About 200 people attended Diwali — a Hindu festival of lights — in Akin Auditorium on Friday, Oct. 17. Although scheduled to start at 6 p.m., it got started about 6:40 p.m. with a candle-lighting ceremony by event organizer Nitant Gandhi, senior in biology.

• “I participate in this event to counteract the feelings of missing home. We’ve been preparing for this event for one and a half to two months so that it runs smoothly,” Gandhi said.
• “I am in love with this festival back home. It’s a happy time. I love to share my culture, it’s also a way for me to compensate for homesickness.” — Pooja Patel, exercise physiology sophomore.
• “I came to see their type of culture and how they express it. It was cool last year which made me want to come again this year. A couple classmates are performing which made me want to come and watch the event.” — Michael Lamberti, mechanical engineering sophomore.
• “An Indian friend of mine is in the event and she said that it was a big part of her culture so the least I could do was come and watch her perform.”— Emma-Kate Winkles, education sophomore.

The event ended about 8:30 p.m. when attendees moved to Dillard to sample Indian cuisine.