Bright colors swirled across the Great Lawn as students in traditional Desi attire crossed the sunlit grass. The scent of vegetable samosas, mango lassi, panipuri and jalebi filled the air, drawing students to mehndi, or henna tattoo, stations and a lively dance circle where students taught one another steps to Desi dances. On Monday, Oct. 20, Hindu Youth for Unity, Virtues and Action (YUVA) transformed the center of campus into a slice of celebration with its annual Diwali festival, alive with food, music and community.

Diwali, also known as Deepavali, is a Hindu, Jain and Sikh festival that celebrates the triumph of good over evil, often using the symbolism of light, fire or candles. The holiday is celebrated by millions of people around the world. Within the Oak Park High School community, the Hindu YUVA club has taken the initiative in bringing this tradition to students in the form of a gathering on the Great Lawn.

The president of Hindu YUVA, senior Nidhi Dhunaka, reflected on the challenges of organizing such a large-scale event.

“We have our audience, people who are

participating in the event, and then we also have student volunteers,” Dhunaka said. “We have parent volunteers, and there are forms and procedures for them to go through that sometimes they don’t do on time.”

It was important to Dhunaka and the Hindu YUVA team that the event reached a broad audience while

being informative and engaging.

“We’ve really integrated more people [in the celebration] who aren’t necessarily Hindu or South Asian,” Dhunaka said. “In the

following years, I hope that continues, and [that] we can maybe integrate cultural performances so that we can showcase our culture.”

Raising awareness about ethnic events such as Diwali has been a vital topic in educational settings, not only for students looking to express their customs but also for teachers here on campus. Many teachers dressed to impress alongside students this Monday, donning traditional Desi attire such as kurtas, half-sarees and lehengas.

“This year, we gave [teachers] clothes for them to dress up in if they were interested,” Dhunaka said. “I think that seeing your teacher in cultural clothes, even if it’s not your own culture, can really make [the school] feel more inclusive.”

Teachers expressed their feelings about wearing South Asian garments for Diwali.

“It’s great, you know. Some people look at it as cultural appropriation, but I don’t because when I do dress this way, everyone who’s involved is very accepting, and it’s a very welcoming environment,” social sciences teacher Chris Meyer said. “So it’s not an ‘us-versus-them’ mentality; it’s, ‘we welcome you, we want you to be part of this and experience this cultural event.’”

Some OPHS teachers brought the Diwali

festivities into their classrooms.

“I am so excited that students can bring their culture and share it with us on campus. It brings me so much joy,” science department chair and biology teacher Winifred Sloan said. “I’ve been trying to incorporate it in class, [talking] about the new beginnings that Diwali represents, and the light, and talking about it as we evaluate our exams and move forward.”

Hindu YUVA aimed to educate the community on the deeper meaning of Diwali and why it is so widely celebrated.

“I definitely want [students] to dig deeper than, ‘Diwali is a festival of lights.’ I want them to understand the values that Diwali celebrates,” Dhunaka said. “I want them to have a taste of what it would kind of be like in India with people on the streets, celebrating with music and dance, which is kind of like what we do here at the Great Lawn.”

The South Asian festivities on campus were widely attended and illustrated how students’ identities extend far beyond the classroom.

“I think that students are much more than their grades. And so to see students in different lights, I think that’s important,” Sloan said. “I also think it’s important for students who are not exposed to a culture different than theirs–it helps them have a greater understanding of world events and helps them not to be self-centered, quite honestly, but to appreciate other cultures and what is important to them.”