The night of 13th November, 2005

I am sure nobody has any doubts regarding the popularity of India's most celebrated festival - Deepavali. Also called Diwali, it brings with it a fervour of activity and bliss all around. The whole of India gets ready to cash the excitement and goodwill that percolates slowly. India is secular by all right and Diwali takes the flavour of secularism to new heights. A festival that cuts across all religious barriers, whiffing past all caste, creed and colour, generating an atmosphere of agog is Diwali. In India, the preparations for the big festival start well in advance, and it is a time for happiness for everyone. Everyone has his own way of raking in the moolah to cash in on the good times!

Now, how do things change when you are abroad? Here in Rolla, the Diwali night is almost the biggest festival. People in and around Rolla gather in large numbers to witness the gloss associated with the event. This year, we had the Diwali Nite on 13th Nov, 2005. The auditorium was booked well in advance and the seating capacity of 700 looks miniscule considering the number of people who want a seat in the large atria.

The Indian student community is at the frenzy of activity with almost everyone trying to chip in, in some form or the other to be a part of such a large event. The cultural night has all the ingredients of an enjoyable evening - music shows, dance performances, presentations of the four corners of India, fireworks and not to forget the most important thing - fantastic Indian cuisine.

The food is cooked for about 750 people by the students. The cooking goes on for about two days and it was fascinating to perform the various permutations and combinations to add the right ingredients. To list the food items,

Sweets
Gajar Halwa
Kheer

Vegetarian dishes
Dum Aloo Kashmiri
Paneer Makhanwala
Jeera Rice
Vegetable Biriyani
Pineapple Raitha

Non-vegetarian dishes
Spicy chicken curry
Chicken biriyani

All this well supported by Butter Naan.

Certainly, this is enough to stimulate your taste buds! The food items were an instant hit with people coming back for multiple helpings to quench their hunger for good Indian food. Overall it was a fun filled night, and certainly the right occasion to get together to showcase India. Writing this blog and selecting the photos was a huge effort for me, what with having to take only 5-6 photos from around 600 pictures!