Get ready for a "Journey through India" as Manav Mandir, supported by the Indian Association of Space Coast (www.iascbrevard.com), holds the 13th annual Indiafest Feb. 14-15 at Wickham Park Pavilion in Melbourne.

The event will be 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission tickets are $4 for adults, $1 for children 12 years and younger. Kids 5 years of age and younger are free.

Dance, music, fashion shows, cooking demonstrations and kid's hands-on activities are on the agenda.

Vendors will set up booths selling food, clothing, jewelry, and arts and crafts. While keeping the popular demonstrations and activities such as henna, yoga and palm reading, this year the organizers are presenting a dress parade, trivia competitions, storytelling and a movie theater. They also are partnering with area schools and involving children in age-appropriate educational trivia games and hands-on activities.

Indiafest supports several local charities, and assist in recovery efforts from national and international disasters such as: Daily Bread, Yellow Umbrella, Serene Harbor, Jess Parrish Auxiliary, Sept. 11 disaster in New York City, Bright Star for Grieving Children, tsunami victims, Cancer Care Centers, the Hindu Temple, IASC, Meals on Wheels, Red Cross, 2005 SE Asia Earthquake and the Miami Bridge Youth Home.

For more information, visit www.indiafestbrevard.org

Pehchaan, a psychosocial organization established in 2006, will hold its first 2009 workshop Sunday, Feb. 22, in Tampa. The upcoming program "Taming the Tiger Within," will focus on anger management. Presenter is Sushama Kirtikar, LMHC.

The program will be held 2 to 4 p.m. at Carrollwood Cultural Center, 4537 Lowell Road, Tampa. Admission fee for the adults-only workshop is $2 per person. For more information, call (813) 598-9848 or (813) 943-5288, e-mail pehchaantampabay@yahoo.com or visit www.pehchaantampabay.com.

The objectives of Pehchaan include conducting psycho-educational workshops and facilitating discussion and support groups on topics of general interest and relevance, to various age groups.

Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Orlando will hold a BAPS Charities Health Fair Saturday, Feb. 28.

However, before attending the event, patients are encouraged to have blood work done on Sunday, Feb. 15, from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. Cost is $30 for men and $35 for women with a required 12-hour fast. The results of the tests will be available at the health fair on Feb. 28.

There also will be a seminar on common medical problems, prevention of diseases and diet.

The event is organized by the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir at 1325 W. Oakridge Road in Orlando. For details, call the temple at (407) 857-0091 or visit www.baps.org

The Caribbean Students Association and Indian Students Association-Sanskriti will be among the participants offering folk dances at the third annual International Festival on Sunday, Feb. 22, at Florida Tech in Melbourne.

The free noon to 6 p.m. event, a highlight of the university's Golden Anniversary festivities, will take place in the outdoor Panthereum area.

Also presenting music and dance are Javier Molinares and Colombia Baila dance and song; Kleber Garcia, Andean wind ensemble; Panama Suenos y Tradiciones, Panamanian Folk Dance; L'Ahavat Tzion Israel Folk Dance; the Greek American Association of Brevard dance troupe; and Duo Flamenco, a contemporary Flamenco dance and guitar group.

Local vendors will sell ethnic food specialties and students will offer handmade jewelry and traditional artifacts for sale. Student organizations representing many countries will present displays and information on their cultures.

Other organizations involved are the International Student Service Organization, Latin American Student Association, Muslim Student Association, Saudi Student House, Spanish Club and Taiwanese Student Association.

The festival is sponsored by Florida Tech International Student and Scholar Services, WFIT 89.5-FM and the Melbourne-Palm Bay Area Chamber of Commerce. For information, call (321) 674-8053.

	President Dr. Chandravadan J. Patel

The Gujarati Samaj of Tampa Bay recently picked its officers for 2009-2010. According to the Samaj, here are the officers: President: Dr. Chandravadan J. Patel; Vice-president: Himmat Parekh; Secretary: Gautham Thakkar; Treasurer: Jaimin Patel; Social Secretaries: Harsha Patel and Jimmy Punjabi.

The next Samaj event will be Holi on March 15. Venue has to be decided.

For more information, visit www.gujaratisamaj.org

The Hindu Society of Central Florida's temple in Casselberry (Orlando) has changed its Web site (www.hindutempleorlando.org) to add interaction and multimedia content. The HSCF Board of Trustees initiated the move in mid-2008.

One can navigate through the Web site and learn about temple activities; as well as Hinduism, e.g., what is Diwali and why it is celebrated. Hindus traditionally teach their children about religion largely through family tradition or some send their children to Bal Vihar classes on Sunday.

The temple incorporated Audio and video streaming to its Web site, devotional songs and bhajans. Discourses and clips of events are featured on the Media Player. Devotees who wish to hear bhajans can simply go to the audio-Video page of the Web site and make a selection.

This media management and rendering platform was provided by Endavo Media & Communication Inc.

More than 300 devotees of the Hindu Society of N.E. Florida in Jacksonville celebrated Makar Sankranti and Iyappa Pooja on Jan. 14. In the evening, as is the tradition at the temple, Ayyappa Swami Makar Jyothi Puja was performed. Candles were lit for all the 18 steps of the platform constructed by a devotee, which is the traditional way of worshipping Ayyappa Swami.

It is believed that after climbing up the 18 steps reverently, one symbolically detaches oneself from all the worldly ties. It is only then that a person will be in a receptive condition to be 'one' in consonance with the concept of 'The Ultimate Creator.'

As part of the pooja, devotees sang bhajans on Lord Ayyapa.

The Hindu Society of N.E. Florida is at 4968 Greenland Road in Jacksonville. For information, call (904) 268-7630 or visit www.jaxhindutemple.org

	Pongal celebrations

About 300 people celebrated the Pongal Vizha (ceremony) Jan. 17 at the Jacksonville Thamizh Manram, a language-based cultural organization.

Pongal is the harvest festival celebrated in Tamil Nadu. In the villages, it is celebrated as a four-day festival, though in cities, the second day is celebrated.

During the festivities, children and adults presented dances, skits and songs, followed by dinner.

Have you opened a new store or restaurant in the last six months? Expanding or relocating? Has your business won an award or a mention in your local newspaper? We want to hear from you. Call Nitish S. Rele at (813) 758-1786 or e-mail us at editor@khaasbaat.com

BENGAL CUISINE OPENS IN MIAMI

Bengal Modern Indian Cuisine in Miami is now open. It offers a contemporary Indian menu with a few Bengali touches, writes Linda Bladholm in The Miami Herald. "Meats, all halal, include lamb chops, goat curry and yogurt-marinated, grilled steak." Bladholm found home-style cooking she was craving for in the vegetable options such as the veg thali, mattar paneer, shobji, aloo gobi and spiced mashed eggplant.

Bengal Modern Indian Cuisine is at 2010 Biscayne Blvd. in Miami. It is open daily for lunch from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and for dinner from 5 to 10:30 p.m. For information, call (305) 403-1976.

TUN-DU-REE OPENS IN NEW LOCATION

Hats off to Pat Bhava for a remarkable job. After successfully running Tun-Du-Ree at a trailer near MacDill Air Force Base and an eatery on Henderson Boulevard in Tampa, he has opened a restaurant of the same name at 1506-B W. Kennedy Blvd. "The place seats 10 to 15 inside and 20 to 35 outside," notes St. Petersburg Times' TBT magazine. Entrees are $6.99 and under.

For information, call (813) 251-2111, toll-free at 18-tundure-18 (1-888-638-7318), or e-mail tunduree@gmail.com or visit www.tunduree.com

Also in the news is Laziz in Clearwater. Recently, a Tampa Tribune food critic was greeted by "the scents of curry, cilantro and what I can only describe as deliciousness …" Jamie Pilarczyk continues, "The palak paneer (chunks of homemade cheese with spinach and Indian spices) and chicken madras (cooked in south Indian style with coconut, roasted ground spices and curry leaves) were equally delicious. Their sauces soaked into the ride or mopped up with garlic naan, a soft, thin Indian bread, were the true pleasure of the meal."

Laziz is at 2475-J McMullen Booth Road in Clearwater. For information, call (727) 797-7541 or visit www.lazizonline.com

And while you are at Laziz, don't forget to go grocery shopping next door at Namaste. The British, Indian and Oriental (B.I.O.) groceries store is at 2475-H McMullen Booth Road. For information, call (727) 669-3737.

In a Bites of the Bay section in TBT magazine (essentially a review of past reviews, sort of a "best of" list), Laura Reiley mentions quite a few Best Indian restaurants. Her present favorite is Cilantro in Temple Terrace. "The food has punch and heat, with especially good vegetable dishes and breads," she points out. Cilantro is at 11009 N. 56th St. For information, call (813) 983-8220 or visit cilantrojax.com.

The Times' food critic also is impressed with Raga Asian Indian Restaurant, owned by But Madhu and Naresh Sharma. She notes, "It offers a Northern Indian buffet during the week, a Sunday grand buffet showcasing the lesser-known vegetarian delights from Southern India, and Saturday morning cooking classes (the same folks are opening Green Chili Indian Bistro this week on Central Avenue in St. Petersburg)." Raga is at 16080 U.S. 19 N. in Clearwater. For information, call (727) 531-6400 or visit www.ragaflorida.com

Among vegetarian restaurants, Udipi Café in Tampa is the only Indian eatery mentioned by Reiley. "Veteran Indian restaurant Udipi Cafe serves the vegetarian community with huge Southern Indian dosa pancakes and veggie-studded uthappam (something between a pizza and an omelet), all proof positive that meatless can get spicy," she writes. Udipi is at 14422 N. Dale Mabry Highway. For information, call (813) 962-7300 or visit www.udipiusa.net