 

While entry for female dancers is free, male dancers have to give Rs 50 per day to sway to the music. Also, visitors who prefer to just watch the gaily colored dancers can do so for Rs 20 per day are charged to view the garba as well. ”It is mandatory for boys who want to do garba to come in a traditional dress. Only then would they be allowed to do garba,” explained Priyatosh. While, on the other hand, ACMA does not charge a penny for doing
garba. 

Every year, a set budget is kept aside for these events. Both associations maintain that the events are not held with a view of making profits. “Our budget this year was Rs 7-8 lakh, and was roughly the same last year too,” said Jugal Mehta, Treasurer, BITA. He also added that the event would bring about more awareness about BITA. “Profits would only come once the event is held consecutively for five to seven years, later profits would be made with more ease,” quipped Jugal. 

BITA's Garba Mahotsav attracts around 10,000-12,000 dancers everyday. The one-day event held in Ahmedabad by ACMA was expecting around 3,000 people, and an estimated Rs 1.75 lakh was going to be spent on it. “This is the first public event that is held after the ACMA-CMDA merger took place last to last week,” commented Sanjay. 

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