My First Garba Night

For Indians, this time of year is very exciting. Many Hindu festivals and celebrations occur during the months of autumn. These include Diwali (the festival of lights), Ganesh Chaturthi (celebration of the elephant god Ganesha), Navratri (9 day long celebration for the goddess Durga), Ashtami (8th day of Navratri), Navami (9th day of Navratri), and Dussehra (celebrations after Navratri- 10th day of Navratri). Although the exact dates of these holidays vary from year to year, due to the Hindu calendar being a lunar calendar, these festivities usually occur during the months of September, October, and November. Two Sundays ago was the start of Navratri, and the day before that, there was a Garba night at my high school. Garba is a special type of dance done during Navratri, and Dandiya is very similar to Garba, except you dance with sticks, instead of just clapping. This was the first year I decided to go, and me and my friends all made plans. It was a thrilling experience, and I got to learn a lot about my culture. I didn’t realize how many people participated until I came; the entire gym was full! Everyone was fully decked in Indian clothes, and many people came with their families and friends. There were people of all ages in one place, doing the same dance. At first there was a large circle in the middle of the gym, where everyone was moving in the circle doing the same spinning and clapping moves. I was surprised that everyone knew exactly what to do. Later on, the gym became a target sign from a bird’s eye view, and there were many circles. The music was live, and there were people up on a stage singing and playing instruments. After the music and dancing was too much for us, me and my friends went to the cafeteria where we got some mango lassis (a mango yogurt drink). We chatted for some time, and when we came back to the gym, it was 11:00 pm and nobody seemed like they were stopping. The gym kept getting more and more crowded. Around 12:00 pm, the Raas started, where everyone uses Dandiya sticks and dances in pairs. Finally, the celebrations ended around 1:30 am, and I went home. Overall, the experience was enjoyable, and I am definitely coming back next year.