Hare Krushna Utsav The Hare Krushna Utsav was introduced in 1999 on the occasion of His Divine Grace, Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja’s silver jubilee celebration of his sannyasa-lila. He was the only sannyasi disciple of Srila Prabhupada in Orissa. Setting up the Hare Krushna Utsav each year requires that a group of devotees travel a few weeks before the start of the Utsava to a particular area of Orissa, to meet with the local people and to request their co-operation and participation in the 3-4 week festival and if they agree they help the devotees with accommodation, that means meeting with heads of schools, colleges, and people involved in areas for nagar-sankirtan as well as arranging a suitable venue for staging devotional plays in the evening, by the devotees, for raising awareness about the need for Krishna consciousness in their lives. In every town or village the Hare Krushna Utsav devotees visit, the daily program includes a day time program in the primary or high school. Then, the evening program begins by an introduction and overview of ISKCON is given through the the Hare Krishna World DVD explains the Founder-acharya, Srila Prabhupada’s worldwide activities. A talk on Srimad Bhagavatam or Srimad Bhagavad Gita by a sannyasi or senior devotee, book tables are set up, then, after the devotees stage a play, khechudi prasadam is given out to the gathering at the end of evening. During the day devotees go out to the local schools or colleges, often sitting in an informal outdoor setting, giving a short talks, then quizzing the children and offering prizes for contests won. This encourages the students aspire to a higher consciousness. The Hare Krushna Utsav is constantly on the move, a different town or village every day. That means a lot of organization is required to reach the specified destinations in 3-4 weeks. Six vehicles are on the move. They include the three Traveling Sankirtan Party buses, the Namahatta bus, the temple jeep, plus rented vehicles, two motorbikes for advance booking and program supervising purposes, and of course, the devotees themselves, making it an energetic and inspirational festival. There is an encouraging response from people in Orissa as more people become aware of this yearly event coming from ISKCON inspired by Srila Prabhupada. <br id="-moz-br-"></body></html>