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Society Stories: SISA Holi Celebrations 2022

Read all about the Rang De event that happened this past weekend!

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Every year the Strathclyde Indian Student Association, SISA, host a Holi celebration in Rottenrow Gardens on campus. This highly anticipated event was back for the first time since 2020 on Saturday March 19th. It was a jam packed celebration with tickets selling out well in advance of the event. We chatted with the team behind the society beforehand to find out more about what the event is all about and how you can get involved with SISA.


 

Can you explain what the Rang De event involves?
 

Rang De 2022 plans to bring fun, laughter, and more to the celebration of the Festival of Colour. We have always hosted the celebration at Rottenrow Gardens in the University of Strathclyde Campus, and we are carrying on this tradition this year. We expect around 300 people from all walks of life to join us to add to the festivities. The majority are home and international students looking forward to being a part of the celebrations. It will be an afternoon filled with some fantastic dancing on live Bollywood music with painting each other in vibrant colours topped with some authentic Indian food provided to the attendees. Although many similar festivals use water and food as their primary medium, here at SISA, we are taking a more sustainable approach. There will be no use of water, and eco-friendly colours will be used in the celebration as they are safe and environment friendly.


Pictured: Attendees in Rottenrow Gardens enjoying the sunshine.
 

For people who’ve never attended before what is the message behind the Holi celebration?
 

Holi is a spring festival and a spectacle of colours. It is one of the most popular festivals in India and in quite a few different countries across the world. It draws similarities between festivals like Songkran in Thailand, La Tomatina in Spain, Battle of Orange in Italy etc. Holi is a popular ancient Hindu festival, also known as the “Festival of Love”, the “Festival of Colours”, and the “Festival of Spring”. The festival celebrates the eternal and divine love of Radha Krishna. It also signifies the triumph of good over evil. It originated and is predominantly celebrated in South Asia but has also spread to other regions of Asia and parts of the Western world through the South Asian diaspora.


What is your favourite part of the celebration held at Strathclyde?


SISA makes us feel at home in Scotland, miles away from home. The overall festive mood helps us get a much-needed break from the hectic university life and helps us unwind. We always look forward to celebrating SISA Rang De.

Pictured: Attendees sporting their bright eco-friendly colours while dancing.


How and why should Strath students get involved with the society?
 

The Strathclyde Indian Students Association was established in 2016 to keep up and create awareness about the rich heritage by celebrating the Indian culture. SISA is for the students by the student’s organisation helping students in every phase of their university journey and enhancing their student life experience in Glasgow.


Pictured: The team behind the event from the SISA committee.

The students can get involved with society in different ways. They can buy a membership from the strath union page or help run society by volunteering or joining the committee. They can also get involved by being attending our events.


 

Are there any other upcoming events hosted by SISA that you’d encourage students to join?
 

Ranging from sports to cultural events, SISA has a series of events lined up. After the Rang De event, we plan to host sports-related events like cricket, basketball, and other matches in April. Also, some societies have approached us to collaborate with us for different events. These include Eid celebration with the SuPakSoc, a joint social and other event with the Strathclyde Modern Foreign Languages Social. Apart from these, SISA hosts frequent movie nights, meet and greets. Please follow our social media to keep an eye out for our upcoming events.

You can find out more about upcoming SISA events by following them on Instagram or join their group on Facebook.

Thankfully, the camera survived!