More than 600 people turn out to celebrate Vaisakhi festival at Cashman Center with Sikh temple
By ERICA VITAL
VIEW STAFF WRITER
Larry Cruikshank/ViewDr. Aparam Basra sparkles as she dances for the crowd at the 2008 Sikh Vaisakhi festival held March 22 at Cashman Center, 850 Las Vegas Blvd. North.
Photos by Larry Cruikshank/ViewTop, as Aparam Basra dances on stage in the background, young dancers, from left, Sahiba Sahni, 2, Zara Mahajan, 2, and Shreya Mehta, 3, join in the celebration. Below, 7-year-old Assietou Gueye from Africa dances for the audience.
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Doctors, small business owners, lawyers and educators filled the hall of Cashman Center on March 22 as Gurudwara Baba Deep Singh, a Sikh temple located at 6341 W. Lone Mountain Road, hosted its fifth annual Vaisakhi festival. Vaisakhi is an ancient harvest festival, explained Dr. Amarjit Kaur Pannu, a temple and board member. The festival also marks the beginning of a new solar year.
Raj Dhaliwal, president of the temple, anticipated more than 600 would turn out for the celebration, a representation of the 60 to 70 families who worship at the Gurudwara Baba Deep Singh.
"We have families migrating here from California and from the eastern states," Dhaliwal said. "They're coming to Las Vegas as an opportunity. They find it's a good business climate here in Las Vegas, and we are a business-minded people," said Dhaliwal, who is a general contractor and owner/operator of Milestone Construction Inc.
Sixty percent of the community own their own businesses, Dhaliwal said, from owning gas stations to small retail and medical practices.
"We are a business-oriented people, more than simply job-minded," Dhaliwal said.
As the people flowed into the hall, Dhaliwal stressed that the Sikh community living in proximity to the Gurudwara Baba Deep Singh Temple has not only flourished in business, but in education.
Tejinder Dhandi, secretary for the temple, is a licensed Realtor who, after earning two bachelor's degrees, has returned to school to pursue a nursing degree.
Dhandi looked to her 3-year-old daughter, Eknoor Kaur, as she explained the importance of equality in the Sikh community.
"Women are placed in high esteem," Dhandi said.
The surname Kaur is a surname passed down the female line. In the language of Punjab, kaur means lioness, Dhandi said.
As bright, embroidered saris and modest turbans were interspersed among business casual suits and women in designer heels, the message of equality among all religions, ethnicities and stations in life was a message Pannu said was one of the foundations of the Sikh religion.
"There are four doors in a Sikh temple and there is one door to exit," said Pannu, a pediatrician whose Tots to Teens practice serves many of the nearly 600 celebrants who dined and danced at the festival. "The four doors welcome all who come and from all directions. And one exit so that everyone passes through the same door as they leave, whether they are a king or a beggar. To be a Sikh is to believe that everyone is equal."
The festival included live music by Indian fusion band RDB, which has gained national renown having been featured by hip-hop artist Jay-Z. A vegetarian buffet was provided by India Palace, 505 E. Twain Ave. The annual celebration continues to grow and is an event Surjit Singh, owner of India Palace, said he sees as being a feature of the Las Vegas community as a whole.
Gurudwara Baba Deep Singh temple was constructed in 1999 and held its official opening in September 2000. The dress and origin of the community is often mistaken with the Islamic community. Each community is of different theological and geographical origins.
The Sikh religion originated in 15th century India, in Punjab, with the emergence of Guru Nanak.
The philosophy included a rejection of castes and class distinctions, according to Pannu, and is the fifth largest religion in the world.
For more information on the Sikh community, Dhaliwal recommends visiting the Web site www.sikhs.org. For more information on the Gurudwara Baba Deep Singh temple, visit www.lasvegasgurdwara.com.
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