Half of Toronto’s population was born outside of Canada, making it one of the most ethnically diverse cities in the world. It’s also home to a large Tamil population. FeTNA, or the Federation of Tamil Sangams of North America, is an umbrella organization representing the North American Tamil population. For the last twenty-six years FeTNA has held an annual international conference in an American city, and this year the conference was held in Canada for the first time. The event ran at the Sony Centre in Toronto from July 5 to 7, attracting visits from the international Tamil community, including scholars, artists and historians. Celebrating the richness of Tamil culture while promoting solidarity, the convention included discussion panels, networking events, performances, forums and youth workshops. Dance was an integral part of the festivities, including the detailed Indian style known as Bharatanatyam, with performances from the Sri Sanskriti Dance Academy and the Shilompoli Shethra Dance Academy among others. One highlight was renowned Indian dance instructor, choreographer and composer Madurai R. Muralidharan’s presentation of a work in which more than one hundred classical Indian dancers from the Greater Toronto Area performed.
Tagged: Conference, Indian, Performance, Uncategorized, Workshop, ON , Toronto
