Announcing our first event for 2015: Discover India 2015 sponsored by BB Travel Experts

We are excited to announce the very first event of this year, Discover India 2015, sponsored by the wonderful folks at BB Travel Experts. There is a lot to talk about this event. In this post, we will go over the broad outline of the event and describe what it is all about. We will communicate the specifics, rules and such, a week before the event.  For now, we request that you please add the event to your calendar. There is a calendar invite setup in the Upcoming Events page. Here is the participant signup sheet. 

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Name of the Event: Discover India 2015

When: 1 pm - 5 pm, Sunday, March 8th, 2015.

Where: Vineland Public Library, 1450 Blossom Hill Road, San Jose, CA 95118

Sign up: Click here to sign up

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What is Discover India?

Discover India is our very own quiz and trivia event. This is the first of what we hope will become an annual affair. This is an opportunity for all the smart folks of Cambrian to match their wits against one another. Worry not, this is not a hardcore quiz. It is a trivia event and has something for everyone. There will be prizes for the winning team and runner up. Sign up here. 

There will be rounds of jeopardy style questions, a few rounds of audio and video questions from movies and stuff, dedicated cricket question rounds in keeping with the World Cup, pictionary, 20 questions, dumb charades and more. Most importantly, all questions will be about India or Indians. So it will be an awesome opportunity to learn more about your country. I can assure you that you will walk away learning something new about India. 

This is a team event. Each team will be composed of 3-5 members. Anyone who is interested can be part of a team. If you cant form a team in advance, worry not. We will get you into a team at the venue. Families can participate together as teams or join hands with friends. We'll provide a detailed FAQ about the mechanics of the event a week before the event. 

If you want to warm up here are some audio quizzes I(Prabhu) did recently. 

Links:

Hindi Movie Dialogues Quiz

Republic Day Patriotic Quiz

Indian TV ads Quiz - Part 1, Part 2

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Who is our generous sponsor for the event?

We are excited to announce that BB Travel Experts (BBTES) will be the exclusive sponsor for the event. BB Travel Experts is a full service travel agency offering airline, cruise, train, rental car and hotel reservations. Often times we have friends and family traveling on vacations within and outside the US. BB Travel Experts offer a full suite of services to support all your needs. You can reach them in the following ways:

Website: http://www.bbtes.com

Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/bbtes

Phone: 408-264-4395 / 408-390-0750

CIC Events 101

CIC - The spirit of community

Recently, we put out a request calling for inputs on events for 2015. We had a bunch of people ask us in private, what we were looking for. Here is a simple primer on CIC events and how you can be a part of it.

What is a CIC Event?

The Cambrian Indian Community organizes a set of events throughout the year for the local community. Some of these are regulars like Diwali and Mehendi night. Others are flexible- we have them for a few years and then based on interest and availability of a crew, skip them in favor of others. 

How can I participate?

There are multiple ways you can participate in a CIC Event. Here are a few simple ones.

1. I like to just attend and enjoy.

Here, you would look out for dates on our events, sign up in the designated manner and show up to enjoy the event and the company of friends in the community. This is a great way to get to know whats going on in the community and some of the folks behind the events. This is also a great introduction and a ringside view of what CIC is all about.

2. I like to participate but not organize.

Some parents prefer this approach for their kids who get to participate in CIC events like Raamnavami (music and dance), Diwali (Arts and cultural), Easter Egg Hunt, and so on. Parents themselves participate in some of the events but that is the extent of participation. This approach offers  way to know a few folks who are part of the same participating team, very well. This is a good way to see how CIC events come together from a 5000 ft view.

3. I like to volunteer, coordinate and maybe, organize an event.

This is the real deal. I say this because this is the shortest path approach to making a ton of friends in the community. Every CIC event is put together with a ridiculous amount of attention to detail and care for every attendee. It is an experience onto itself to be a volunteer, a coordinator or an event organizer. All it takes is enthusiasm to be a part of building and executing an event to perfection. It is a ton of fun and you make friends for life along the way. You can volunteer to help on event day or help coordinate one specific part of the event or well, organize it.

4. I am an ideas person.

Your ideas as very important to us. There is more about this in the following paragraphs. If you have a suggestion for an event, please speak up anytime.

I have ideas but I am not sure what to do with them. 

Every great event starts with the germ of an idea. Once you have an idea, speak up. Tell us about it on Facebook or by messaging one of the CIC board members or emailing us. Let us know if you just want to give us the idea or help make it a reality. Remember, we are all started as rookies at some point of time or the other. There are experts in every aspect of event management within CIC who can work with you in flushing the idea out and figuring out a way to make it happen. 

One thing to remember- as much as we can help execute the event, sometimes, you, the inventor has the original and the purest form of the vision. You might be the best person to do it. But let that not deter you from sharing your ideas. If you cant make it happen due to whatever reason, we can figure out ways around that.

What constitutes an idea? Give me an example.

Ideas can be one liners like - I want to have an event for Holi. 

Ideas can be a few sentences - I would like to do something for Holi. It could be an event with folks in Indian attire at the local park. We can play with colors and have a snack afterwards.

Or, if you are the detail oriented type, a one pager with everything you have in your head, poured out. You could also record it if you hate typing and email it to us. Or let us know you want to talk and one of us will sit down with you to work through it. 

You tell us what and we can work together in everything else. Really!

I want to organize but don't have experience putting an event together. 

Most if not, all of us had never done events for a community before. There is always a first time to everything. So don't let lack of experience deter you from pitching an idea or wanting to make it happen. 

Still hesitant. I have a job. Kids to take care of. I think it will be a time sink.

We understand completely. Guess what, we are all on the same boat. And that is exactly why, we want you to talk to us. Let us discuss and figure out something where your idea gets the right forum. And we can make it happen. Together as a team. You do not have to do all the heavy lifting. The sheer thrill of seeing your vision come true is well worth the effort of atleast pitching it to us. You never know :)

What do I get out of it?

For starters, you make a lot of friends. You earn a lot of goodwill. And all of that is worth a lot. From talking to folks who have done this- many have gotten the opportunity to learn so much about event organization, time management, people management, and hands-on experience doing things like decorations and what not. The amount of learning here in terms of life skills is a lot. You will be a better person for going through one such experience.

Mmmmm..

No more excuses. Jump in. There is a ton of fun to be had and a lot of friends to be made. Let the community participate in your wonderful ideas. Kindly include us in your grand visions.

2014 - A Year in Review

The 2014 CIC events are all done. In our recent Board meeting, we looked at our current financial state (healthy) and also reviewed the feedback from Diwali 2014. As we shift our focus to 2015, it is only fitting that we take a moment to look back at what we achieved as a group in 2014.

2014 was the biggest year for the Cambrian Indian Community by every measure. We had the most number of events, easily the largest number of attendees and every record has been shattered. The participation from the community has been beyond fantastic. The number of families who moved into the community and instantly started actively participating in events is heartwarming. So what is all this stuff I am talking about without real data? You asked, so here we go.

Major Events of 2014

• Easter Egg Hunt - May (50 attendees)
• Rama Navami Concert - April (75 attendees)
• Chaat Party -May (100 attendees)
• Seniors Day - June (14 Seniors)
• Camping Trip - August (60 attendees)
• Sport Day - August (75 attendees)
• Mehndi/Dandiya Night - October (90 attendees)
• Diwali - Nov (370 attendees)

Note that some events were organized prior to the formal creation of the CIC NPO and when we did not have a website to communicate with everyone. 

Ongoing Activities of the Community

• Cambrian Soccer on Saturday mornings at Lone Hill Park
• Ladies Hike on Saturday mornings
• Gents Hike on Sunday mornings
• Cambrian Volleyball on Sunday evenings at Lone Hill Park

Please drop us a note here if you are interested in any of our ongoing activities or Seva events. 

Milestones

Voting for first ever CIC Board

After months of discussion and meetings, we filed our paperwork to be a State recognized NPO. This was approved in July 2014. This was a huge milestone for the community as a whole as it allows us to formalize and streamline a lot of our efforts. This also allows us to serve not just the local Indian community but a broader audience around us through charitable efforts and other Seva like the one we are doing regularly at InnVision. 

Community Outreach and Seva

The Cambrian Indian Community believes strongly in "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam" meaning "The world is one family." To this effect, we have been engaged throughout the year in contributing our time and money to local causes that are near and dear to us. Our biggest recipient this year was the Community shelter network InnVision. Cambrianites have cooked and served fresh homemade food at the San Jose InnVision center in addition to contributing a portion of our Diwali proceeds to the cause. CIC did Seva at Innvision in May, July, August, October, November and December and will continue these efforts into 2015.

In addition, CIC will contribute a portion of any money we collect as part of our events. This is our small way of giving back to the city that has brought us all together. 

Looking Ahead

Well, we cant reveal everything in this post, can we? Keep guessing. We will be back with a tentative lineup of events for 2015, sometime early next year. Until then, on behalf of the CIC, here is wishing all of you a peaceful and enjoyable holiday and a wonderful New Year ahead. 

Diwali 2014 Feedback: What you told us

The CIC Board met on December 5th, 2014 for their quarterly sync up. This event was open to all members of the Cambrian Indian Community. The meeting minutes are captured here. 

The agenda's biggest topic that took over 2 hours of discussion was all about Diwali 2014. Rukmini, as the organizer shared her thoughts on what went right and what could be done better. We then took individual feedback from everyone who attended the meeting. There were good points raised which will be addressed when we start planning for Diwali 2015 early next year. The one thing we did want to share here is the data we got from all your feedback responses (43 in all). As big believers in the power of data, we thoroughly appreciate what you told us in the feedback form. And here are the big takeaways.

1. The One about the Event Pricing

Going into the event, we were worried about the $20 entry fee. To make the event happen at the scale we wanted to, and to accommodate all the people in a reasonably spacious auditorium, we needed to charge $20 at a minimum. Any lesser and we would have not broken even. All our worries went away by a majority of you telling us that you felt the event was a steal or rightly priced. Thank you. We operate on a shoe string budget with absolutely no fat and it helps that you understand.

2. The One about the Event Duration

It is always a challenge trying to architect an event to keep people from a diverse age group interested and engaged all the time. To that effect, props to Rukmini and her huge team of choreographers, coordinators and parent helpers for helping pull off a show that ended fairly close to the planned time. We will try to keep the same amount of time in mind while programming next year.

3. The One about the Food

The feedback on food has two components to it. One was the subjective text entry where people echoed their thoughts on the taste and then there was the objective choice on the food pricing. The food taste itself seems to be well received. On the matter of food pricing, we hear you loud and clear. You liked the food but found the quantity to be insufficient or not worth the $7. This will be a big priority for us to address in 2015. We are thinking along multiple lines to understand how best to get good quality food catered at the right price and with the right quantity. We will communicate the steps we take in this regard closer to the event next year. 

4. The One about the Event itself

This was the one that makes us want to do so much more. As a community, you have responded extremely positively to the overall event which gives us a huge shot in the arm. Diwali at Cambrian has grown to be a massive affair that required hundreds of hours of planning and meetings and thousands of emails not to mention the practice and execution. And there is no greater reward than this graphic. We would obviously want everyone to think it to be great and will work towards it next year.

5. Now, for the finer details

In the fields where people were asked to enter their thoughts on the event, we heard some recurring themes. They are:

• STAGE: We need a stage or a raised platform to watch the performances and enjoy the event fully. Yes, we know. Circumstances forced us to not have one this year. Now we know how big a difference it makes. We will have one next year, period.
• AUDIO: We had some challenges with the audio setup at the venue and it showed. We are already working on a bunch of ideas to fix this for next year.
• MEET and GREET: This year, the 3-4 pm slot was for members of the community to meet and greet. Some of you felt that this was not sufficient. Increasing this means a longer event which might not go with other feedback on the event duration. When we start programming for next year, we will do our best to address this.

It is incredible to see so many of you take the time to share your thoughts on the event. Many of you were volunteers. Some of you were first timers. And some are veterans at this. All of your opinions matter a lot as we grow as a community and stage events at this scale. Some of this feedback will go into not just next Diwali but also all our Cambrian events throughout the year. 

If you had your thoughts to share on the matter, drop your comments here, or in Facebook or send us an email. 

Thank you once again for attending the event and hope to not just see you next year, but have you volunteer and participate in making Diwali 2015 a grand success.

The Road to Diwali 2014

This article originally appeared in Vol.1 of Cambrian Khabar that was distributed during our 2014 Diwali event. You can get your copy of Cambrian Khabar Vol.1 here. It is being reproduced here for the benefit of those who did not get a chance to see Cambrian Khabar and also to give some perspective from the Organizer's standpoint. Keep in mind, this was written before the event. 

Diwali 2014 Organizer - Rukmini Vemulakonda

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Diwali is a one of the Indian festivals celebrated by Cambrian Indian Community (CIC). It is our largest event of the year and is celebrated the Indian way - with lots of friends and family, music and food.

The 2013 Diwali celebration was a tremendous success with over 180 members participating for the event. There was lots of entertainment, fun and food including a promise to increase the count to support the growing Cambrian Indian community. Our CIC members Latha Santhosh, Sonal Sabu, Anjana Ganjigunte and Krithika Santhanam took on the task to search for an appropriate venue for 2014 Diwali from mid-January. The team checked out multiple venues before finalizing the 2014 Diwali venue as the Church of Chimes on February 10, 2014. 

The next task was to seek out and request for the Diwali core team members to make the event run smoothly for our expected count of nearly 400 people. The Diwali core team has over 40 CIC members (adults and kids) who have worked tirelessly for the past few months to ensure that our event is covered in all areas - sponsorship, parking, entertainment for kids and adults, welcoming our new community members, providing childcare and organizing dinner. 

Our next major accomplishment after the venue and core team selection was to secure a group of wonderful and energetic group of choreographers, teachers and directors for our performance. We had our talented members who came forward to teach/direct performances for kids and adults. Today’s Diwali event has 54 kids and 21 adults participating in various programs who will be showcasing their talent in the performances. The sheer effort of these participants speaks to the nature of our community and how it can and has come together to put up a show of this magnitude.

On behalf of the organizing committee, we sincerely hope all of you enjoy the event. We request all attendees to please provide your feedback as part of the survey that will be sent via email(same email address as the event invoice) tonight. This will help the Diwali team improve not just future Diwali events but all the programs that the CIC puts together throughout the year. 

Thanks for being a part of the CIC Diwali 2014. It has been a pleasure making this event happen with a fantastic team of community members and sponsors who opened their wallets generously to support our activities. 

- Rukmini Vemulakonda, Event Organizer, CIC Diwali 2014. Proud resident of Cambrian since 2012 

The evolution of the new Cambrian logo

On Nov 16th, we formally unveiled our brand new logo for the CIC. This logo has been used unofficially on the Paypal reservation page for the event itself but this was the first time we showed it to the world proudly. A few folks asked me about the logo and its origins and I wanted to throw something together about that.

After we registered CIC as a CA state NPO, we realized that we would need a logo. We kept talking about what and how without really doing much about it. When we laid out a plan to get sponsors for the Diwali event, we realized that it was time to work on the logo. I set out asking folks for inputs on Facebook. 

First there was just silence. But then as time progressed, I started hearing back from folks. Santhosh sent a bunch of ideas. Veena sent me a few back of the napkin sketches. Srividya sent a few and Krithika dashed off some on the last day. Our Diwali grand sponsor Venkata chimed in with a bunch of entries on the last day. Before I knew, I had over 15 entries. This was a fantastic response for a logo design activity among adults. The entries were put to vote with the CIC board which after multiple rounds of voting finally settled with an entry from Venkata. It was a pretty challenging vote to say the least. We had multiple entries that had good feedback but we had to settle on one.

Here is the original entry from Venkata that was selected. 

It was simple, easy to replicate and conveyed what we were about - all important requirements for a good logo. But we had a problem. This logo was too simplistic and a pain to use with a black background. So we needed to tweak it just a little bit to make it web and print friendly and throw in some very basic flourishes. Enter our resident design expert, Veena Singh. 

Amidst her hectic schedule, Veena patiently worked with me over a few weeks to build a web and print friendly version of the logo that would also have that one touch to make it an enduring design. This is what she showed me when she was ready.

Veena had taken Venkata's core idea shown to the right with black background and made it standout. The text went from being on the side to being on a curve over the alphabets. And the "i" developed an attitude. It offers a lot of ideas to the free thinker- a parent and child, someone looking over a younger one, a smaller Cambrian (in orange) growing into a bigger community (in green) and so much more. More importantly, this was Cambrian in its simplest form. Veena had captured our spirit and vision in the best way possible.

Venkata had laid the foundation. An idea to start with. Veena polished it off. A team effort that brought forth an enduring image of our community. 

We need your feedback

The Diwali event was the biggest ever in the history of the CIC by a mile. It took hundreds of hours and a lot of resources to make it happen. But we know we are not perfect. It takes so much effort that somethings get left out. We make mistakes and we want you to tell us how we can avoid them in the future. 

We want you to tell us your thoughts on Diwali 2014 by filling this feedback form. You can choose to be anonymous. We need your email only if you would like to help organize the event for next year. Even then, you can drop in your anonymous feedback and separately reach out to the board to help organize next year. Either way, we want to know how we can do this better next year. 

It takes no more than 2 minutes to answer the few questions we have for you. We really, really appreciate you taking the time to do this. 

Feedback Form

And here is the NPO board introduction video if you missed it. 

NPO Board Video

Hello world

Dear residents of Cambrian

It gives us, the Cambrian Indian Community (CIC), immense pleasure in announcing this website to the world. This website is a community-only place (all pages are password protected) to share details of events and happenings in the neighborhood.

If you would like to contribute to this website with content or ideas please get in touch with the administrator or by leaving a comment at the bottom.

This website is being launched on the day of our largest event of the year, Diwali. We hope you enjoy the event as much as the organizer and dozens of coordinators and volunteers had in putting it together. This event symbolizes everything that is unique and exciting about living and being a part of this community. It brings us together is a remarkable manner to pull off something that is quite challenging. 

If you would like to be a part of organizing next year's Diwali or any other event, do get in touch with the board by emailing them here.