The Pandemonium called North American Bengali Conference

Bengalis have always borne the dubious distinction of being a terribly self-centred race..and they aptly lived up to the notoriety at the recently concluded North American Bengali Conference (2-5 July 2009), NABC in short, fondly known as Banga Sammelan to the "Bongs" worldwide! I had the "honour" of attending the event as one uninitiated into "NRI public relation-skills" and so, came away far more disappointed than a seasoned "Banga Sammelan hopper", at the same old story of mismanagement and confusion reigning supreme, as is typical of most Bengali cultural shows and ceremonies! I do not harbour any ill feelings against my own community; but it is certainly no exaggeration to say that one would expect a little more professionalism from a host of very established and talented individuals who were entrusted with the organisation and management of this mess; and yet these are the people who hold some of the most prestigious positions in some of the most esteemed companies in the Silicon Valley. I wonder what the reason for this apparently inexplicable anomaly is.

The unprofessionalism was glaringly evident right from the moment we stepped into the huge lobby of the San Jose McEnery Convention Centre. There was no one to be seen at the reception for registration, and I am pretty sure no one would have bothered even if we had headed staright upstairs without caring to sign in. After a patient wait, when a man finally showed up (probably to shoo us off for being courteous enough to wait for registrationp; at least his face did not betray any other emotion other than one of terrible annoyance), there was a lot of confusion as he tried to look up our names in the computer. When the passes ultimately got ready, the man discovered that he had run out of both the lanyard as well as the plastic covers for the passes. Consequently, we had to make do with just the small pieces of loose paper. More enquiries from us for a map of the building and a schedule of the events met with a deeper frown as we were informed that all those were to arrive at 2 p.m. in the afternoon; and we did not feel like reminding him that it was half past two already.

The food on the first day too proved to be as good as the people organising the whole event. The only thing worth mentioning here was that the caterer kept running out of Chicken in the thing that was apparently "Chicken Biriyani"; and so most people had to be content with the Aloo from Aloo Dum. The consequence was that the following day, we carried with ourselves a massive bag full of supplies (which ranged from Masala Chai in a therm. to Sandwiches with Guacamole spread and even Mac and Cheese for the little Nino), and had a much better meal (both in terms of convenience and taste; convenience because we could munch away happily as we watched Shaan, instead of having to scurry for the elusive chicken and rice; and taste , most obviously because, Sumididi is a most wonderful cook, to whom the ruddy people of Swagat caterers turn deathly pale in comparison)!

On the concluding day, after a host of "upcoming talent" in the Bengali music industry had triumphantly managed to put the crowd in a deep slumber, Shaan and the musical wonder Anwesha Dutta Gupta brought the asleep masses back to life. There is no point lamenting that the modern generation is becoming increasingly inclined towards western and Indi-pop culture. This is a pretty inevitable consequence of the poor quality of music that our very own bengali musicians are producing most diligently, year after year, without the slightest desire to innovate or improve. The bengali music industry is fast approaching doomsday....it is actually surprising to see it still breathing!