Markham celebrates 15 Years of Thai Pongal with cultural showcase

The Centre for Tamil Heritage and Culture (CTHC) recently marked a milestone, celebrating the 15th Annual Markham Thai Pongal Vizha with a vibrant community gathering.

Held on January 24 at the Vedic Cultural Centre, the event opened with a lamp lighting ceremony and featured a diverse lineup of cultural performances.

Several dignitaries attended the celebration, including Premier Doug Ford and MPP Logan Kanapathi, underscoring the event’s significance to the community.

Thai Pongal is a non-religious festival celebrated by Tamils for more than 2,200 years. Observed by Tamil communities from India, Sri Lanka and across the global diaspora, the four-day festival is an opportunity to express gratitude to the Sun and Nature for a bountiful harvest. Often described as the Tamils’ thanksgiving festival, Thai Pongal is celebrated by more than 74 million people worldwide and over 300,000 in Canada, primarily in the Greater Toronto Area. It is also recognized as the Tamil New Year.

Markham made history in 2012 as the first municipality in Canada to officially recognize the celebration, proclaiming January 13, 14 and 15 as Tamil Heritage Days, Tamil New Year and Thai Pongal.

This year’s Vizha featured a large-scale cultural showcase with hundreds of children, youth and seniors taking part. As one of the largest Tamil heritage celebrations in Canada, the Markham Thai Pongal Vizha continues to be a highly anticipated event, welcoming and enjoyed by people of all backgrounds.