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Dawoodi Bohras - News & Events

'It was like family members visiting home for the first time'


Udaipur welcomed them with open arms and open hearts and they responded like members of a family visiting home for the first time. A week passed by without anyone having the time to look at time. The visit of friends and families from across the continents worked as a catalyst that stimulated and strengthened the bond which was there all the time but not seen. This one week of interaction, though small, will go a long way for the reform movement.

From 23 Dec to 29 Dec 2002 it was serious business combined with pleasure and every moment of time spent together was worth it. Congrats to those who conceptualized the idea and also to those who worked towards making it a reality. It was no mean effort on the part of the guests who spared time , money and effort to be in Udaipur and in turn the Dawoodi Bohra Jamaat of Udaipur spared no effort on its part to see that their visit was worth it.

Besides sight seeing and visits to all the institutions run by the reformists of Udaipur, one highlight of the visit was a community dinner hosted in honor of the guests. The presence of almost 5,000 reformists in the "jamaat khana" was not only unbelievable to the guests but also vindicated the claim of the reformist's strength in Udaipur.

The other salient feature of the visit was a workshop organised to discuss the past, present and future of the movement. The enthusiasm of participants and audience knew no bounds. There was total freedom of expression - criticism as well as appreciation were taken sportingly by one and all. Time being the limiting factor, the organisers had to perforce stop while the audience was keen to go on. The success of this workshop is a testimony to our commitment to reforms. The main issue that emerged out of this workshop was a better representation and recognition to our women and youth in our policy and decision making bodies.

The young talent of Udaipur reformists came to the fore on 29 Dec 2002 when a cultural event was organised by the Students Welfare Society and the guests were given a fond farewell. The active participation of our guests in all activities was mainly responsible for the grand success of this visit.

With a parting note that we meet again in the UK in 2004, let us hope the family of reformists becomes larger and stronger.