Latest News
- Diwali Function 2011
- New Committee
- AGM 2011 - Entertaining show with lots of proud parents!
- Funday 2011 - Rain, rain, go away, come again another day!
- DVD of AGM for participants and gaam directory
- Souvenir Magazine 2010
- Sports day 2010

Diwali 2011 - Fancy dress anyone??!!

So Diwali has passed and we were celebrating the start of 2068 on Saturday night! The evening kicked off with pass the parcel, followed by musical chairs for all ages. We had lots of young at heart adults that were making up for year’s sitting watching the children with envy thinking they could do it better; only once they had started did they realize that it is not that easy once the chairs come out and you can only go forward; watching the men’s slow tactical manoeuvre was a contrast to the speed and energy exerted by the children and women; who were highly competitive once started! Congratulations to all the winners in all 3 categories. Check out our Facebook Page for full names. Musical chairs was followed by the men’s rotli rolling competition which was twinned with the children’s diwali themed treasure hunt. From the rotli rolling competition it was clear to see who helps the wives with the cooking! Well done to Kalyanbhai Hirani for walking away with the champions trophy! For the children’s treasure hunt, Jay Jesani scooped 1st prize after 10 minutes hunting the hall for tealights! The games were wrapped up with a closely contested fancy dress; we had pirates, builders, Radha’s and Krishna’s and princesses to name a few; first prize was scooped by Nikhil Jesani for a very deserving effort as Krishna, followed by Nilen Vekaria as a very cute Bob the Builder, hard hat and drill in tow! The third prize went to Diya Vekaria for a Halloween themed Batgirl! Well done to all the participants and parents for helping with the dress up and entering. Once the games were through, the ladies raas commenced, bhajia’s and pau bhaji were served to give an extra kick of energy! A small break followed the raas to recognize all the academic achievements of Baladians in the last year; we have a new doctor and dental nurse amongst us now to name a few! This was all wrapped up with ramzunyu, and dandya followed by bhangra. Just want to take this opportunity to thank everyone that got involved to make the night a success, special mentions to Laxmi Vekaria, Sheila Mayani and their team for a beautiful entrance foyer; Jaya Garara for a lovely rangoli, Dev Rabadia for taking photos throughout the evening and Bhavna Sweet Mart for the Dokhi and all the ladies that helped with the kids games preparation and all of you that attended; with the exception of the glitches with the music we hope you had a good night.

New Committee members have been announced

AGM 2011 - Future stars of Strictly Come Dancing?

Time for the annual Baladia AGM and entertainment show, yes - it really has been a year since the last show. The morning began with the usual proceedings of the meeting followed by the elections for the new committee; lots of new faces so watch this space to see the changes that come forth. This is also a good opportunity to thank all those that served over the last 3 years and in many cases much longer; it is a big commitment and a lot of hard work so big thanks to those that served in years gone by, and hope that you are able to pass your experience and knowledge onto the new team and continue to assist wherever possible. Following the elections a hearty lunch was had by all. This lined the stomachs of all for the afternoon’s entertainment. Where there was a cultural mix for all tastes. From the youngest group that bum bum bhole’ed with the clown on stage, and made for some very proud parents in the front row, holding back the tears. To the beautifully choreographed dances by the older girls. To the added entertainment of the stage sketch plays by the older boys. We take this opportunity to thank the dedication of all those that got involved, what you see on the day is an amalgamation of months of hard work by not only the participants and teachers but by the parents too, who support and facilitate rehearsals, hope to see more proud parents in the front row next year!

Funday 2011 - Get your brollies up!

So, the forecast wasn't so great, but we did have a few champions that braced the wintry weather and April showers – in June - for the annual Funday. Medals for all those that braced the rain and walked round the field, played football as if playing for Spain and those that ran the races - true Baladian spirit undeterred by the constant downpour! For those that preferred to stay dry, they were catered for under the marquees where there was giant Connect 4 and a highly competitive team tower building exercise making towers out of spaghetti and blue-tack. And if that failed to entertain you, there was the constant flow of warm chips and mogo, followed up by freshly cut watermelons. So it may have rained all day, but it wasn’t a total washout, more of a race to see who could get their brollies up fast enough! Well done to all those that won medals – see you next year, come rain or shine!!
 
DVD of AGM for participants and Gaam directory

If you have yet to pick up your copy of the gaam directory or DVD please email the team via the website or direct through VM Hirani and it will be sent you as soon as possible.


Baladia Sarvodal Magazine, 40th Anniversary

The much anticipated 40th year souvenir magazine is finally here! We have crammed as much as we can to make this a notable companion to the 25th year magazine, and have tried to make it relevant for Baladians of all ages.

Awash with colour from the start, flick through for a trip down memory lane with photos from the last 40 years, and writings about Baladia or by Baladians. We need to start recording our history so that it can be shared with future generations and hope before you add this to your shelf as a reference for years to come you might think about what you or a family member could share so that history is not lost with the generations.

Sports Day Article 2010

On what was one of the hottest days of the year so far, Shree Baladia Leva Patel Sarvodal continued with their 40th year in the UK celebrations with a scorcher of a Fun Day in Northolt on the 27 June 2010. The crowds turned up and basked in the heat whilst playing five a side football, track and field events, team building for the generations which included building bridges from spaghetti, a treasure hunt, sumo wrestling and a gladiator duel. To tantalise their appetites thereafter there was a barbeque on site and endlessly flowing candy floss for those that needed a sweet touch. If that was not enough the Baladians watched on with specially setup screens to see England knocked out of the World Cup in South Africa by a fearless German team,  no losers on the fun day though since all had a fantastic day.

 

 

 

 

 

Badminton Article 2010

Baladia 40th Anniversary Celebrations commenced with the inaugural Baladia Badminton Championships on Sunday 7th Feb at the Jewish Free School. The tournament received immense interest especially in the “Mens Category”; where the intake was extremely high, with allocated places being filled within hours and many polite enquiries thereafter. Players arrived in their hoards in the anticipation and in some cases expectation of being crowned champions and more importantly having the bragging rights amongst friends and family. This year’s tournament comprised of 3 Doubles Categories, Mens, Ladies and Boys Under 16. Partners were draw randomly to keep in the spirit of fairness and friendly competition.

Men Category: Group Stages                                                                           

The Mens were drawn into 4 Groups comprising of 4 Teams, in a round robin tournament with the top two teams progressing to the Quarter Final Stages.

In Group 1, Ashwin and Rajesh powered their way into the Quarter Finals with some impressive performances winning all their group games. There were duly joined by Vinod and Jayesh who held their nerve to win some very tight games.

Group 2 was arguably the “group of death”, with teams evenly matched in terms of their abilities and skills. Rakesh and Manoj safely negotiated their passage into the Quarter Finals winning all their group games. Veterans Shantilal and Sanjay joined them with some valiant displays; in the process demonstrating their technical and tactical nous in overcoming younger opponents.

In Group 3, Vinod and Dhiresh comfortably progressed to the knock out stages by winning all their group games. Harish and Nitesh finished runners up despite losing their first game to secure a Quarter Final place.

Group 4 saw Nanji and Naran go through to the next round along with father and son pairing of Chandu and Darshan. Darshan was being made to work hard for his pocket money allowance compensating for his dads lack of mobility or was it just his unwillingness to run. 

Quarter Finals                                                                           

The lunch break provided the ideal opportunity for the qualifiers to recoup for the exertion of the knock stages.

The first Quarter Final was contested between Sanjay/Shanti and Dhiresh/Vinod.  This proved to be an epic tie, with the match going to the final game. Dhiresh and Vinod  had regained their composure to reach the Semi Final  despite agonisingly losing the second game. In the final game Vinod demonstrated his finesse and mobility which belied his physical presence.

The second Quarter Final Ashwin/Rajesh pair up against Harish/Nitesh, As with first quarter final, this also went to the deciding game, with Ashwin/Rajesh triumphing by the narrowest margin winning the final game 21-19.

Rakesh/Manoj and Chandu/Darshan progressed impressively to the semi final recording 2 game victory over Vinod/Jayesh and Nanji/Naran respectively.

Semi Finals                                                                           

The first semi final was contested between Ashwin/Rajesh and Chandu/Darshan. This proved to be an enthralling match; once again going to the deciding game. Ashwin/Rajesh played some inspired shots and held their nerves to win  24-22 to reach the final.

The second semi final saw Rakesh/Manoj play Dhiresh/Vinod. As with the first semi final, this also went to the deciding set with Dhiresh/Vinod winning 21-17 to book their place in the final.

Final                                                                           

The final was contested by arguably the two outstanding teams of the tournament.  The first game had everyone at the edge of their seats, with the game going to a tiebreak. Ashwin/Rajesh finally gained the initiative to win 26-24.

Dhiresh/Vinod firmly put the disappointment of losing the first game behind them to comfortably win the second game 21-12, with Vinod playing some exquisite shots of the backhand.

The deciding game saw some uncharacteristic errors by both teams, this was largely due to fatigue taking it’s toll on the players. Dhiresh/Vinod regained their composure to establish a lead, which despite the best endeavours of Ashwin/Rajesh were unable to close.

Dhiresh/Vinod won the final game by 21-16, to be crowned inaugural champions.

Womens Category: Group Stages                                                                           

Only 4 teams had entered the Ladies Category; however the quality of the matches substituted for the lack of entries.

Nimu/Sunita pummelled all their opponents to comfortably reach the final. Monica/Veena joined them with some equally impressive performances; no more so then their 21-7 victory over Amrat/Monica in the final group game.

Final                                                                           

Nimu/Sunita continued their ruthless streak to comfortably record 2 game victory over Monica/Veena. Nimu/Sunita won the first game 21-15 and second game 21-12.  It was heartening to note that Monica/Veena played with great drive and endeavour despite the defeat.

Boys Category Final                                                                           

The Boys Final was contested between Monil/Jay and Vishal/Harshil. Once again this was an evenly contested final which resulted in some very long rallies. Vishal/Harshil imposed their authority on the game to run out victors by 2 games. Vishal/Harshil won the first set 21-12 and second 21-18.

Acknowledgments                                                                           

On behalf of the 40th Celebration Sports Committee we would like to take the opportunity to express our gratitude to the players and supporters who attended to make this tournament a success.
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