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By Arun Venugopal

The Asian American Federation estimates there are more than 250,000 Asian Indians living in the five boroughs, with two-thirds of them in Queens. But for Indians in their 60's, 70's and older, there are few senior centers that recognize their cultural -- or dietary -- needs. WNYC's Arun Venugopal reports that is changing. He was in Sunnyside, Queens this week, at the latest opening of a program called India Home.

ZANGWALL: Hello everyone. Namaste!

REPORTER: Judy Zangwall is the head of Sunnyside Community Services and today's she welcoming a new bunch of seniors to the center.

ZANGWALL: Shh, if I could got everybody's attention. We're so excited to learn about your culture.

REPORTER:The main room of the center is big and bright and cheery and holds a few hundred seniors, most of them white or Hispanic. In one area to the side are the newcomers: a couple dozen seniors, originally from India, who will be coming to the center every Monday, starting today. There are several men in the group but most are women, some in their nicest saris. They all patiently listen to speeches from about a dozen people. One of the speakers is the driving force behind India Home, Dr. Vasundhara Kalasapudi, a geriatric psychiatrist. She says that making Indian seniors comfortable can be as simple as knowing how to address them respectfully.

KALASAPUDI: I would never call any of our seniors with their name. Which is a common thing in this culture. I'm not saying it's wrong. But in our culture, we cannot. If I have to call them, I would add ji to their last name. For example, there is Shashi name. I would never call her Shashi. I would say Shashi-ji.

REPORTER: And then, with the speeches over, the Indian seniors put on a little show for the regulars. The song is about the Hindu festival of Holi, that falls in the spring. Once that's finished, the men step aside, and the female seniors start dancing.

It's a circle dance of sorts - the women go round and round, clapping and occasionally lunging into the the circle. The song and dance are, in one sense, a little daytime entertainment. But it's also a way for these seniors to show that they can hold their own when it comes to being active. For some Indian seniors, old age means sitting in front of the TV, watching Hindi soap operas. Either that, or babysitting their grandkids. Janak Datt is 69 and a widow. She says many Indian seniors aren't encouraged to be independent, or speak up at home.

DATT: Because that will spoil their relations. If it's a daughter, daughter will understand. But if it's a daughter in law, then a word taken from the mouth once, you cannot take it back.

REPORTER:Janak was able to get to this center on a bus provided by India Home. That's especially useful for seniors who don't speak English, or aren't comfortable using the subways. The Sunnyside program only takes place on Mondays, but members like Janak have the option of attending three other India Home programs around the city - all of which have sprung up in the last year. Venkaiah Dama says the absence of extended families means seniors can be socially isolated.

DAMA - In India, we didn't have this problems in the prior generations because families were large -- four, five, six were there. Now families are only two, and children are gone away. When you come to my age, you'll be alone.

WOMAN'S VOICE: If you do not have a ticket, do not go on the line. Just wait karo, das minute.

REPORTER: Everyone's lining up for lunch. Lov Kumar is here with his wife.

KUMAR: We are having. South Indian dishes: upma. Some vada. Some idli and excellent salad. We have spaghetti. It's very well done.

REPORTER: And it's all vegetarian. In fact, out of deference to the newcomers, Sunnyside Community Services has promised not to make any non-veg dishes on Mondays, when the Indian group visits. But Kumar worries that even with all the compromises, some Indian seniors will just stick to themselves.

KUMAR: That's a problem. Even now, today, we saw people not getting up and meeting with some Spanish groups there, Jewish group there. That is the difficulty.

REPORTER: In addition to the singing and dancing, India Home also organizes yoga and group chanting sessions, and film screenings of recent movies from India. There's also day trips. But Janak Datt says the seniors get most excited about: birthday parties.

DATT: You should see the glow in their faces, when we started celebrating the birthdays. They say we only celebrated our children's birthday. Nobody celebrated my birthday!

REPORTER: And, she says, they always order eggless cakes, the better for strict vegetarians. Food constantly comes up with this crowd - not just what can and cannot be consumed - but in terms of the simple pleasure of dining with others.

DATT: What if you have a couple of friends, snatching, and - this is good, you have this, I'll have this - Sharing!

India Home has been privately funded so far. Organizers hope that in time, they'll be able to build their own facility.