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Bangladesh Night fulfills
 Media Credit: Adam Masloski Khurshid Alam, Saint Akhunji, and Allen Ahsanul perform a dance at Saturday night�s Bangladesh Night. This year the night was entitled Nokshikatha: The Story of Bangladesh.
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Despite the chilly weather outside, Bangladesh Night 2003 was warmly received as it celebrated culture through song, dance and tradition, providing native food and audience participation.
After an introduction and the National Anthem of Bangladesh, guest speakers gave welcoming speeches that promoted cultural diversity and acceptance and provided the audience with some background and history of Bangladesh.
Emcee Anthony D'Rosario talked of Bangladesh's recent independence, which was won in 1971, as well as the types of religions and cultures that all reside within the tiny country.
"Although 80 percent of the country practices the Islamic faith, Hinduism and Christianity make up a large minority of the rest," D'Rosario said.
He also explained the theme of the night, which was Nokshikatha.
"Nokshikatha is a quilt that that tells stories through its artistic needlework, from everyday lives to fairytales," D'Rosario said. "The stories they tell involve a lot of cultural things, and quilting is closely related to that."
Between the songs and dances, dinner was provided, which gave the audience a chance to experience authentic cuisine. Rice, Chicken Curry, Dal, Borhami and Kababs were among the types of entrees offered.
"I know many of you come just for the food," D'Rosario said.
Although the theme included in the dances and songs was quite serious, the air was kept light by injecting moments of humor, especially when a stage prop was knocked over during a dance.
Pratip Goswani impressed the crowd with a traditional Tabla performance, which is an instrument similar to the bongos, played with your hands while kneeling on the ground. Combined with a classical dance number by Koli and Keya, it sent the crowd into rounds of applause.
The songs by Joya, Ripon and Khursid sang of patriotism and spirituality through the native tongue of Bangladesh. The dances performed covered a variety of themes, from wedding dances and calls for rain, to humorous pokes at the military and an ethnic-rap mix, which combined modern hip-hop music with the typical music of Bangladesh to create an interesting mix.
Also memorable was when the audience participated in the night. Ten people were randomly chosen to go on stage for a contest. The top five people who blew up a balloon and popped it the fastest moved onto the second round, where they were timed to see who could drink a 2-liter of soda the fastest- through a straw. The top three winners were awarded prizes, although all the contestants won something.
A talk show, a rap-dance mix and a fashion show concluded the night. The colorful fashion show gave the audience a chance to see the diverse and beautiful ethnic dress of local Bangladesh.
The night ended successfully. With Chinese New Year Night and Nepal Night yet to come, 2003 has high hopes to be a successful year of international culture and understanding.
Managing Editor Britt Johnsen contributed to this story.
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