UC Santa Barbara South Asian cultural organization Indus and student nonprofit Dhadkan co-hosted a Diwali celebration with nearly 500 attendees on Nov. 15 in the Corwin Pavilion.

Attendees enjoying the Diwali celebration. Courtesy of UCSB Indus.

Diwali is a Hindu festival of lights celebrating the victory of good over evil. It is a five-day holiday observed by more than a billion people and is one of India’s most widely celebrated holidays.

The event began at 7:30 p.m. with a catered dinner from Masala Spice Indian Cuisine. It featured Garba and Dandiya dances, which are traditionally performed in the fall during the festival of Navaratri, which celebrates the goddess Durga, according to the Indus Instagram.

Garba dance involves “rhythmic, circular movements” where participants “move in intricate patterns, clapping and twirling to a beat of live music.” Dandiya is a folk dance where dancers “strike wooden sticks together in time with lively, rhythmic music.” Dandiya sticks were given as part of the event’s ticket.

The latter half of the event included Bollywood music, where the dancing is “more free-form,” according to fourth-year statistics and data science Kasturi Sharma.

The event was open to anyone wanting to celebrate, including those outside of UCSB. Most attendees dressed up in traditional clothing including sarees, lehengas and kurtas. Members of Indus and Dhadkan began planning during the past summer as well as the three weeks leading up to the event.  

“It’s open to everyone, and we just want to bring awareness to South Asian culture and [make] a place for people to come together and celebrate what is their culture, or learn more about it,” Rahul Unni Aravindakshan, third-year psychological & brain sciences major and Indus publicity chair, said. 

The event was open to anyone wanting to celebrate, including those outside UCSB. Courtesy of UCSB Indus.

Aditya Iyer, third-year statistics and data science major and vice president of Indus, wanted to find an accessible way for students to celebrate Diwali.

“We’re not able to go back home and celebrate Diwali when we want to, so this is like a substitution for that. It’s a way to celebrate it with your friends,” Iyer said. “For a lot of us Indian American, South Asian American students at UCSB, it can sometimes feel like we’re far away from home and far away from our family. So it’s really nice to have events like these that make us feel more like we’re at home again, even though it’s still away from our families. It’s nice to find another community here.”

Dhadkan Financial Executive Shashin Gupta wanted to give an opportunity for those who have not celebrated Diwali before to get a chance to do so.

“It’s giving people that missing part of their home life and traditional culture. And also, we get to introduce a lot of people who may not be South Asian, a lot of people who may not celebrate Diwali regularly but get to enjoy a different aspect of the world that they may not be accustomed to,” Gupta, a second-year statistics and data science and economics and accounting double major, said.

Aaryan Gundecha, third-year financial math and statistics major, president of Dhadkan and fundraising chair for Indus, said the event helps not only grow the UCSB South Asian community but connects it with the larger Santa Barbara community.

“[For] every single person that comes, I like to believe that we’ve made an impact on their life in a positive way. We’ve given them an opportunity to express themselves. We’ve given them the opportunity to indulge in our culture,” Gundecha said.

“I’m grateful that there’s an opportunity to celebrate in college, especially since I’m not home, so it’s nice to still be in touch with my culture, even though I’m not exactly there,” Grace Mundaden, a first-year statistics and data science major said. 

A version of this article appeared on p.4 of the Nov. 21, 2024 edition of the Daily Nexus.