The ISKCON Batam Center in Indonesia held a successful Indian Music Festival outreach in beautiful Ocarina, Batam, on April 15th, 2023. The celebration of music, dance, and spirituality attracted 250-300 guests.  Locals, expatriates, and Singaporeans were all deeply affected by the event and enthusiastically participated in the many performances and activities. Batam is the largest city in the Riau Islands Province, across the Strait of Singapore, and the eighth largest city in Indonesia. 

Temple Chairman Samudrasena Das gave the opening remarks for the festival. On the beautifully prepared stage, two Odissi dances were led by Vraja Lila Devi Dasi. That was followed by kirtan by Karunaamrta Devi Dasi. Another kirtan was offered by Shabnam Mataji, a teacher at one of the international schools in Batam. The first half of the event continued with a lively dandiya folk dance.

Following the dandiya dance, Vaibhav Chaitanya Das mesmerized the audience with his kirtan. Halfway through his kirtan, he was accompanied by devotee women who offered a fan dance performance, a common cultural presentation in Indonesia. The event reached a crescendo with Bhakti Prema Swami Maharaja’s dancing Kirtan, which gathered all the attendees into joyful worship, touching the hearts and souls of everyone present.

Guests of the Festival receive transcendental literatures. Photos courtesy Sumardhaya Samudra Sena

Devotees were also on hand to distribute Srila Prabhupada’s books to festival goers, and the large Food For Life booth offered sumptuous South Indian prasada to the delighted crowds.

“At the end of the day, all of us from the organizing team felt a renewed passion for spreading the joys of Sankirtana to more and more people. We seek the blessings of the devotees to continue serving Srila Prabhupada’s ISKCON,” said one of the festival organizers, Phuspitaa Naaidu Ramloo.

A beautiful video from the event can be found here.

To follow all the activites and outreach at ISKCON Batam, follow their Facebook page.