Young Indian Culture Group (YICG) is a non-profit academy founded in 1993 to educate Asian Indians in New York City on the cultural and spiritual heritage of India. For this purpose, the academy organizes classes, workshops, performances, outreach forums, specialty books, and festival events. YICG sustains itself with contributions from donors and is based in Herricks, NY. Rathi Raja is the founder.
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Rathi Raja and the Establishment of YICG
Rathi Raja is a South Asian Indian storyteller and educator. She was born in the district of Ambala in Haryana, India to parents from Kerala. Her father was employed in the Air Force which meant the family had to shift location frequently. So Rathi became fluent in Hindi, Tamil, and English and developed an enduring interest in the multifariousness of Indian cultural tradition. Despite having attended British schools, she maintained a keen interest in the Hindu Epics.
Rathi arrived in the US in 1981 with husband Ramani. After several years of work on Wall Street, she moved to Manhasset in Long Island. There, Rathi had a feeling that acculturation would affect American-born Hindus causing them to lose vital information about their religion and culture. Realizing this, she sought to arouse the interest of the children there by telling stories from the Ramayana, Mahabharata and Panchatantra. Soon, she committed herself wholly to educating Long Island children about their cultural, linguistic, and religious heritage. The Young Indian Culture Group was an outcome of this goal.
Rathi brought YICG into being, aided by two Long Island doctors Runi Ratnam and Urmila Shivaram. In YICG’s maiden year, twenty five students registered.
Activities
YICG ties up with state organizations, local libraries and schools, and other cultural entities to further its activities. Its core areas are Indian art forms and crafts, Indian languages, yoga, Vedic heritage, and the Bhagavad Gita. Courses are also provided in Indian cooking and mehendi. Classes in these areas take place at the Herricks Middle School, 7 Hilldale Drive, Albertson, NY 11507 on Saturdays.
The academy currently caters to students in Long Island and Queens.
Public Outreach
YICG students annually present two shows for the public. The academy also organizes various outreach community projects.
Board of Directors
The following are the various members in YICG’s Board of Directors.
Awards and Recognition
Rathi was recently awarded a Nassau County Community Service Award for her endeavors.