Staff Reporter
The Auckland based Urdu Hindi Cultural Association of New Zealand launched its first book containing a collection of poems written by local bards.
Association Patron and National MP Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi released the Book, called, ‘Safed Badlon Ke Desh Mein,’ (‘Aotearoa’ or ‘In the Land of the Long White Cloud’) on Sunday, October 20, 2019 in West Auckland.
Edited by Preeta Vyas, it carries the works of Rohit Kumar Happy, Somnath Gupta ‘Deewana Raikoti’ and Dinesh Bhardwaj, all three residents of the City.
Inspiring Initiative
Following the introductory remarks by Association Secretary Syed Mujeeb Hyderabadi, introduced the poets, saying that their poems will have emotional, literary and social appear worldwide among lovers of Urdu and Hindi literature.
“Mr Happy is the Editor of ‘Bharat Darshan,’ the first Hindi magazine on the Internet Mr Gupta is a retired official, while Mr Bharadwaj is a Yoga teacher,” she said.
Commending the initiative of the Association, Mr Bakshi hoped that more people from the community will be encouraged to compose poems.
“I am sure that such poems and books will enjoy the support of our people. I am proud to be the Patron of the Association which actively promotes the heritage, literature and culture of India and Pakistan,” he said.
President Roopa Suchdev described the Book as a ‘significant milestone’ in the history of the Association and felicitated community member Bal Madan who recently celebrated his 94th Birthday in Auckland.
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Photo Caption:
Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi (third from right) with officials and guests at the Urdu Hindi Cultural Association of New Zealand Book launch (Picture Supplied)
