NEW YORK: Celestial sounds of the divine bani enshrined in the Guru Granth Sahib ushered in the New Year as a large sangat of New York and its neighboring areas sung the holy Shabads and participated in a Kirtan Darbar on the New Year’s Eve at the Sikh Cultural Society in Richmond Hill here. The program focused on the sangat and though there were such eminent kirtanias as Bhai Daya Singh, the Hazuri ragi it was a large participation of the Sangat which made the event unique. This was the first such Kirtan Darbar in a New Year’s Eve at the Sikh Cultural Society. The evening started with Langar and from nine pm. to well past midnight there was the Kirtan Darbar which was attended by well over a  thousand Sikhs who had decided t avoid an evening of parties and celebrations and spend one a quiet devotion and piety at the Gurdwara Sahib. Whether it was the young children who had come from as far as Montreal in Canada, Connecticut or Upstate New York, or the not so young Pargat Singh the Secretary of the Sikh Cultural Society, the participation by those who normally constitute the audience gave the entire program a different air and made it ever so memorable.

There were two Jathas of Children who had come from Montreal. One comprised Gaganjit Singh,Kamaljit Kaurand Irwinjit Kaur. The other Jatha consisted of Devjit Singh and Sanjeev Kaur.

Form Westchester county in New York came, Tejpreet Singh,Manpreet Singh,Banjot Sinhg, Jasmeen Singh, Gurpreet Singh, Jasmit Singh, Gurmit Singh, and Milan Singh. So great was the enthusiasm of the children that they had practiced ceaselessly for three days prior to the program. The practice gave their performance a polish which was positively received by the Sangat.

From other parts of New York and the sangat of the gurdwara sahib come Jivan Jot Kaur Narula, Saray Preet Singh, Jaspret Kaur, Ravinder pal Singh Julkea Jaspreet Kaur Ahuja, Navdeep Singh, and Ramandeep Kaur.

Mrs. Harjinder Kaur and her daughter Renu Kaur of Connecticut also rendered Kitan and they were followed by Sat Pal Singh Parwinder Singh, Mrs. Harsharan Kaur and of course pargat Singh the Secretary of the Sikh Cultural Society Who serenading of the Kirtan in proper ragas provided one of the high lights of the evening.

The kirtan by Bhai Jivan Singh of the Akhand Kirtani Jatha and the jatha of Bhai Daya Singh the hazuri ragis gave a fitting finale to the evening of the Kirtan of the vine bani enshrined in the Guru Granth Sahib and ushered in 1989,

Jagjit Singh Mangat, the President of Sikh Cultural Society told the World Sikh News that the Positive and enthusiastic response of the Sangat to the first New Year eve Kirtan Darbar was heartening and that from now there would be a Kirtan Darbar was heartening and that form now there would be a Kirtan Darbar on every New Year’s eve.

Article extracted from this publication >>  January 6, 1989