ICLS fund raising cultural night

Playback singer Haricharan and Bennet and the Band serenading the crowd

A cultural do, titled Dhiiraati Nakshatra Nite (DNN) 5.0 organised by a talented group of students of Indian Cultural and Language Society (ICLS) from UTAR, Kampar took place at Pei Yuan High School Hall in Kampar on 05 August 2017.

Attended by more than 900 people, the main objective of the event was to cultivate kindness towards the community at large and raise funds to support the well-being of three multiracial needy families and two non-governmental organisations (NGOs), which are Rumah Kebajikan Kanak-kanak Cacat Negeri Perak and Persatuan DayBreak untuk Orang-orang Cacat Kinta. Organised annually, the fund raised from last year’s Dhiiraati Nakshatra Nite 4.0 were successfully donated to five multiracial needy families who were majorly suffering from poverty and serious ill health issues, and also to an underprivileged Tamil school in Kampar, SJK (T) Ladang Kampar, Perak. 

Invited to grace the opening ceremony was the Speaker of Perak State Legislative Assembly Malaysia Thangasvari Suppiah. On hand to receive her were ICLS Advisor Meera Devarajoo, Event Advisor Aruna Raj Devarajoo and Organising Chairperson Sanjeev Naidu Somasundram. Also present at the ceremony as the special guest was Datin Sri Shaila V, a well-known Malaysian Indian artist.

From left: Meera, Aruna, Sanjeev Naidu and Thangasvari during the launch ceremony

The Opening Ceremony of DNN 5.0 reached its peak when the VIPs were invited on stage to officially launch the night and also to present the souvenirs. This was then followed by a series of astounding cultural performances.

Guest of Honour, Thangasvari in her speech said, “Services to the community are given a lifeline and this lifeline will have a long lasting effect through the passion shown by these students. In years to come, such efforts will surely help in minimising if not eradicate the less fortunate socioeconomic groups within the community.”

The organising committee of Dhiiraati Nakshatra Nite 5.0 also brought the best of Indian entertainment to the stage by having the popular playback singer, Haricharan who has sung numerous Tamil hit songs and stage rockers, Bennet and the Band all the way from India to perform.

An exquisite vocal performance by Magen

Local artists such as ‘Vikadakavi’ Magen, Punitha Raja, Kabil Raj and Vicanes Jay also shared the stage with a bunch of talented students from UTAR and also other university such Universiti Teknologi Petronas, Tronoh (UTP) as UTAR ICLS aimed not only to provide a ground for promising Indian students to showcase their talent in music and arts but to develop their spirit of leadership and fellowship.

Several outstanding students were also honoured for their achievement and contributions to the university. The list of awards and recipients included Best Academic Achievement for Harshini Puvanasvaran and Best Sportsman Award to Joshua Peter and last but not least, Best Achievement Award to Mitthun Raj Subramaniam for an outstanding record in body building.

Mitthun Raj (left) receiving the Best Achievement Award from Datin Shaila; while Meera (second from left) and Aruna look on

Joshua (right) receiving the Best Sportsman Award from Datin Shaila; while Meera looks on

The event concluded with an upbeat Urumi performance for the audience to move to the beat and to enjoy themselves.

The Urumi players giving an upbeat closing performance