You came down and you saw for yourself. Talents from Incredible India showcased their skills for everyone to see in Paradise Seychelles during the second Seychelles-Indian Day celebrations. Run from October 3-5 by the Indian Association of Seychelles, the event was organised with the vision of celebrating the friendship of two great cultures Incredible India and Paradise Seychelles. This goal was to be achieved by contributing to the society as apartner in social projects as well as displaying commitments to culture, entertainment, cuisine, sports etc. The Seychelles-India Day organising committee adopted a policy that all the money raised should be used for social projects that will benefit the society. Accordingly, it invited friends and well wishers to come forward and take part in the various activities organised in partnership with the Ministry of Tourism and Culture as well as the Indian high commission of Seychelles. The main activities for the three-day event were: On October 3 at the Yellow Roof building (Ministry of Health headquarters) saw the hand-over of the medical project. This was very well appreciated by Ministry of Health. This was followed by the handicrafts fair at the National Cultural Centre. It was the first time that a large variety of handicraft of premium quality were imported for the exhibition and everyone was welcome to make a selection and purchase the exhibits. There was something for everyone at very competitive prices. The food fair was organised outside the National Cultural Centre and there was a large variety of Indian sweets and food. One could see long queues of visitors waiting for their turn to buy the sweets. In addition there was free tasting of the delicious and longest Basmati rice in the world Mansa and the 100% pure Basmati rice - India Salaam. Samples were distributed for free so that the people could try new recipes at home. Meanwhile, children received Pascual Yogikid yoghurts for free. Organised for the first time, the Seychelles-India Day image award was focused on greater involvement of the youth in the field of culture, people, music, dance, sports etc. Tourism and Culture Minister Alain St Ange had special words of appreciation for them and said some of the pictures could be used to promote Seychelles in India. On Friday night at the International Cultural Centre, in the presence of President James Michel, Minister St Ange honoured Maestro Ilaiyaraaja as the first cultural ambassador of Seychelles. I am very happy to be here today. Over the past four decades as a music composer, I have received so many awards. Today I consider it to be the most prestigious day of my life, Maestro Ilaiyaraaja said very emotionally when he accepted the award. I would like to thank the government of Seychelles and the Minister for Tourism and Culture to honour me with this title. I would go with this title and leave my heart here in Seychelles, Maestro Ilaiyaraaja added. The gala night at the Stad Popiler on Saturday night was a free event. At the entrance, one could see a giant poster of the Taj Mahal and all the visitors wanted to have their picture taken in front of it. Many Indian celebrities gave amazing performances during the gala night and there were also some Creole numbers. At the end of the four-hour show at 11pm, those present wanted to hear some more music. Ten international performing artists and dignitaries from India graced this year s Seychelles-India Day. The artists who performed on the night are: Stephen Devassy (Solid and band -Flying fingers on keys), violinist Manoj George, signers Siddharth Mahadevan, Naresh Iyer and Shalmale Kholgade, playback singers Sharmila and Sweta Mohan, master of ceremony Minoti Parikh, DJ Savyo and the dance group Chinni Prakash. DJ Savyo then rocked the night till 2am. The live culinary show by celebrity chef Kunal Kapur at Eden Plaza on October 4 was a free event and there was a large turnout of food-loving enthusiasts who came to watch him prepare simple recipes with locally available ingredients. Everyone present mentioned that they will definitely try out the new recipes. During the gala lunch at Hotel Ephelia on October 5, the large gathering enjoyed the musical concert followed by gala lunch specially prepared by celebrity chef Kunal Kapur.
There was also the badminton tournament which was a great success with nearly 41 players from six countries taking part. The main attraction was that Seychelles and Indian players had to play together in the doubles events. For the first time, there was a new Masters category for players aged 40 years old and over. Going by those who took part, it can safely be said that the second Seychelles-India Day was a record-breaking success and everyone, including the organising committee members, representatives of the Seychelles Tourism Board and the Indian high commission need to be congratulated for organising such an event. The accompanying photographs show highlights of the two-day event.