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More than a hundred Harvard students and faculty gathered to celebrate Diwali with student-made food, colorful attire, and moments of prayer on Sunday.
Diwali is the five-day Hindu Festival of Lights. This year, the festival began on Oct. 20, nearly two weeks prior to the Sunday event. Harvard Dharma, a Hindu student organization, brought affiliates to the Mather House Faculty Deans’ Residence, where the event has been hosted for eight years.
Mather House Faculty Dean Amala Mahadevan, said she was “really grateful” for the opportunity to host the event once again in her opening remarks.
“For everything that happens in the world outside, I feel that these are the times when we come together as a community — and we feel so grateful that we are together in these moments,” Mahadevan said.
This year’s event was jointly hosted with the Dean of Students Office and attended by College Dean David J. Deming and Dean of Students Thomas G. Dunne.
In an interview with The Crimson, Dunne described the event as “dynamic and beautiful.”
“I went to this event for the first time last year — and I brought my family — and I absolutely loved it, and so now, it’s a highlight on my calendar,” Dunne said.
“The students in Dharma are a group that we’ve been working with quite a bit at the College to expand — supporting some of the growth of their community,” he added.
Adithya V. “Adi” Madduri ’27, co-president of Dharma, said he wanted to ensure that the previous traditions were properly represented at this year’s event.
“Diwali is the biggest event of my time as Dharma president,” said Madduri, a former Crimson News editor. “There’s a lot of good memories that I personally have with Harvard Diwali, so I want to make sure to recreate some of those amazing memories that I’ve had throughout the years.”
In March, the DSO and Dharma co-hosted Holi, the Hindu Festival of Colors, bringing the event into Harvard Yard for the first time. Earlier this semester, the DSO also helped the organization to secure a new prayer space after they had outgrown their previous accommodations.
“Not only is it great to support the students in Dharma, but also all the students who have not had an opportunity to partake in religious observances like this,” Dunne said.
One of the key traditions is for seniors at the College to prepare and serve the food to attendees. This year, the menu included paneer tikka masala, kerala ishtu, vegetable biryani, and tapioca payasam.
“It’s something that a lot of our seniors look forward to,” Madduri said.
“Even as the semester begins — like at our first weekly Puja or weekly Aarti — they’re already talking about cooking for Diwali. So it’s really exciting to see that kind of planning come to fruition here,” he added.
Dunne spoke about the efforts seniors had been putting in to “perfect a dish” for the event.
“I really love all the families that are in different places around the country, and world, that are really invested in their kids properly representing their food,” he said.
Megha Khemka ’28 said the event mimicked that of Diwali festivals celebrated at home, from calling loved ones, lighting lanterns called Dias, and reciting a Puja, or a Hindu worship ritual.
“It’s really about new beginnings and spending time with family. So it’s nice to spend time with a new community here,” Khemka, a Crimson Magazine Editor, said.
—Staff writer Alexander W. Anoma can be reached at alexander.anoma@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @AnomaAlexander.
—Staff writer Chantel A. De Jesus can be reached at chantel.dejesus@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @c_a_dejesus.
