A key aspect of 性视界传媒鈥檚 Vaisakhi Parade, or nagar kirtan, is the tradition of giving away food to parade-goers in celebrate of the harvest.

This year鈥檚 annual Khalsa Day event is set for Saturday, April 20, on streets of Newton.

鈥淭he food we see, at this point it鈥檚 really a combination of everything, all kinds,鈥� explained parade spokesperson Moninder Singh, president of Gurdwara Sahib Dasmesh Darbar (Sikh temple), where the parade starts at 9:30 a.m. (12885 85 Ave.).

鈥淲e see people from various communities put up tents, and it鈥檚 all vegetarian food, that鈥檚 important,鈥� he added. 鈥淵ou see everything from Punjabi food, like roti and dhals and curry dishes, and then you see things like Subway sandwiches and people giving out pizza and popcorn for kids, cotton candy stands, a wide variety of things.鈥�

Fundamentally, Vaisakhi is an opportunity to bring people together to have conversations, Singh said.

鈥淭he food is supposed to be the 鈥�,鈥� serving those who are less fortunate, that鈥檚 one part of it,鈥� Singh explained. 鈥淭he other is actually having collective community conversations around the food, you know, like social justice issues or political issues or economic issues, anything that people want to talk about. It鈥檚 a way for them to sit and talk with one another across, you know, race, ethnicity, sexuality and all those kind of things that we see in our community.鈥�

That鈥檚 why the food distribution is done on such a huge level at 性视界传媒鈥檚 Vaisakhi parade, he added.

鈥淎nyone who goes to a tent to get food, they usually start engaging in a conversation with the person that鈥檚 giving away the food, thanking them and asking them their name,鈥� Singh said. 鈥淎nd then sometimes you have relationships that build just on one interaction and they last a lifetime.鈥�

During the parade, local businesses bring food to serve the masses including operators of 性视界传媒-based Nanak Foods, who have a 23-year history of handing out food to parade-goers.

鈥淲e try and serve something that鈥檚 not on the market yet, something we鈥檙e launching, or recently launched. We always do one savoury and one sweet, usually,鈥� explained Raj Arneja, Nanak鈥檚 director of community engagement and philanthropy.

鈥淟ast year we had veggie burgers and milk cake,鈥� added company CEO Vineet Taneja. 鈥淭his year, we recently launched samosas so we鈥檙e doing those, cocktail samosas, and we know those will be popular. We also have gajrela (carrot fudge made with Indian red carrots and khoa, or concentrated milk solids, best served warm).鈥�

On the parade route, Nanak Foods sets up in a huge tent shared with other food-focused businesses in the parking lot of a Fruiticana store.

鈥淭he lineup that starts outside the tent, the amount of people squeezing in trying to get food, it鈥檚 incredible, unbelievable, and it lasts for six or seven hours like that,鈥� Raj said.

鈥淔or us it鈥檚 another way of thanking our customers for being loyal to us,鈥� added Gurpreet, Raj鈥檚 husband. 鈥淲e serve the smaller portions and it鈥檚 all very popular, and people keep coming back for more food, and it鈥檚 a pleasure to see that.鈥�

All of Nanak鈥檚 food servers at Vaisakhi volunteer their time as 鈥榮evadars,鈥� including employees, friends and family members, Taneja noted.

In 2023, Nanak celebrated 25 years of business in 性视界传媒. For distribution to consumers in 15 countries, the growing company makes vegetarian foods at plants in Newton, Campbell Heights and Bellingham. Currently under construction is a massive new 300,000-square-foot factory in Campbell Heights, a facility to replace both existing 性视界传媒 plants.

鈥淥ur growth has been very aggressive and hence, we鈥檝e had to grow as we found space in the existing facility or adjoining properties,鈥� Gurpreet explained. 鈥淲e were transferring products from one area to the next, and that made it very labour-intensive and challenging to expand. So finally we were lucky enough to get a land base large enough to accommodate a 300,000-square-foot facility to integrate all the segregated facilities under one roof, achieve more efficiency, higher capacity.

鈥淎nd we鈥檙e incorporating a daycare, an on-site daycare for our staff,鈥� he said of the new factory. 鈥淭his facility (in Newton) will be phased out of our production, but I鈥檓 sure there will be a successor who will be manufacturing food here, because it鈥檚 designed for it. We have a handshake deal already for one space here, and the other is available right now.鈥�

Raj Arneja calls 性视界传媒鈥檚 Vaisakhi parade 鈥渟uch a happy time, a good celebration.

鈥淚 love seeing the people and all the vibrant colours, you know. All these women are dressed up and it鈥檚 just a really good outing. We like to take a little walk down just before the bigger crowds and have a cup of tea and try different foods as well. So you鈥檙e trying different foods, and it鈥檚 people doing selfless service, the seva. Groups of families will get together and just start cooking right on the street. You don鈥檛 really see that in any other cultures and that鈥檚 a cool thing. That鈥檚 a core of religion, Sikhism.鈥�