Birmingham’s Blazin Bhangra performs a traditional style of dance from the state of Punjab in India. Photo courtesy of Suresh GrandhiTamara Imam - Managing Editormanaging@insideuab.com
Good triumphs over evil at the annual Hindu celebration of Diwali, and those who follow the religion spread positive thoughts and well wishes amongst their community. This triumph is portrayed through light, color and dance.
In an ode to the Festival of Lights, the Jemison Concert Hall in UAB’s Alys Stephens Center and the adjacent Spencer Honors House as well as the performers and attendees were lit up in a multitude of bright colors.
The 18th annual Diwali show was set to begin at 7 p.m on Saturday, Nov. 12. By 6:20, all 1,330 seats in the concert hall were filled, some audience members were standing and to many would-be attendees’ letdown, guests without tickets were turned away from the sold-out show.
“[It] would’ve been helpful to let us know we needed to get tickets ahead of time. It’s not posted anywhere on the flyer or Facebook page that we need to stop by the box office for tickets,” senior kinesiology major Brianneth Alvarado Medina said.
Although many people left the ASC in disappointment after not being let in, the Indian Cultural Association, which hosts the Diwali show annually, said that the group emphasized the limited amount of seating before the event, but did not expect it to sell out so quickly.
“Every year, we expect a larger turnout from both the UAB community and surrounding Birmingham community, especially since our event is always free to everyone. Thus, we always make sure we let everyone know that ‘Seating is limited. Please arrive early,’” Diwali Director Karan Patel said.
Patel said that because of ASC’s new policy on ticketing events, which was set to prevent fire code violations, ICA had to give out tickets to attendees as they came in. Some of the attendees that did not receive tickets became upset and started to yell at the executive board, according to Patel.
“From this experience, we have learned from this situation that people enjoy watching our show, so that means we will have to have it at a larger venue. The turnout just showed us how much people are eager to watch our show, so we also want to make it bigger and better for the following years,” Patel said.
Those who did get a spot were treated to a series of cultural performances from community and student dance teams, which in conjunction with banter from the masters of ceremony, were intended to help audience members understand the importance of Diwali for members of the Hindu faith.
“Through different dance performances by community and UAB groups, we hope to unite everyone so that people can understand the different cultures in India itself and how each dancing style represents a unique culture within India,” Patel said.
The student groups, made up of members of multicultural sororities, organized dance teams and groups of friends, performed dances ranging from Bollywood-fusion, Gujurat folk dance - complete with baton-like sticks called dandiyas - and traditional Punjabi dance.
The BlazaRaas, composed entirely of female students, took the stage for the second year in a row in green and gold dresses and whirled their golden dandiyas to classical Gujurati music. They were followed by Alabama Apsara, the first year, 12-member dance team adorned in purple and gold, whose sharp movements to upbeat music elicited roars from the audience.
Emily Montoya, a senior neuroscience major, has attended Diwali in the past, but for the first time performed in the show along with a group of her friends, who together made up the team Namaslay.
“Last night it meant the world to hear the cheers and applause from the crowd when I was on stage,” Montoya said. “I’ve danced all my life, and you would think I wouldn’t get nervous performing anymore, but I was so nervous, especially since I was performing original choreography. But the audience was amazing, the emcees were amazing, and all of my friends and family that came out to support us really meant everything. It was a perfect way to celebrate my last Diwali as a student at UAB.”
Rangeela, a veteran team who has performed in several Diwali shows in the past, brought a twist to their past routine. The Bollywood-fusion team performed a three minute preview of a project they are currently developing: bringing social issues to light through dance.
The performance began with a short video highlighting the problem of homelessness in Birmingham, narrated by executive director of the Committee to Protect the Homeless Rodney Cole. The voice of Karan Jani, co-captain of the team, ended the video saying, “without a proper support network, anyone can become homeless,” and the team brought their emotional routine to life.
Rangeela’s performance evoked celebratory cheers from the audience, and before exiting the stage, members of the team embraced Cole, who was in the front row.
Birmingham’s Blazing Bhangra closed the show with a combination of Punjabi folk style dance and hip-hop. At the end of the night, Jemison Hall boomed with thunderous applause, and audience members celebrated with performers.
“People that come to Diwali every year see how big our community is growing and how many students, families, and friends come together to support one another,” ICA President Rachana Kotapalli said.
