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Indian students celebrate heritage through dance at Saathiya

April 11, 2016
Undecided freshman Harman Sidhu performs with the Bhangra Team during Saathiya on April 9, 2016 at the Wharton Center.  Saathiya is an event put on by the Coalition of Indian Undergraduate Students at MSU.
Undecided freshman Harman Sidhu performs with the Bhangra Team during Saathiya on April 9, 2016 at the Wharton Center. Saathiya is an event put on by the Coalition of Indian Undergraduate Students at MSU.

The Wharton Center was filled with Indian culture and entertainment Saturday for the annual Satrang event of “Saathiya: Around the World in 7 Dances” was presented by MSU's Coalition of Indian Undergraduate Students.

Human biology senior Jay Shah is the vice president of the Coalition of Indian Undergraduate Students. Shah not only had a large part in organizing the event, but was also a performer.

“Every year, we put on a dance show, which shows lots of different dances from all around India, mixing American music with classical, Bollywood and other types of Indian music together,” Shah said. “We have the chance for our students to learn different types of Indian cultures and dances. It’s about dancing together and being more in tune with our roots.”

The varying dance genres included in the event were South Indian, Bhangra, Folk, Semiclassical, Bollywood, Fusion and Hip-Hop Classical.

Human biology sophomore Rishitha Dalavayi performed in the event as a member of the MSU Bhangra Team, which is a nationally competitive collegiate Indian dance team.

“Many people have this stereotypical view that there is only one type of Indian dancing, but this event will show people that isn’t true,'' Dalavayi said. "So many areas of Indian dancing are represented in the different dances. There are so many different types — South Indian, North Indian, Eastern Indian, Western India and more.”

Along with Gandhi Day, the Satrang dance recital is one of the Coalition of Indian Undergraduate Students’ largest fundraisers.

Funds from Satrang will go toward The All India Movement for Seva, a service organization and charity which strives to make education and healthcare accessible to children in rural areas of India.

Kinesiology sophomore and CIUS public relations and philanthropy coordinator Vinai Reddy said he found being a part of the Satrang recital helped him to become more involved with others who share his heritage.

“You get to meet so many people, both those who are inside and outside of your dance, by doing Satrang,” Reddy said. “It’s a good way to open up to people and meet other people who share your culture.”

Friends and family were the main spectators of the event, which involved approximately 200 dancers.

“Every year the dancing keeps the audience engaged,” Shah said. “You can see that the students are having fun, but you can also see all the work that was put it into this. All of them, every single person does their job, and that’s the reason why this show has always been so successful.”

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