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Chicago Tribune
30-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
First the festival, now the India Day Parade canceled for this year
Naperville's India Day Parade has been canceled, less than two months after organizers announced the festival to be held on the same day would not be happening. 'This was not an easy choice,' a social media post on the Indian Community Outreach Facebook page said. 'However, we believe that hosting a partial event would not reflect the energy, inclusivity and excellence our community has come to expect — nor would it align with ICO's mission: to Educate, Integrate, and Empower.' India Day, a daylong event featuring a parade, food, vendors, live music and other activities celebrating Aug. 15, 1947, the day India won its freedom from British rule, has been an annual Naperville event since 2015 and one that grew to be one of the largest Indian American festivals of its kind in the United States. Both the parade and fest were to be held on Aug. 10 until organizers announced in early June that the festival at Rotary Hill Park was being scratched due to growing costs and reduced funding. Only the parade would be held, event founder and organizer Krishna Bansal said. With that now off the schedule as well, efforts will be put into planning 'a vibrant and unforgettable' India Day Parade and Celebration for 2026, the Facebook post said. They are also 'exploring the possibility of an event for the remainder of the year.' Bansal was not available for comment. Refunds will be issued this week to those who have already registered and paid to be part of the event, the post said. Bansal previously told the Naperville Sun that part of the mounting costs were tied to city requirements that fencing be placed around the perimeter of the event grounds and metal detectors set up at controlled entry and exit points. Rules also require that attendees be limited to only bringing clear bags with them when they enter the event. Naperville Police Chief Jason Arres said at the time that the heightened security requirements are not necessarily new, but they are 'something we've really been pushing towards for the past few years and are finally getting traction.' The same rules are in place and will be implemented for Naperville's Last Fling festival, which will be held downtown Aug. 29-Sept. 1 on Jackson Avenue. Additionally, minors will not be allowed inside the fest grounds if not accompanied by an adult. India Day is not the only celebration to be canceled this year. Naperville Salute, an annual Fourth of July event also held at Rotary Hill, also will not be held this year. Organizers did not go into detail but said the cancellation was done to preserve the long-term health of both the event and the charitage organization behind it. Another longtime Naperville festival came to an end last year. Although Ribfest had not been held in the city for a few years, the organizers decided the annual event would end after 35 years.
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Naperville's India Day Festival reduced to parade only due to security requirements
The annual India Day Festival & Concert, which for years has brought large crowds to Naperville, will be scaled back this year, organizers have announced. Usually a day-long affair featuring live entertainment and a cultural festival at Naperville's Rotary Hill, the free event will be reduced to only a parade when held Aug. 10, organizers said in a Facebook post. The decision to curtail festivities was attributed to heightened costs and reduced funding, the post said. Presented by Indian Community Outreach, the festival commemorates Aug. 15, 1947, the day India won its freedom from British rule. Launched in 2015, the event has grown into one of the largest Indian American festivals of its kind across the country, according to Krishna Bansal, event founder and organizer. Cost increases were partly the result of new city-mandated security requirements, Bansal said. Namely, requirements mandating the use of fencing around the perimeter of the event and metal detectors at controlled entry and exit points and dictating that attendees could bring only clear bags onto the grounds, he said. Implementing those rules would have taken a 'mammoth amount of effort,' Bansal said. '(It would) take a huge amount of resources as well as cost to do that.' Sponsors primarily fund the festival, he said. Naperville Police Chief Jason Arres said the security requirements aren't really new. Rather, they're 'something we've really been pushing towards for the past few years and are finally getting traction,' he said. It's a matter of public safety, Arres said. 'Outdoor events are big, big targets for those looking to do bad things,' he said, 'and they're increasingly vulnerable to mass violence. … (These recommendations) keep these events safe and actually can deter threats before they can occur.' They're also in line with what other large-scale events in town — Last Fling and Halal Fest, for instance — have been doing for a number of years, Arres said. 'We're not asking them (to do) anything different than any other progressive agencies and cities are doing because these are the best practices for these big-scale events,' he said. Asked if Indian Community Outreach plans to bring back the event in full in the future, Bansal said, 'We are not looking to cancel the event.' It's just a matter of how and where it will move forward, he said. They want to continue holding the event in Naperville but if doing so isn't feasible, 'we'll have to look around and see where we can do this effectively,' he said. 'This event is immensely popular,' he said. 'People want to have this event. We will continue with what we have built.' Changes to the festival follow last month's announcement that there would be no Naperville Salute this summer. The annual Fourth of July celebration, also held at Rotary Hill, was canceled to preserve the long-term health of both the event and the charitage organization behind it, organizers said. It was scheduled to take place from June 27-29 but now only the Naperville Responds for Veterans Ruck March will be held. Both cancellations come in the wake of Naperville Ribfest, another of the city's longstanding summer celebrations, permanently ending last year. tkenny@
Chicago Tribune
07-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Naperville's India Day Festival reduced to parade only due to security requirements
The annual India Day Festival & Concert, which for years has brought large crowds to Naperville, will be scaled back this year, organizers have announced. Usually a day-long affair featuring live entertainment and a cultural festival at Naperville's Rotary Hill, the free event will be reduced to only a parade when held Aug. 10, organizers said in a Facebook post. The decision to curtail festivities was attributed to heightened costs and reduced funding, the post said. Presented by Indian Community Outreach, the festival commemorates Aug. 15, 1947, the day India won its freedom from British rule. Launched in 2015, the event has grown into one of the largest Indian American festivals of its kind across the country, according to Krishna Bansal, event founder and organizer. Cost increases were partly the result of new city-mandated security requirements, Bansal said. Namely, requirements mandating the use of fencing around the perimeter of the event and metal detectors at controlled entry and exit points and dictating that attendees could bring only clear bags onto the grounds, he said. Implementing those rules would have taken a 'mammoth amount of effort,' Bansal said. '(It would) take a huge amount of resources as well as cost to do that.' Sponsors primarily fund the festival, he said. Naperville Police Chief Jason Arres said the security requirements aren't really new. Rather, they're 'something we've really been pushing towards for the past few years and are finally getting traction,' he said. It's a matter of public safety, Arres said. 'Outdoor events are big, big targets for those looking to do bad things,' he said, 'and they're increasingly vulnerable to mass violence. … (These recommendations) keep these events safe and actually can deter threats before they can occur.' They're also in line with what other large-scale events in town — Last Fling and Halal Fest, for instance — have been doing for a number of years, Arres said. 'We're not asking them (to do) anything different than any other progressive agencies and cities are doing because these are the best practices for these big-scale events,' he said. Asked if Indian Community Outreach plans to bring back the event in full in the future, Bansal said, 'We are not looking to cancel the event.' It's just a matter of how and where it will move forward, he said. They want to continue holding the event in Naperville but if doing so isn't feasible, 'we'll have to look around and see where we can do this effectively,' he said. 'This event is immensely popular,' he said. 'People want to have this event. We will continue with what we have built.' Changes to the festival follow last month's announcement that there would be no Naperville Salute this summer. The annual Fourth of July celebration, also held at Rotary Hill, was canceled to preserve the long-term health of both the event and the charitage organization behind it, organizers said. It was scheduled to take place from June 27-29 but now only the Naperville Responds for Veterans Ruck March will be held. Both cancellations come in the wake of Naperville Ribfest, another of the city's longstanding summer celebrations, permanently ending last year.
