Salunke Vihar celebrates unique Christmas

Pune – Carol Singing at Christmas time is an age old custom. Prior to 2014, carol singing groups in Salunke Vihar met in individual Christian homes to celebrate the birth of Lord Jesus Christ. With the creation of Harolikar Udyan in Salunke Vihar, the event turned into a society event enjoyed collectively in the open air garden.

In 2018, the Salunke Vihar Management Committee inaugurated a new Community Auditorium with overhead cover, in what was previously a common car parking area. An added advantage of the location is the availability of a large cemented platform that makes a large suitable stage for holding such functions.

On Friday 21 st December, 2018, the children and residents of Salunke Vihar decided to celebrate Christmas at this new venue with some notable changes. It was entirely a function for Salunkians by Salunkians; unlike previous years, no outside groups were invited to sing.

Also for the very first time in the history of Salunke Vihar, the children enacted the nativity scene depicting the story of the birth of baby Jesus. As the tale was narrated by the compere and the children acted out their roles, the tableau was interspersed with appropriate carols. A beautiful manger was specially fabricated for the purpose with cut outs of animals. Child artists included Shanaya Vaz on the keyboard, Shivani Shashidhar on the harmonium, Tanisha Viegas and Justine Vaz on the violin with Tarun Viegas on the drums. After the tableau, all the participants and musical accompanists ranging from 4 to 12 years in age were given special gifts by the Fairy Queen who specially visited Salunke Vihar for the occasion. The professional musical accompaniment for the entire evening on the synthesizer was provided by Mr. Santosh David.

The tableau was followed by singing several carols including a beautiful solo rendition of O Holy Night by Puruvi Burai. Silent Night was a duet sung by Anita Viegas (Tenor) and Shailaja Valdiya (Soprano). The carols had something for everybody fast numbers (Jingle Bell Rock), joyful numbers (Joy to the World, Go Tell it to the Mountains), children’s numbers (Santa Claus is Coming to Town) which regaled the audience. Keeping the best for the last, everybody was invited to sing the last two popular numbers (Jingle Bells and Wish You a Happy New Year) thus ending the programme on a high note.

Other attractions included a beautifully decorated Christmas tree, standing next to which, many children took selfies. Santa Claus was a big hit. Every child got a gift packet and parents clicked photos of many of the smaller children sitting on Santa’s knee. The crowds thronged the eight food stalls which served a variety of mouth watering items from hot soups to yummy Gol Gappas, chicken biryani, chole bature and a host of other items.

Everybody was full of praise for the efforts, dedication and talent of the children, the singers and the organisers alike. Chief among the people who put the whole show together were Mrs Marlene Karnani, overall coordinator and eloquent compere, Mrs Elsie Vaz and Mrs Asha Vaz who directed the Nativity Tableau and managed over 40 children during the practices, and Ms Shailaja Valdiya who directed the choir.

Speaking at the start of the programme, after welcoming the audience, Brigadier Da Ga Ma Rose specially praised their noteworthy efforts as also thanked the Salunke Vihar Management Committee for all the help rendered.

The festivities continued on the evening of 22 nd December with a Christmas party for all the children of Salunke Vihar which was followed up by a Magic Show. The evening ended with ice-cream cones being handed out to all the
kids. Given that their exams were also over, the kids had a whale of a time.

Salunke Vihar is a cosmopolitan army residential complex of about 800 dwelling units, which traditionally celebrates Ganesh Utsav, Divali Dhamaka and Christmas Carol Singing underscoring the inclusiveness of all communities and harmonious living in the society. Salunke Vihar is home to army men of all ranks from Naik to Lieutenant General and has persons hailing from almost every state in India. The largest such military housing colony in Maharashtra, it is a fine example of national integration.