About

Who We are

The land of Bengal is home to a vibrant culture that spans across two countries: the Indian state of West Bengal and the nation of Bangladesh. While perhaps best known in the West for the Bengal Tiger, it is our long-lasting cultural and literary traditions which truly make Bengal unique. Whether one speaks of Satyajit Ray, a pioneer of cinematography and one of India’s most famous directors, or of Rabindranath Tagore, a Nobel Prize laureate who is the only person in the world to have penned the national anthems of two countries, there is no doubt that Bengalis have spread our culture far across India and all over the world.

The Bengali language, or Bangla as it is called in Bengali, is the fifth-most spoken language in the world and is the mother tongue of over 200 million people. Parichoy (pronounced: pour-ee-choy) is a Bengali word which best translates to “introduction” in English. For the Bengali diaspora in the United States and Europe, parichoy is the first step toward building new friendships and establishing regional associations to keep our culture alive despite being thousands of miles from home.

With this goal in mind, Parichoy of New Haven was established in 1991 for Bengalis in the southern Connecticut area. Since its inception over 29 years ago, Parichoy has more than tripled in size and has organized a wide variety of social, religious, and even athletic activities. Parichoy regularly hosts cultural shows in which members showcase our culture with dances, musical performances, literary essays, and dramas.
In the past, Parichoy has also invited world-renowned musicians from Kolkata and Bangladesh to entertain us with music in our mother tongue.

Parichoy also hosts religious ceremonies like Saraswati Puja.

And of course, virtually the entire Bengali community unites on the pitch or in the stands as Parichoy’s cricket team takes on other teams from across New Haven and southern Connecticut.