For the first time in the two years since the COVID-19 pandemic began, University of Oregon’s South Asian Cultural Alliance held Utsav on April 24.  In Hindi, Utsav means “celebration” and is a day for the community to enjoy South Asian culture.

The event, held in the EMU Ballroom, was packed full of students and members of the Eugene community enjoying food from local restaurant Taste of India and watching performances on stage.

The showcase featured 12 performances, from vocal solos to traditional dances from different regions of South Asia. The event featured many groups within the Eugene community, including various dance groups that are centered on South Asian dance styles, like The Bhangra Monkeys. The local kids dance group kicked off the event with energetic performances of Bhangra dance, a dynamic style that originates from Punjab, India.

A highlight of Utsav was the fashion show, which featured students and community members strutting and striking poses in traditional South Asian wear. Shreya Shettigar, third year major in art and technology and vice president of SACA, explained how she loved the energy of the crowd throughout the performances and the fashion show.

“I just love like, every time someone does something really cool on stage, everyone’s like ‘Wooo’ clapping and supporting them,” Shettigar said. “I felt that was so fun, just everyone as a community coming together and being excited.”

The crowd was especially hyped as the UO Bollywood Medley, featuring students in SACA, took the stage as the finale. The medley was student-led and highlighted three different songs from new Bollywood movies from the past year.

Senior and co-director of the group Jaya Das explained how Bollywood films feature item songs that the characters dance to and are original to each movie, making it “iconic to do those dances.”

Sarvesh Upadhyay, senior and double major in public relations and humanities, is the co-director of the organization and has been dancing at Utsav since his freshman year.

“Most of the choreography was either from traditional Indian dances — like the first [song], we used a lot of elements of Garba, which is a folk dance that’s done in a specific region in India,” Upadhyay said. “For the other two, we used choreography from the movies that they were from because a lot of the choreography is very iconic to those songs.”
Senior Ria Bhatt, who is an ethnic studies major and secretary of SACA, explained how this year’s Utsav caused her to step out of her comfort zone through her involvement in the medley.

“This year for me was more special because it was my last Utsav, of course, but then I performed for it for the first time dancing,” Bhatt said.

Utsav brought fun and liveliness to celebrate South Asian culture. It also brought awareness to SACA’s presence and impact on the UO campus, as well as the broader Eugene community. SACA has been organizing events that are open to the community since its founding. Shettigar said one of the board members has been attending events organized by SACA since she was a kid.

When it was formed in 1999, the group was originally Students of the Indian Subcontinent. This year, SACA’s board decided to change their name to the South Asian Cultural Alliance to create a more inclusive environment for students.

Aleena Khurana, senior and publicity chair of SACA, explained more about what drove the group to make this change.

“We’re not celebrating just Indian culture, but South Asian culture as a whole, whether it be Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nepal, all of that. So it’s a safe space for anyone who identifies with those cultures to join, but also [for] anyone who doesn’t to just come and learn more and immerse themselves in the culture,” Khurana said. “We want people to know that we exist on campus.”

Members of SACA emphasized how important it is that all South Asian students are represented at the University of Oregon, a PWI, or a predominantly white institution. Both Das and Shettigar came to UO from the Bay Area, which has a large South Asian community, and like many other BIPOC students, they experienced what is known as “culture shock.”

This challenge students of color face as they arrive on the UO campus emphasizes why SACA’s presence on campus is so valued.

“We want to make a safe space for students of South Asian heritage to come together and bond over shared experiences, shared culture,” Upadhyay said. “We are not the most visible on campus, so this kind of space exists for us, and for people who want to learn about our culture.”

As the organization continues to grow and diversify, Bhatt explained the group has organized more activities for members this year alone than they have in the past six years.

Past events this year for members have included bonding activities like boba nights, a Bollywood x Hip Hop dance workshop and discussions addressing issues of discrimination in the South Asian community through a colorism workshop. In the upcoming weeks, SACA has a collaboration with the Muslim Student Association for Iftar, the evening meal Muslims eat to end their daily Ramadan fast through April and May. 

“We’re just like a big loving family,” Bhatt said. “The best part of University of Oregon was literally just this club for me.”

For more information about SACA’s upcoming events or just to get involved, check out their instagram at @uoregonsaca.