At the beginning of Saturday's matinee, for example, Sharada Modur, a student at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, performed "Shiva Anjali and Alarripu," an invocation dance.

Shanthi K. Naidu '02, who says she has been dancing the South Indian Bharata Natyam for 15years, opened the show Friday.

Naidu was also featured in another act, titled "'Jugalbandhi'--A Competition." In this act, she and Ambika Patni '02 highlighted the differences between the Bharata Natyam and Odissi styles of traditional dance.

"We wanted it to be education and entertaining," Naidu says, "because with such a diverse audience, you're never sure what people are going to get."

Ghungroo also featured several group dances often involving upwards of 14 people.

The "Bee'ar Naach" depicted the circumstances of a rural wedding in Bangladesh, illustrating preparation at the bride's home, quarreling between the families of the bride and groom, and the wedding itself.

Traditional elements were mixed with other modern acts like "Yeh Ladka Hai Deewana." This group dance, which involved 16 performers, was described by show organizers as depicting "the relationship between girls and guys...through playful dancing, over-acting and quirky Westernization of culture that is a trademark of Hindi films today."

And in a version of "Bhangra," a folk dance originally from the state of Punjab in Northern India, the choreographers and dancers integrated traditional and modern moves.