Maverick Asian community hosts Colors of Asia

Seven countries came together to share in cultural food, music and dancing

On Nov. 11, the third annual Colors of Asia event took place in the CSU Ballroom. The event featured Asian countries, including India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, South Korea, Japan, and Pakistan. Some students from these areas are also involved in different RSO’s on campus, such as the MavLankans and Nestcom.

The event started off with a semi-formal dinner, which gave some of the attendees the opportunity to try food from different Asian countries. The dinner was followed by a cultural booth that showcased the different cultures and with their different flags. Most people were fully dressed in their cultural attires, which were indeed colorful.

“I had the opportunity to see live some of the cultural dressings from Asia,” said one of the attendees, “and also to know some of the history and the differences and similarities of some of the Asian countries from the slide shows that were presented during the event.”

After the informational booths segment of the evening, the entertainment kicked off. This was hosted by Nayeem Imtiaz and Faical Rayani.

The entertainment part was filled with so much excitement, especially when people from the audience cheered for their country when they performed. There was dancing and song presentation from the different countries. There was South Korea hip up, which was presented by Suhyung Bae and Gyeongryeol Park and was sang in Korean; this raised the excitement in the ballroom even more as the audience danced and sang along with the music.

There were other songs and dance performances, some of them joint performances that were sang by singers from two different countries. One of them was an Urdu song that was sung by Kiana and Jamal; Kiana is from Iran and she speaks Farsi, while Jamal is from Pakistan and speaks Urdu. Another was a dance performance by some Nepali girls to a Bangladesh song. This kind of collaboration shows the strong unity between Asian countries.

There were other songs from other countries: “Tarai Tarai,” a love story that travels across galaxies and “Chad Mama,” a song that talks about the childhood memories of people living abroad and stories that all Bangladeshis grew up with. Live bands also performed, including Elements (Nestcom).

There were other songs and dance performances that also showcased the different cultures of some Asian countries.

“International students put on four signature nights every year,” said Facial Rayani, former MSSA president and one of the entertainment hosts for the eveninng. “This year international students from Asia mostly got together to create this beautiful regional cultural night. Students far from home get to experience a little bit of home. Domestic students get to experience ‘the colors of Asia’ right here in little Mankato. I encourage more domestic students to attend these cultural nights because that is half the reason these nights are put on.”