Change begins when communities come together. Imagine what could happen when everyone in a neighbourhood came together, shared their ideas, put their skills to use and worked as a team to make the ideas crystallise into realities? Recently, residents of MRC Nagar came together to organise MRC Fest, an in-house annual cultural event. The theme of this year's event was “Sangamithra - Fostering Friendship”. The event was held at MRC Kalyana Manadapam on July 14. Right from the prayer songs to the soulful rendition of movie songs, the young talents stole the show. Shaking their legs to the tune of classical as well as film songs, the children offered the audience a visual treat. The highlight of the event was the stage production titled Parvathi Kalyanam. Asha Muralidharan, a resident and treasurer of MRC Nagar Residents Association, said they named the event Sangamithra to bring people together and promote friendship and unity. According to her, what the residents have accomplished is no mean feat. “We tirelessly rehearsed the dialogues and scenes. The meticulous planning and efforts by every member involved made the event a success.” Asha believes every neighbourhood will transform into a beautiful place if the community works together with a sense of team spirit. No waste, no worries Sangamithra was not just a fun-filled evening of dance and music, but also about promoting the values of a zero-waste community residents have imbibed over the years. To start with, organisers made sure the hall was kept free of trash. Arul Priya Senthilkumar, another MRC Nagar resident and founder of Namma Bhoomi, an enterprise manufacturing and selling environment-friendly products, said they asked the caterers to use only reusable plates, cups and spoons to serve dinner at the event. “We did not let plastic anywhere near the hall. We set up bubble top dispensers and kept steel tumblers. We also encouraged the residents to bring their own water bottles. All the food waste was collected in bins and sent to the composting pit in MRC Nagar. This wouldn't have been possible without the cooperation of the hall management and the caterer,” Arul Priya said.

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