On Tuesday, November 10, 2015, approximately 30 MBA students, professors, staff and international exchange students gathered on campus to celebrate Diwali, the biggest and brightest Hindi festival.

As Diwali is  the festival of lights, students lit a sea of candles, put up chains of lights and made the venue shine and sparkle.

Upon finishing the decoration ceremony, the attendees were briefly introduced to the backgrounds of the Diwali festival and learnt about the saga that once initiated the celebration of Diwali, which spiritually signifies the victory of light over darkness and good over evil. At the beginning of the event, the Indian students of the class demonstrated the Lakshmi puja, one of the important rituals performed during the festival of Diwali. This ritual, performed to invite Goddess Lakshmi to one´s home, was carried out by praying at a beautifully laid out altar, as a silent beginning of an otherwise loud and exciting night.

As per the Hindi tradition, the event organisers had prepared for a Rangoli contest, where the event participants competed in creating the most beautiful pattern of flowers and coloured sand. “We had a lot of fun getting to know Hindu culture and I was excited to get my hands dirty and create the best looking Rangoli”, a MBA participant said. The winners of the creativity contest were announced by a jury of indian students who awarded the lucky contestants with chocolate bars and a thundering applause. Later, an entertaining round of Tambola and the opening of a buffet loaded with an abundance of sweets, snacks and drinks made the Diwali night an unforgettable experience for all.