Asha Atlanta hosted their “Diwali Lights” festival at the Instructional Center on Nov. 8, providing a space for the South Asian community at Tech to celebrate this annual holiday. With the cancellation of India Club GT’s biggest event, Garba and Diwali, the community needed some semblance of celebration at Tech. Asha Atlanta offered just that.
The event included food and fun group activities. There were Henna drawings, temporary drawings on the skin, and Diya, a type of small oil lamp painting — both of which are staples of the Diwali celebration. As an ice-breaker, the board members hosted Mad Libs, where everyone voted on who had the funniest rendition of a “Diwali Mayhem” story. There was also a soul-stirring performance from Tech’s Taal Tadka, including Indian and English mashups.
The Technique spoke to Shivank Shukla, fifth-year MSE Ph.D and co-president of Asha Atlanta, to gain insight into the organization’s work and the significance of events like “Diwali Lights.”.
“Diwali is a way to attract a bunch of South Asian students on campus, and because they’re away from home, they all need a big event… It is the time of the year when you meet your friends and celebrate with your community,” Shukla said.
Attendees made the importance of this Diwali event evident.
“When I’m at home, I can celebrate Diwali with my parents, but here it’s harder since my family’s not with me… so it’s important to go out with your friends and have some fun,” said Keshav Sheth, first-year CE.
“I was trying to find a Diwali event since there weren’t as many on campus this year,” said Sumedh Rathi, PHYS Ph.D.
Asha for Education is an international organization founded in 1991 by UC Berkeley students. Now, there are over 35 chapters in the United States alone. Asha aims to change the large disparity in educational opportunities for disadvantaged children in India, especially for young women. Asha Atlanta members have a deep-seated passion for this cause, demonstrated by their commitment to their projects.
“‘Asha’ means hope, which is a fitting name because we are bringing hope to the lives of these underprivileged children,” Shukla said.
Asha Atlanta has funded projects all over India through other fundraising events like Diwali Lights. They have hosted board game nights and Week of Welcome events and worked concessions at football games. Most notably, Asha Atlanta arranged a concert for the Grammy-nominated group, “Berklee Indian Ensemble.”
“It was full-house, and we were able to raise 23,000 dollars from that event,” Shukla said.
Their most prominent work is in the Nishtha Night Center in West Bengal. This project supports the children of sex workers by providing social rights, education, and housing. According to Asha, these children are at high risk of kidnapping and are often forced into prostitution. Asha Atlanta has donated money to Nishtha since 2006 and continues their funding today.
Other projects include the “Gram Vikas Trust,” which provides transportation for students in rural Gujrat to minimize dropout rates. They currently have six active projects.
Board members also make in-person and virtual project visits once every 18 months. Additionally, project stewards go on-site to help with communication in the local language.
The club consists mostly of graduate students. Although some have become board members, many undergraduates volunteer on an on-and-off basis. Shivank told the Technique that the best way to get involved is to volunteer at gameday concession stands, which is how he started with Asha.
Asha doesn’t only do fundraising — it’s also a great place to make new friends. In fact, the club has several social activities, including a running club where members bond over their fitness goals.
Vyshnavi Namani, M.S. CS, came to the Diwali celebration because of her involvement.
“I’m a part of the running program…, and this [Diwali Lights] was advertised in the Asha [Whatsapp] group,” Namani said.
The club’s warm, social environment keeps old members coming back. Take Manisha Natarajan, Robotics Ph.D., and prior Asha volunteer.
“Growing up it [Diwali] was my favorite festival,” Natarajan said. “If I came here, I could see some old faces,”.
The Technique also spoke to Prasoon Suchandra, an ex-president of Asha and current Project Steward. After completing graduate school at Tech, Suchandra has continued his support for Asha through the Boston chapter. He is now a Research Engineer at Tech and participates in Asha Atlanta socially.
They ended the night with a Diwali Trivia Competition, the most lively part of Diwali Lights. More than five teams fervently fought to win. With constant chatter and laughter in the air, the event felt like a big family gathering, emulating the festivities of a South Asian household.
Khushi Taori, PHYS Ph.D., was a part of the winning team.
“The trivia was a lot of fun!” Taori said. “I used to love celebrating Diwali at home. I’ve known about Asha for a while, so might as well support the organization and get to celebrate at the same time,” Taori said.
Activities with Asha are both productive for socio-economic change and connect the people who participate. “If you are looking to fulfill your altruistic needs and to make a bunch of new friends, consider volunteering,” Shukla concluded.
After the event, many old members stuck around to catch up with their friends. It was another successful fundraising event from Asha Atlanta, with many more to come. Asha will have their end-of-semester run on Nov. 23, which is open to all members of the Tech community.