A lot of festivals and holidays are around the corner, including one of India’s largest, Diwali, the festival of lights. And the Camosun College Student Society (CCSS) are inviting all Camosun students to attend its upcoming Diwali event on Wednesday, November 3.
The festival is celebrated mostly by Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, and some Buddhists, in particular Newar Buddhists. Diwali typically lasts five days and takes place during the Hindu lunisolar month Kartika, which is between mid-October and mid-November.
“So what is the significance for any event the CCSS organizes?” says CCSS external executive Puneet Kaur. “To make international students feel that they belong to this community and are taken care of.”
Kaur says that Camosun values international students, so organizing events like this is important to the CCSS.
“It’s open to every Camosun student, and they can come together, network, make some friends,” she says. “These kinds of events improve the bond between students, and it’s a really good opportunity for them to connect.”
Kaur says that because of COVID, students have all been at home, so this is a great opportunity to meet students at campus while still following safety protocols. She says it can also be good for making contacts and meeting alumni.
“We will have an opening ceremony, we will have a few performances by our students and then it will be followed up by a DJ party. It’s for three hours, and we have some food boxes for students,” she says. “We are looking forward to meeting students and seeing how they like the event. When we have these kinds of events we really get good engagement. That’s the fun and interesting part for us.”
Kaur says that events like this one will improve the bond between local and international students as it will help local students will become more familiar with different cultures.
“CCSS is organizing the Indian traditional festival to showcase what it is all about with authentic elements,” she says. “For that, we are starting with diwa lighting ceremony, added by performances and different Indian folk dances. We are also organizing a henna temporary tattoo event, so students can get some henna tattoos on their hands. We can answer any questions that they are curious about with respect to this festival. There will be all the information available.”
The CCSS Diwali event runs from 5 pm to 8 pm on Wednesday, November 3 at Na’tsa’maht at the Lansdowne campus. You must be a Camosun student to attend, and everyone attending can bring one guest.
See camosunstudent.org for more information on the student society.