Every year, one of the most important festivals of India takes place around October and November. The purpose of the festival is to celebrate the end of the previous year's harvest. winter. Nowadays, it is celebrated with family gatherings, festive lights and worship of Lakshmi. Despite their religious affiliation, most Indians can celebrate Diwali as it has become a national holiday over time. The story of Diwali is interpreted differently by Hindus depending on where they live. The Wichita Indian Cultural Association (CAI) hosts an event each year at a venue in Wichita to celebrate Diwali. This year the festival took place at Century II at the Mary Jane Teall Theater. The event took place on November 20 in the evening. There were different performances including dancing, playing instruments and singing. Although most performances were performed to a recorded track, the festival has featured live instruments in the past. One of these instruments is the tabla. The tabla is the most famous percussion instrument of North India. The tabla consists of two drums that appear to be different sizes: a small and a large. Tablas are almost entirely played simply with the fingers. Each drum has a head that is tapped or struck to produce sound. The heads are usually made from goat leather skin. This skin can tend to wear out over time; however, it can be replaced with a new skin on the wooden or metal part. This way it can practically become a whole new instrument. The work should, however, be carried out by an expert. Each drum also has a sort of black dot in the center. This blackhead is actually a paste; typically, made from iron, gum, soot, and/or rice. This paste makes a variety of special sounds. The two drums each have an individual middle of paper...... Arikh states that his title is not part musician, but rather engineer: "I do manufacturing and engineering, everything that you want [to be done]. ] in manufacturing, I take care of it. Currently, Parikh is the COO of a design and manufacturing company located here in Wichita. Despite having to spend his time elsewhere, he still finds time for tabla here and there. He tries to teach his children about it. Additionally, he sometimes teaches a Sunday school in his temple. He occasionally plays with friends: “from time to time, when friends get together, we play music.” He doesn't take money, he says and repeats that he is not a professional. Parikh is a man who plays a very old instrument that he believes will continue to be popular for years to come. Parikh is a man in his sixties who sees a very bright future for tabla.