Telugu NRIs in Bahrain celebrate Sri Venkateshwara Kalyanam with devotion
Telugu NRIs in Bahrain celebrated Sri Venkateshwara Kalyanam with great devotion. Priests from TTD performed traditional rituals, drawing devotees from across the Gulf. TTD chairman B.R. Naidu’s visit marked his first overseas event as head of the shrine.
Dubai: The enthusiastic and devotional Telugu NRI community in the island nation of Bahrain celebrated Sri Venkateshwara Kalyanam with pomp and spiritual fervour.
The Telugu NRIs were delighted to witness their “Ilavelpu” in an Arabian country, with chants of ‘Govinda Govinda’ echoing throughout the day at Salmabad, where the event was held on Friday.
Scores of devotees from Bahrain and neighbouring Gulf countries participated in the event.
A team of priests — Bharata Shekhara Charyulu, Upadhyaya Balabhadra and Sudarshana Narayanan — from Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) flew in from Tirupati to Bahrain to perform the rituals.
Vedic scholars explained the significance of Sri Venkateswara Kalyanam while chanting mantras. Before the celestial wedding, a special ritual bath was performed for the deities, with all ceremonies conducted according to tradition. The priests stated that Sri Venkateshwara Kalyanam would bring divine blessings, peace and prosperity to the region. TTD chairman B.R. Naidu attended the event as chief guest.
Several NRIs expressed their gratitude to the TTD for organising the celestial wedding in Bahrain, saying they spiritually felt as if they were in Tirupati.
On Saturday, the TTD chairman called on Indian Ambassador Vinod K. Jacob and briefed him on TTD’s efforts to reach out to the diaspora community and offer devotional services of Sri Venkateshwara Swamy.
