Socially conscious Manchester students used their creativity and talent to raise funds to help build a school library for the underprivileged students in India. Rahul Laud reports
Two months ago, socially conscious young students , students Soham Bhansali, Harish Chandra Nair and Aahi Shah studying at the Altrincham Grammar School for Boys (AGSB) and Altrincham Grammar School for Girls (AGGS) in Manchester planned an activity that would be festive, something entertaining, and inspire people to get back on their feet following a year and a half in lockdown.
On Wednesday 17th and Thursday 18th November 2021, students from AGSB’s Hindu Sikh and Jain society (HSJS) joined forces with AGGS’ Hindu Society students and gave birth to Utsav 2021. Following the festival of Diwali last month in November Utsav showcased a multicultural performance night. Surpassing all expectations these students raised £2800 to support a local UK charity.
Entirely organised by the Altrincham’s student community, these students rose up in action to serve the community. The city’s first ever! 2 nights, 15 performances, 87 performers and 39 volunteers at Utsav 2021 was organised in a span of little over two months held the audience spell bound.
Together they entertained 350 attendees, which included students, parents, and staff, at this much anticipated event. The organising team said, ‘’The Hindu, Sikh and Jain Society had two clear goals; spread the awareness of the cultural diversity within the two schools through 15 energetic performances and raise as much money as possible for the chosen charity – Veerayatan, a UK registered charity. ‘’
The first half of the night, consisted of a wide variety of multicultural performances including dance, drama, singing and more! The performances ranged from jazz bands to traditional Gujarati dance to the re-enactment of the Ramayana. Every performer was a volunteer and had a chance to express their creativity in different forms.
Understanding the value of good education, Veerayatan stood out as being the perfect charity with their fundamental aim of providing education by building schools for underprivileged children in rural India. Veerayatan is a charity that strives to uplift and empower humanity through the three jewels of humanitarianism (Sewa), education (Shiksha) and inner development (Sadhana).
The organisers informed that money raised would go to the building a new library in Tirthankar Mahavir Vidhya Mandir school in Palitana, India.
It was observed that the event allowed many AGSB and AGGS students to gain invaluable experiences. The chance to be on stage in front of many familiar and unfamiliar faces improved the confidence of the performers. In addition, the HSJS volunteers were able to develop as leaders through managing the various aspects of the event; decorations, food and drinks, tickets, and performances.
To find out more about the event, be sure to check out @agsb.hsjs on Instagram!