On October 19th, the Indian Americans of Lexington (IAL) will be hosting the annual town-wide Diwali event. The event features many multi-cultural performances every year. This year, the newly formed SANTs (Sikhs Alliance of Neighboring Towns) have put together a Punjabi folk dance performance titled Sachiyan Sahelian (True Friends) and in the process developed a true sense of community. 

The word sant, in punjabi, refers to a person who can see the truth of existence, i.e. a saint. Diwali is a PAN-Indian festival celebrating choices that move us toward enlightenment and away from ignorance. The synchronicity between the group’s recently chosen name and the message of Diwali was one inspiration to participate in this year’s festivities. Our story is of women finding friendship through shared joy.

Twelve busy, multigenerational women came together to share our culture through a fast-paced folk dance called Giddha. Giddha is done at a variety of occasions that allow for women to gather in their villages (Pind). The dance is accompanied with sung poetry (boliyan) and are largely improvisations. They are spontaneous expressions of joy and good humor, sometimes even poking fun at the drudgery of day to day life or the circumstances of womanhood. 

Our dance practices quickly became community gatherings. Children play together, husbands make chai for everyone, and friendly banter uplifts the dancers after long days at work and childcare. We easily take on different roles – the more experienced dancers naturally sharing the role of instructor, while others help with logistics. 

Lexington is truly special as it creates an inclusive environment where shared purpose/ experiences bring together many subgroups. Once made welcome, these subgroups rediscover and share their unique traits with all, which creates belonging. The SANTs are building close relationships in a town many miles away from our origins in Punjab. To call our Lexington home, while fully sharing the richness of our cultural heritage, has made our town a Pind. 

We hope that many of you are able to join the IAL Diwali celebration on the 19th!

All the best

Ravneet Grewal and Deepika Sawhney

(for the SANTS)

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