Indian community invites all to celebrate festival

Shrutika and Chetan Parab with their daughter Aarna, 4, at the Ganesh Chaturthi festival.The Indian Community of Southland is bringing the flavour of West India to Southland by celebrating the religious festival in Invercargill on Saturday.

Indian community member Ketaki Gogate said the 10-day festival would end on Saturday and was dedicated to Lord Ganesha, the God of new beginnings.

She said the festival brought people together and promoted harmony.

Indian Community of Southland president Vinay Sood said the festival was celebrated mainly in the West Indian state of Maharashtra and showed the diversity of Indian culture.

He said the Indian Community of Southland wanted to share its diversity with Southlanders as well as make the Indians in Southland feel at home.

The event will take place at Sacred Heart Parish in North Rd from 5pm-8pm on Saturday and there would be prayer, food from West India and performances by children.