Press Release: History was made at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMD) on 15th August 2004 when Indian Independence day celebrations were organized for the first time by the student community. The event was a grand success in bringing together the local community and giving them a taste of Indian culture. It featured spectacular dance and musical performances by the student community and an interactive quiz on Indian trivia.

The event was organized by Develop Empower & Synergize India (DESI). DESI is an UMD based group comprising of students and young professionals in the Washington DC Metro region. DESI focuses on key issues pertaining to India and Indian Diaspora and is comprised of three main teams. Students Against INternational Terrorism (the SAINT team) focuses on Strategic affairs and terrorism related issues in south Asia, sub-continental security and territorial integrity of India. The Shruti team promotes Indian culture and Indic traditions and encourages research on portrayals of India in Western media and academia. The Pragati team is involved in large-scale developmental efforts in India by collaborating with grass-roots service organizations like Ekal-Vidyalaya and by promoting the infrastructure projects like the national water grid project and the national highways project. These teams work closely with policy makers in the U.S.A and India to achieve their objectives.

The event began with a ceremony where Indian and the American national flags were unfurled. This ceremony generated a lot of interest as a member of the audience, who was randomly chosen, hoisted the flags. This was followed by a soulful rendition of Indian national anthem and the “Star Spangled Banner” by the Indian American Acapella group “Anokha”. The group also entertained the audience with a lively performance of popular and patriotic Indian songs. This was followed by a contemporary dance performance by Sneha, Mukta, and Divya, (undergraduate students at UMD), clad in the Indian national flag colors. The show culminated with invigorating dance performances by “Rhythmic Rajas”, a group of young Indian Americans. The first dance was set to a medley of songs one of which was Vande Mataram, the national song of India. This was followed by a solo semi-classical dance performance by Priya (a member of Rhythmic Rajas).
Lavanya and Om (volunteers from DESI) compered the event and presented the quiz. Indian sweets and snacks were served at the end of the event.

The event was well attended by about two hundred people including graduate and undergraduate students, young professionals in the region, media personnel, and distinguished members of the community. This event successfully drew participation from various nationalities including Indians, Indian Americans, Americans, and Chinese. The enthusiasm of the attendees was evident from the numerous flags and the tricolor balloons that were fluttering at the venue.

DESI events in the recent past include collaborating with World Association for Vedic Studies (WAVES), hosting eminent speakers like Ms. Sandhya Jain, Dr. Kalyanaraman, Dr. Kiran Bedi (co hosted with Ekal Vidyalaya) and Ms. Sonal Shah. In the years to come, DESI is committed to remain a strong voice of the Indian Diaspora.