The first time I attended this April celebration of the Sikh religion — adherents trace their roots to the Punjab, in what's now Pakistan and northern India — midafternoon was the earliest I could manage. The parade, which had kicked off at Times Square around 1:00, had already wound down, and the crowd alongside Madison Square Park was nearly impenetrable, yet somehow folks continued to emerge with overflowing platefuls of food. After walking a wide circle past a temporarily closed Shake Shack, I found a roundabout passage to the serving tables, where mango juice, a banana, and my own plateful of food were soon offered, and accepted.
This service was something like an outdoor langar, the communal meal provided to visitors at a Sikh temple. A langar is vegetarian, it is free of charge, and it is offered in a spirit of inclusiveness and equality — everyone sits together.
Or stands together, in the case of this always-crowded festival. On a return visit the following year, I arrived at the park before noon, well in time to secure a multi-course feast (shown below), which also included mango juice, chai, an orange, and many offers of second helpings. Afterward I walked north till I met up with the parade, near Macy's. (The route has since changed.) The parade is a lively mix of about two parts Sikh celebrants to one part Western marching band; it's especially entertaining if you have a takeaway bag of Sikh treats to snack on.
Sikh Day Parade and Festival
The parade, which in past years has traveled along various routes, winds down near the festival location in the vicinity of Madison Square Park, Manhattan
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