48th annual Navaratri Festival

Navaratri is traditionally one of India’s major Hindu festivals, a time to see family and friends, enjoy music and dance, and seek blessings for new endeavors. Wesleyan’s 48th annual festival is held in the same spirit of celebration, offering audiences a chance to experience the diversity of music and dance from India and across South Asia.

Schedule:

2:15pm - Saraswati Puja [New Time]

Saraswati Puja is a Hindu ceremony that marks the most auspicious day of the year for beginning new endeavors. Open to all, this service is led by Joseph Getter MA ’99 and invites audiences to participate to bring instruments, manuscripts, and other items associated with learning, creativity, and knowledge–making for blessing.

Cost: Free

Location: World Music Hall, 40 Wyllys Ave, Middletown CT 06459

3:00pm - Indian Dance Showcase

Connecticut-based choreographers Sarada Nori and Rachna Agrawal will be joined by Wesleyan students Akhil Joondeph '26 and Tanvi Navile '25 to showcase short performances from a range of different classical dance styles, including North Indian Kathak, South Indian Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam, and Odissi from Eastern India. The performance will be followed by a panel discussion moderated by Hari Krishnan, Professor of Dance, Global South Asian Studies, and Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies.

Cost: Free admission.

Location: World Music Hall, 40 Wyllys Ave, Middletown CT 06459.

4:15pm - Tea and Samosa with Shakti

Enjoy South Asian cuisine and gather with friends around a sampling of samosa (savory fried pastry) and tea, hosted by Shakti, Wesleyan’s South Asian Students’ Association.

Cost: Free

Location: World Music Hall, 40 Wyllys Ave, Middletown CT 06459.

5:00pm - A History of Navaratri at Wesleyan

This panel discussion will focus on the history of the Navaratri Festival at Wesleyan, convened and moderated by graduate music student Hansini Bhasker.

Cost: Free

Location: World Music Hall, 40 Wyllys Ave, Middletown CT 06459.

8:00pm - V.V. Subrahmanyam: Violin Concert

One of the finest violinists in classical Karnatak (South Indian) music, Shri. V.V. Subrahmanyam returns to campus for his 80th anniversary concert, joined by fellow violinist Shri. V.V.S. Murari, Shri. Trichy Sankaran on mridangam (double-headed drum), Shri. K.V. Gopalakrishnan on kanjira (frame drum), and Smt. Banu Jaiganesh on tampura (four-stringed harmonic instrument).

Cost: $20 general public; $15 senior citizens, Wesleyan faculty/staff/alumni, non-Wesleyan students; Free for Wesleyan students and youth under 18.

Location: Crowell Concert Hall, 50 Wyllys Avenue, Middletown, CT 06459.

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