West Windsor-Plainsboro’s High School North to host multi-cultural evening

By Deanna Chhor
The March of Dimes and its mission to prevent premature birth, birth defects, and infant mortality has been supported in the West Windsor Plainsboro community for many years now, through the efforts of the Mercer County Chain Reaction Youth Council.
The Chain Reaction was originally active in only West Windsor Plainsboro, but over the years, participation has increased greatly. The team has extended to five different schools in Mercer County: West Windsor Plainsboro, South Brunswick, Robbinsville, Princeton High School, and Princeton Day School. Volunteers and officers work diligently to put together fundraising events, and spread awareness in their communities. The Council has come a long way and has become one of the top teams in the nation. They recently received a Gold Award, as the highest fundraising youth team in Mercer County.
One of the main fundraising events for the Chain Reaction is Rangeela, an annual multicultural music and dance show, which draws a wide spectrum of people and an enthusiastic audience. Rangeela dates back to 2001, founded by Rahul Bansal, a High School North graduate. Since its inception, Rangeela has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the March of Dimes. In 2011, the Chain Reaction raised $100,000 through Rangeela.
This year’s Chain Reaction president, Tanvi Purohit, a senior at South , has been volunteering with the March of Dimes for five years. Before joining the Chain Reaction, she was an active participant in Rangeela, dancing in the show. This was her first exposure to the cause, and after a family friend had an experience with premature birth, Purohit decided to join the March of Dimes. She has raised over $9,000 for the organization, and is looking forward to a successful Rangeela show this year.
“With a dedicated and hard-working team, I believe that this year’s Rangeela show will be just as successful, if not more, than those of the past. I encourage everyone to attend what is sure to be a spectacular show,” says Purohit.
Co-president Neeraj Devulapalli, a junior at Princeton Day School, also anticipates a great evening.
“The audience will be supporting a worthy cause while experiencing an enjoyable evening at the same time,” Devulapalli says.
A highly anticipated event, this year, Rangeela will be held on September 22nd, at High School North. Tanvi Purohit, and co-president Neeraj Devulapalli will be organizing the show, along with fellow officers Sabhya Gupta (North), Deanna Chhor (Robbinsville), Neelesh Satpute (South), Kushal Gandhi (South), Shreya Chittem (North), Pranay Nadella (South), Rishab Tanga (Princeton), Sharanya Bhateja (North), Ria Shah (Robbinsville), Arnav Sood (South), Abhimanyu Muchhal (South), Riddhima Kapoor (South), and Meghnee Patel (North).
For ticket information, contact Percis Bansal (609-448-7620), Ketan Thakker (609-462-1208), Kalpana Patel (609-993-8361), or Sudha Devulapalli (732-331-9313).