This Saturday evening, the South Asian Student Organization (SASO) hosted their annual Garba Dance and Dinner in McGarvey Commons in Penn State Behrend’s Reed Union Building.

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In traditional Hindu culture, Garba is a dance celebration which takes place about a month before the Hindu New Year, known as Diwali. Dancers dressed in traditional religious garb gather and dance in a circle, supposedly around their god, though religion was kept out of the celebration held at Behrend.

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“From what I’ve seen, it’s about unity and it’s about celebration of life, of people, of good friends,” said junior Brandon Wilson, a member of SASO who has participated in the Garba event for several years. SASO has been putting on Garba for the past three years, since current president and junior Priya Patel joined the organization.

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“People really enjoy it, so we keep doing it. There’s food, there’s dancing. There’s not much else to it,” said Patel. The organization encountered challenges when working with the maintenance staff but was able to overcome in time to get the event set up. “We figured out how to [set up the event], and then basically it was just our entire E-board decorating and everything beforehand,” said Patel.

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By hosting Garba at Behrend, members of SASO hoped to educate students about the cultural and traditional aspects of Indian and Hindu culture.

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“I think it is beneficial for them to see a glimpse into a different culture than they might be used to. I think they can learn basically every aspect of Indian culture. You have the cuisine, the food is always very good, maybe the dress, because the dancers, they dress up in traditional attire, and I believe they teach you a little bit about what Garba is and Indian culture during the actual event,” said Wilson.

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For Sophomore Chloe Stertz, who attended the Garba Dance and Dinner for the first time on Saturday, it offered an opportunity to learn more about her parents’ business in India and about the culture of her friend, Karishma Mali, who is a member of SASO.

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“I wanted to learn more about the culture… a broader exposure to what goes into their celebrations and gatherings,” said Stertz. By attending, Stertz learned about the various foods that are an integral part of Indian culture and the social and cultural environment that several students and faculty in attendance are accustomed to.

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This year, SASO struggled with student attendance at Garba. “Last year it was like a huge party and this year it’s more of like a nice gathering… I think there was more attendance last year than this year,” said Wilson. She said that this weekend was not the best time to hold the event, with HackPSU and a Boston trip for international students occurring at the same time as Garba. In the future, SASO plans to increase student attendance and involvement by improving advertising campaigns to attract more of the student body.

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“We try to get as many people to come. … We’re under MCC’s [Multicultural Counsel] umbrella, so hopefully we get all of their organizations to show up because we all support each other, all the other cultures. … Then SGA shows up hopefully, and basically anyone who wants to come can come,” said Patel.

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In addition to the Garba Dance and Dinner, SASO hosts several cultural events each year. The organization celebrates Diwali and the arrival of the Hindu New Year. In either March or April, they host the Festival of Colors, known as Holi, in which participants dance and throw colors at each other in celebration of the arrival of spring. Each of these events are held on the Behrend campus and are open to the public. Students are encouraged to attend to learn more about Indian and Hindu culture.

 

“I think it just goes to show how much Behrend cares about celebrating diversity and making everybody feel welcome,” said Wilson.