Student society bring light to campus thanks to successful Diwali event
Students at GCU brought some light to GCU thanks to a Diwali celebration in the GCU Students’ Association Re:Union Bar.
Students from the GISA society (GCU Indian Students Assistance) came together to organise their annual Diwali celebration, which took place on November 13.
The event invited students from across the university to celebrate the festival through dance, music, a fashion show and even some interactive games.
Society President and third year Applied Psychology student Kranti Rai had the important role of leading this year’s celebrations, after only joining the society last year. He explained: “When I first started my time at GCU, I had no idea that there was a GISA society! I found out about it when I was in 2nd year and decided to join.
I come from Nepal but I grew up in Italy, however Nepal has very strong links to India, Pakistan and other neighboring countries. GISA isn’t only for Indian students, but also those from South Asian countries as well. Being a part of the society made me feel like home and this will be the case for many of the society members.”
Diwali, which is India’s biggest and most important festival, is a festival of lights which celebrates the triumph of light over darkness and the human ability to overcome evil.
“Diwali is the biggest festival for the Hindu religion.” explained Kranti.
“It’s also known as the Festival of Lights and it’s a chance for everyone to come together, much like Christmas in terms of the decorations. The meaning behind the festival is about the triumph of good over evil. It’s based on a myth from the Gita, which is our Holy Book, where Lord Rama defeats an evil king known as Ravana which brings joy back to the kingdom.”
He added: “The Diwali event involved some stage performances and guest speakers, as well as a lot of music and dancing! There were even some games for people to take part in, including a push-up challenge. We also had a fashion walk for people to showcase their traditional attire and there was a competition to see who best represented their particular outfit.”
Despite being in his second year as a GISA society member, Kranti feels proud to have been a part of a successful event. He said: “I think the event was pretty successful! The committee this year was made up of mainly new members, so it was our first time getting to plan an event like this.
Last year, I wasn’t in a senior role so I mainly just took directions from other people but this year I had to lead, which was a very different experience! Once the event was over, I had a very long sleep the next day. Overall, it was a great event, and as President, I’m actually looking forward to helping to create more events like this.”
Now that the Diwali celebrations have finished, Kranti and the rest of GISA are looking forward to hosting more events and giving students some reminders of home. He said: “During the Diwali event, we managed to meet lots of new people and many of them mentioned feeling a bit home sick since moving to Scotland. However, the feedback we got from the event was that it helped them feel a lot more at home. We tried our best to make sure the decorations looked authentic, with the exception of the candles which had to be LED versions of course!”
Find out more about the GISA society on their Instagram and GCU Students’ Association webpage
By Rachael McAlonan
Got a SCEBE or GSBS story? Email me at Rachael.McAlonan@gcu.ac.uk or connect with me on social media here