Taking the stage with infectious energy, the dancers moved in perfect sync with the lively beats of Bollywood music. Clad in shimmering outfits that jangled with each leap and spin, Boston University Fatakada captivated the audience’s attention with every intricate step of their routine.
BU India Club hosted the Fall Show on Oct. 26 in the Tsai Performance Center. The event showcased performances from several of BU’s Indian dance teams and a cappella team. The event was the groups’ first opportunity to perform their competition sets in front of an audience.
“This show gives [the teams] an opportunity to put up a performance for the BU community,” Rutvi Jain, president of BU India Club and a senior, said. “It kind of prepares them to compete.”
BU has a variety of Indian dance teams that span different dance styles, including bhangra, garba-raas, classical and fusion teams which combine styles.
The Fall Show is not just a display of talent, but a vibrant celebration of Indian culture and community, Jain said.
For Sahiti Pawar, a senior at BU and the captain of BU Fatakada, the Fall Show is an opportunity to represent BU while “spreading Gujarati culture.” BU Fatakada performs garba-raas, a dance style that originates from traditional Gujarati folk dance.
She has performed at BU Fatakada’s Fall Show since her freshman year.
The Fall Show is also the first time the dance groups are able to watch each other perform, since they compete at different competitions.
Many of the BU Indian dance teams practice in the BU Student Activities Office gymnasium, and occasionally catch glimpses of each other’s practices and performances.
“It’s the only time that we all get to see each other’s sets and comp sets in full glory,” Pawar said. “This is the one time that we all come together and really support one another, and it’s kind of like a shared experience for all of the dance teams.”
Teresa Joseph, a junior and one of the captains of BU Jalwa, said the show is meaningful for new members. BU Jalwa is a fusion dance team that performs both American and Indian dance styles.
“For a lot of the newbies, it’s their first time performing at all. For the oldies, it’s their first time performing with their new team,” Joseph said. “So it’s really exciting for us, because we get to showcase what we’ve been working on for the past two months.”
BU Jalwa, like many other Indian dance teams at BU, participates in competitions across the country, from Atlanta to Los Angeles.
“The stuff we perform at Fall Show is the same exact pieces that we perform for audition videos,” Joseph said. “So it serves as something to push us even more.”
BUIC also hosts a spring show later in the year. Both the fall and spring shows are traditions that foster a sense of affinity among the South Asian community at BU.
“It’s just reassuring in the first semester that there’s people like us and that we are proud of our culture,” Joseph said.
Jain said the event’s goal is to bring a “sense of home away from home” to both the audience and the dancers through uniting performers across different teams.
Prerna Shankar, a junior and the co-musical director of SUNO, BU’s South Asian fusion a cappella team, said performing at the Fall Show is a tradition and a way of bonding. SUNO, which means “listen” in Hindi, performs mashups of both American and Indian music.
“We like to say that SUNO is family,” she said. “I really admire all the other teams, and I’m grateful that SUNO can kind of contribute to that.”
For Shankar, watching the dance teams is inspiring, as they all come together to illuminate a variety of “types of dance and aspects of Indian subcultures” that students may not find elsewhere.
She said it was really nice to see “a good chunk of the Indian community on campus in one space celebrating each other.”
The Fall Show unites both students and dancers, creating a sense of belonging.
“It pulls together people from various cultures,” Jain said. “It’s a night where we celebrate different dance forms of India.”
