San Francisco Bay Area Bengali Directory

General Cultural Groups

Anandamela [Sacramento]

Membership: primarily Bangladeshi and West Bengali, first generation
Events: annual Anandamela festival
Established: 2004
Website: http://anandamelahome.wrime.com/

Bay Area Bangladesh Association (BABA)

Membership: primarily Bangladeshi, first generation
Events: Eid reunion, Baisakhi, mela, musical events, sports day, etc.
Established: 1985
Website: http://www.baba1.com/

Bay Area Prabasi

Membership: primarily West Bengali, first generation
Events: Durga Puja, Saraswati Puja, Kali Puja, annual day, films, cricket tournament, etc.
Publications: annual magazine, Shankha
Established: 1974
Website: http://www.prabasi.org/

BayBasi

Membership: primarily West Bengali, first generation
Events: Durga Puja, Saraswati Puja, Lakshmi Puja
Established: 2008
Website: http://www.baybasi.org/

Ekotaa (or "Ekota") (Livermore Durga Puja Committee)

Membership: primarily West Bengali, first generation
Events: Durga Puja, Rabindra Jayanti
Established: 2001
Website: http://www.ekotaa.org/ (formerly http://www.ekota.org/)

Pashchimi

Membership: primarily West Bengali, first generation
Events: Durga Puja, parade floats
Established: 2004
Website: http://www.pashchimi.org/

Sanskriti

Membership: primarily West Bengali (some Bangladeshi), first generation
Events: Durga Puja, picnic, Natya Mela Bengali Drama Festival
Publications: annual magazine Sanskriti, published at Durga Puja
Established: 1998
Website: http://www.sanskriti.org/

Utsav [Sacramento]

Membership: primarily West Bengali, first generation
Events: Durga Puja, picnic
Publications: annual magazine, Chowringhee, published at Durga Puja
Established: 2002
Website: http://www.utsavsac.com/

Arts

Enad (Ekti Nataker Dal)

Focus: amateur Bengali drama
Membership: primarily West Bengali, first generation
Established: 2000
Website: http://www.enadonline.org/

Academic

Bengali Studies Initiative, UC Berkeley

Focus: Bengali language classes, research at UC Berkeley
Membership: primarily Indian and Bangladeshi academics and students
Website: http://ias.berkeley.edu/southasia/bangla.html

Prabasi Bangla School

Focus: Bengali language classes for youth
Established: 1975?
Location: Oakland
Membership: primarily Indian, some Bangladeshi; second generation
Contact: Som Konar (tgango@hotmail.com)

Youth

Youth Association of Bay Area Bangladeshis (YABAB)

Focus: youth social events, arts, etc.
Established: 2000
Membership: primarily Bangladeshi; second generation
Websites: http://www.yabab.us.tt/, YABAB Facebook group

Social Service / Politics

Agami

Issues: support basic education in Bangladesh
Membership: primarily Bangladeshi
Established: 1992
Website: http://www.agami-us.org/

Digital Bangla Project

Issues: providing freely available Bengali software
Events: fundraisers
Membership: West Bengali and Bangladeshi
Established: 2002
Website: http://www.digitalbangla.org/

International Institute of Bengal Basin (IIBB)

Issues: ecological issues and human rights in Bengal
Events: lectures on arsenic contamination, human rights conference, etc.
Established: 1999?
Website: http://www.nvo.com/ghosh_research/door/

Progressive Bengali Network (PBN)

Issues: US-based progressive, social justice issues
Events: film screenings, legal clinics, protests, actions
Membership: West Bengali and Bangladeshi; first and second generation
Established: 2002
Website: http://www.bengali.net/pbn/

Project Well USA

Issues: fundraising to provide arsenic-safe drinking water in West Bengal
Established: 2002
Website: http://www.projectwellusa.org/

SpaandanB

Issues: fundraising for health, education, and development in Bangladesh
Events: fundraisers
Membership: primarily Bangladeshi, first generation
Established: 2000?
Website: http://www.spaandanb.org/

Publications

Porshi

Type: monthly Bangla magazine
Established: 2001
Website: http://www.porshi.com/

Utsab

Type: bimonthly Bangla magazine
Established: 1999
Website: http://www.utsabpatrika.com/

Business/Professional

American Association of Bangladeshi Engineers and Architects
Silicon Valley Chapter

Membership: Bangladeshi, primarily first generation
Events: seminars, SBIT2000 conference
Website: http://www.aabea.org/chapters/sillicon_valley.php

Bangladesh ICT Business Center (BICTBC)

Description: incubator and shared office space for Bangladeshi IT companies
Established: 2003
Location: Santa Clara, CA
Old website: http://www.bibc.biz/

Alumni

IIT Kharagpur Alumni Group, Silicon Valley Chapter

Websites: http://www.iitkgpsv.org/, http://www.iitfoundation.org/chapters/sfbay/

Jadavpur University Alumni Association of Northern California

Established: 1986
Website: http://www.kepnet.com/jualumni/

Online

Bengalis in Bay Area, CA (Orkut community)

Website: http://www.orkut.com/Community.aspx?cmm=19529062

Research

"Culturally Correct: Identity Construction by Bengali Immigrants in the San Francisco Bay Area" by Sanghamitra Niyogi

Type: academic paper, 2006
Date: 2006
Website: http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p177146_index.html