Indian Community Celebrates Country’s Independence

August 17, 2026
• Needham’s Indian diaspora recognized the national holiday while looking to the next generation to “carry this legacy forward.”

While celebrations across the globe were winding down, the party in Needham was only starting. About 300 people packed Powers Hall Saturday afternoon to commemorate Indian Independence Day, marking the end of British rule in the country.

Both the Indian and American flags hung from the stage as a series of performers danced and showcased traditional clothing from across India’s regions. Hosted by the nonprofit Indian Community of Needham, or ICON, the festivities were largely marked by its youth, who organizers said are central to their underlying mission.

“We want to make this platform open for our youth, our kids, so they carry this legacy forward,” said Raja Shaikh, social co-chair of ICON, during opening remarks.

While many first-generation Indian immigrants spent their childhoods and early adulthoods in India, their children, born in the United States, don’t have that same lived experience or emotional ties, ICON President Hemant Chowdhary said. Through community events, they aim to “keep that cultural connection alive,” he said.

“India Day is an active opportunity for us to celebrate and share the richness of our Indian culture, traditions and music, dance and heritage with the broader Needham community, and also it is especially important for our children,” Chowdhary said in an interview. “Children are not just the spectators in the program, but they are helping carry the culture forward by really practicing and learning it.”

More than 40 children in the local Indian community participated in ICON’s India Day by dancing to Indian music, appearing with their parents on stage and singing the national anthems of both countries.

Vinisha Bhushan, a rising freshman at Needham High School, said attending the annual event serves as a reminder of a special part of her identity. Bhushan sang “The Star Spangled Banner” alongside two other local students.

“It’s bridging cultures, and it’s also celebrating Indians who are in this community,” Bhushan said. “There’s a lot of us, so it’s nice to commemorate this kind of stuff.”

For Sachi Gupta, India Day is about spotting familiar faces and reveling in shared community. She organized the fashion show portion of the program, where families displayed garb of their home region in India.

“It’s just special,” the rising NHS sophomore said. “It’s a day for you that you get to enjoy and be surrounded by people that like you.”

Attendees wore colorful saris and scarves in the Indian flag colors, and spoke with friends and family in some of the country’s more than 100 recognized languages. Organizers served samosas, mango lassi and other popular Indian fare, while regional organizations tabled around Powers Hall.

This year’s celebration is one of ICON’s largest by attendance, Chowdhary said. Beyond Needham’s Indian community, he said he was pleased to see residents of different ethnicities come together.

“That in fact, makes the celebration truly a community event, rather than just an Indian community event,” he said.

ICON also hosts a Diwali night in the fall and a Holi festival in the spring, among other events.

Simi Basak, who graduated from NHS this past spring, said she appreciates how much the community has grown in recent years.

“It’s nice also to see people from different backgrounds come together to celebrate this,” Basak said. She also sang the American national anthem on Saturday. “It’s nice to share our culture and the things that we do year round.”

India and the U.S. share values of “diversity, kindness, innovation [and] compassion,” Shaikh said. Despite being thousands of miles removed, he said they “haven’t forgotten our roots.”

About 10% of Needham’s population identifies as Asian, according to U.S. Census data.

ICON’s programming aims to “create opportunities for families to meet, friendships to be developed and people from different backgrounds to come together,” Chowdhary said.

“Our goal is not only to preserve our heritage… but to also share it, share it to make sure that the next generation understands where they come from while being an integral part of the community here, which they are calling as home now,” he said. “While we have this country as our new home, we want them to realize where they came from.”

Vipul Bhushan, a member of the Needham Community Television Development Corporation’s board of directors, is a founder of ICON and past organizer of India Day. He was not involved in the reporting, writing or editing of this story.