Yellow lights decorated Samuel Phillips Hall this past week, marking the celebration of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, and Eid al-Adha, a Muslim holiday.
As in past years, IndoPak hosted an elaborate show last Friday featuring traditional dances, religious prayers and a fashion show to celebrate Diwali and Eid.
Diwali is an important holiday in the Hindu religion. In India, diyas, a type of lantern, are lit up all night to welcome the arrival of Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, and to scare away evil demons, according to Meera Bhan ’14, Co-Head of IndoPak.
Eid, a Muslim holiday that falls at the end of Ramadan, is traditionally celebrated by sacrificing cattle to feed the poor. The sacrificial ritual is done to commemorate Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son, Ishmael. During Eid, celebrants fast until the sun sets.
For a fee of $5, the audience members sampled traditional Indian food ranging from naan, a spiced flatbread, to mango ice cream.
Kicking off the night in Kemper Auditorium, Mihika Sridhar ’16—in a bright green sari and accompanied by traditional instrumental music—performed a classical style of South Indian dance called Bharatanatyam.
“It’s an ancient art form that’s used to tell stories through dance and, since most pieces are praising Hindu gods, to show the dancer’s devotion to the gods. I performed a piece on Ganesha, the remover of obstacles, a Hindu god with the head of an elephant,” said Sridhar, who has been learning this form of dance for the past ten years.
In addition, members of IndoPak also prepared a show dedicated to the spiritual aspect of Diwali. Singing a 19th century Hindu devotional song, “Om Jai Jagdish Hare,” they got a number of audience members to join the chorus despite their unfamiliarity with the prayer melody.
“My religious descent is half Catholic and half Hindu. Growing up, I have never been very religious, so I loved the experience of taking part in a Hindu prayer. Not everyone in the audience knew what a Hindu prayer sounded like, so I feel that more people may want to learn more about this religion after taking part in a prayer. I liked the prayer, because I feel like I connected to my mother’s religious roots and I vaguely remember saying this prayer in my grandparents’ house in India,” said Rohan Lewis ’17, an audience member.
The celebration ended with a fashion show featuring traditional Indian and Pakistani clothing. The models, dressed in different traditional styles and colors, walked around the room in pairs or trios, striking poses upon reaching the stage.
“The fashion show was short and sweet, and I think it did a good job of representing styles of everyday as well as formal Indian clothing styles,” said Sridhar.
“I thought the festival was an accurate portrayal of modern Hinduism in the 21st century. I especially liked how it [brought students] together to celebrate some religious holidays that are important to us,” said Akhil Rajan ’17, a member of IndoPak.
“The food at the festival was especially good, as was the overall spirit of the festival! Everyone seemed to be having fun and learning about South Asian culture,” added Sridhar.
This is Andover’s 18th year celebrating the holidays of Diwali and Eid.
