After two years of marking the new year at home, members of Waterloo region’s Tamil community are excited to gather in-person this weekend.
“It’s a chance to see new faces greet old friends. There have been probably a lot of newcomers to the region. We’re excited to also meet them,” said Rajivi Nadarajah, secretary of the Tamil Cultural Association of Waterloo Region.
The new year was on April 14, but the group will mark it Saturday, April 23 with an evening celebration at the Forest Heights Community Centre in Kitchener.
“We decorate the entrance with coloured powder and intricate designs called kolam to welcome positive vibes and energy into the houses. We prepare lots of food. A lot of people sometimes go to the temples to pray,” she said.
“My favourite part of the Tamil new year is something we call conversation, which is where we go to our elders and we pay respects to them and they bless us and give us pocket money as well. So the kids also enjoy that quite a bit.”
Plans for 2022
While the new year event is sold out, Nadarajah says there are many summer events planned where people can learn more about their group, including the K-W Multicultural Festival scheduled to take place in June in Kitchener’s Victoria Park. There’s also a South Asian sports day in July and a picnic in August.
“We’ve not put on a lot of events over the past two years, and we’re going to try and go back to all the events that we have done,” she said. “There’s quite a bit this year that we’re excited about.”
