Rain Date: Sunday, October 18
2:15 PM
Indus Groove – Live Band Bollywood Rock/Jazz fusion
Interactive Crafts (Leir Hall until 5pm)
Art Exhibition (Leir Hall until 5:30pm)
3:00 PM
Lighting the Diwali Lamp
3:15 PM
Radhika Samson Odissi Performance
Meher Vig Tabla-Dhol Performance
3:30 PM
Community Dances
Kulture Kool Dances
3:45 PM
Avani Dwiveldi Book Reading (Leir Hall)
4:40 PM
Keshav & Priya Modern Bharatanatyam-Kuchipudi Performance
4:50 PM
Bolly X with Henna Khanijou
Shruti Mutalik is a singer-songwriter who sings in several different languages and genres. She performs regularly with her band Sonic Animals. She is a transplant psychiatrist at Mount Sinai Hospital and Medical School in New York City, as passionate about education as she is about music.
Shruti Mutalik will sing a short invocation including a Ganesh Mantra, as the afternoon’s festivities are inaugurated with a ceremonial lighting of the Diwali lamp.
Gita Varadarajan is an acclaimed author of multiple books including Save Me a Seat, My Bindi and its companion, My Saree. Gita was born in Kerala, India, and moved to the US in 2010 with her husband Arun and their two sons Vaishnav and Vedav. Gita was not an avid reader in school, but when her great penmanship resulted in her winning a handwriting contest in 5th Grade, it launched a seed that led to her next journey as a writer. Gita is now a sought-after speaker at schools across the country, where she inspires children to create their own stories. She has a Masters in Literacy Instruction, from Teachers College, Columbia University and teaches fourth graders in Princeton Public Schools.
Gita joins us to read her recently published book, My Saree, which will be available for purchase, courtesy of our sponsors Watchung Booksellers.
Indus Groove is a five-member band bringing together talented musicians for a one-of-a-kind musical experience. Their formation is a wonderful example of “Necessity is the mother of invention!” Created especially for our event, Indus Groove brings musicians from two different bands together to take you on a musical journey, bringing Bollywood favorites to life with a touch of rock and jazz fusion.
Band Members: Anil Das – Drums, Ranjan RaiChowdhury – Guitar, Neil Mathias – Base, Atish Mitra – Keyboard, Sudip Mukherjee – Vocals
Performance: Vyūti
The Weaving of Cultures Keshav and Priya present, Vyūti, a display of classical tradition meeting contemporary expression. Vyuti or “the act of weaving” in Sanskrit, weaves together the elegance of Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, and Kathak into a seamless tapestry of movement and emotion. Set to music that bridges traditional rhythmic patterns with modern beats, Vyūti explores the timeless essence of Indian classical dance while embracing the pulse of the present. Each gesture, step, and spin becomes a dialogue between heritage and innovation — a reminder that art evolves not by abandoning its roots, but by allowing them to intertwine and grow anew.
Told she was “too small” to play the tabla at age three, Meher relied on her parents’ support to build a foundation rooted in her local gurudwara. She transitioned to the digital space by launching an Instagram page featuring tabla covers of contemporary songs, proving that classical percussion could successfully merge with modern trends. Inspired by female role models like Dholi Simran, Meher picked up the dhol, quickly turning spontaneous wedding gigs and social media outreach into a thriving performance business across the Midwest and East Coast. Today, as a Purdue University student and member of Boiler Bhangra, Meher balances the precision of the tabla with the celebratory energy of the dhol, using her platform to inspire others to share their talents without fear.
Odissi dancer, sitarist and surbahar player, Radhika Samson is an accomplished performing artist based in New York City.
She is an empanelled artist of the Indian Council of Cultural Relations, has received a Nritya Bhushan from Pracheen Kala Kendra and is an alumna of the prestigious Lady Shri Ram College, Delhi University. Radhika also heads the New York chapter of Sadhana Arts Academy which offers dedicated Indian classical dance and music training at several venues. Currently she is faculty for Odissi dance at the prestigious Chhandayan centre in Manhattan, Bangladesh Academy of Fine Arts in Queens and Sandhana Academy in Manhattan.
Adhikaar
Desi Rainbow
Hindus For Human Rights (HFHR)
Manavi
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI NJ SAMHAJ)
South Asian American Digital Archive (SAADA)
South Asian Mental Health Initiative & Network (SAMHIN)
Hand In Hand
MOHAN US
Get Out the Vote (GOTV)
Worker’s Rights (DOL)
Food & Beverage
Rose & Petals
Knead Some Love
Babu Foods
Chasni Chai
Rajni
Desi Dukhan
Rozana
Punjabi Rasoi
Dhamal
Jalwa
Basil Thai
Montclair Brewery
Specialty Merchandise
Alora
Ayur Light Candles
Woven Collective By Tash
Bella Mews
Keviv Design
Gulaabi Baby
Snows Design
Chakra Wellness
Avani Art
Kurated Palette
Ombré Pret
Brooklyn Born Financial
Kulture Kool
Shubh Mahurat
Watchung Booksellers
Dancers: Inika Hathiramani, Kaya Parashurama, Keya Hathiramani, Syna Mehta
Choreography: Henna Khanijou
Dancers: Anaaya Behera, Anaaya Shah, Ananya Karra, Asha Nayak, Leela Cantor, Leela D’Arcangelo, Myra Lalit, Myra Shah , Rani Gupta, Serena Shah, Siona Jaswal
Choreography: Roshi George
Dancers: Ami Patel, Arpita Suri, Deepika Misra, Dipsha Shah, Khyati Mehta, Namrata Suri, Oksana Shevchuk
Choreography: Roshi George
Dancers: Deepti Purohit, Norma Rodrigues, Sarab Atwal, Shivani Patel, Swati Jain, Vaishnavi Srinivasan
Choreography: Henna Khanijou
Dancers: Deepika Misra, Madhuri Mulherjee, Mona Jha, Mona Shah, Neha Shah, Punita Gupta, Puneeta Kalra, Rashmi Saraogi, Shweta Gupta
Choreography: Puneeta Kalra
Performers: Hillside Elementary School Band
Director: Christopher Golinski (Music School Teacher at Hillside Elementary).
Performer: Henna Khanijou from Bolly X (joined by friends from Kulture Kool & Community Performers)
Dancers: Aahana Jain Belur, Anika Naresh, Kian Walther-Puri, Liam Dev Ragbir, Neve Gera, Rudra Coneti, Satya Pierson, Zoravar Singh De Smet
Choreography: Kulture Kool
Dancers: Aahana Jain Belur, Harper Schofield, Jiya Faye Lesman, Lia Ana Lesman, Mala Shah Allison, Maya Jaya-Veara Krishnan, Saisha Arora, Sita Mehta
Choreography: Henna Khanijou Sharma from Kulture Kool
Dancers: Amara Arora, Asha Kansagra, Josephine Wertheim, Maya Mehndiratta, Mishika Bhargava, Reva Pappu, Sahana Shah
Choreography: Henna Khanijou
Dancers: Aaliya Mehta, Aarya Ram, Aasha Penta, Amara Sethi, Anaaya Madhok, Annika Naidu, Arya Rathod Shah, Avni Bakarania, Blake Rapino, Dipanshi Ganguly-Chmiel, Kaia Litton, Madeline Frech, Neeya Patel, Nishka Patel, Priya Bakarania, Samika S. Dhande, Sadhana S. Dhande, Siana Sethi
Choreography: Rhea Yadav
Diwali, the Festival of Lights, is a celebration of hope, joy, and the triumph of light over darkness. For us, Diwali is also deeply personal — a time to come together with family, friends, and community; honor traditions passed down through generations; and create new memories that connect us across cultures and generations.
As co-chairs of AAPI’s Light Up Diwali 2026, we are thrilled to bring the spirit of Diwali to our community at the Montclair Art Museum. This celebration is an opportunity to share the richness and diversity of Diwali traditions while creating a welcoming space for everyone to experience the music, dance, food, art, and joy that make this festival so special. It is a chance for those who celebrate Diwali every year to come together, and for those who are discovering it for the first time to experience the traditions, spirit, and joy of Diwali.
We believe that celebrating Diwali together allows us not only to honor and preserve our heritage, but also to build bridges, foster understanding, and strengthen our community. Light Up Diwali is our way of bringing people together through celebration and reminding ourselves of the enduring message at the heart of Diwali: that light, hope, and goodness can always shine through. We look forward to celebrating with you and lighting up Montclair together!
A trailblazing journalist for NBC, CBS, ABC, Connie Chung shattered glass ceilings, paving the way for many women and Asians alike. In 1969, at the age of 23, the once-shy daughter of Chinese parents took her first job at a local TV station in her hometown of DC and soon thereafter began working at CBS News as a correspondent.
Chung was tenacious in her pursuit of stories – battling rival reporters to get scoops that ranged from interviewing Magic Johnson to covering the Watergate scandal – and quickly became a household name. She made history when she became the first woman to co-anchor the CBS Evening News and the first Asian to anchor any news program in the country. An entire generation of Asian women were named after her.
In Connie: A Memoir, Chung pulls no punches as she shares a behind-the-scenes tour of her life and career, from showdowns with powerful men in and out of the newsroom where overt sexism was a way of life to the stories behind some of her career-defining reporting.
Archana Athalye is the Founder & Director of Kulture Kool South Asian Cultural Center in New Jersey founded in 2009. With a Masters in Communication and extensive experience in the music and film industries in India, she has made significant contributions to cultural education in the communities of New Jersey.
In 2023, she founded The Diversity Center to unite diverse communities and promote inclusion through performing arts and language education. Archana also serves as the board president of Konnekt Global, a youth nonprofit and President of the East Coast section of the International Dance Council (a UNESCO affiliated organization).
Her work is centered on fostering cultural understanding and advocating for multiculturalism in the NY/NJ Metropolitan area.
In 2023, we formally changed our name to AAPI New Jersey to reflect the statewide priorities and activities that this group of committed community members and advocates now supports.
We continue to host events and programs in Montclair and invite you to explore this site to learn more about the diverse resources and opportunities we offer.
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