The Multicultural Club Executive Board, L-R: Emma Kuska wearing a Bavarian dirndl; Vidhika Khemani, in an Indian lehenga choli and duppatta; Janany Jeyakumar, in an Indian sari; Hyun Ju Yoon, in a Korean hanbok; Tilaawat Khan, in a gharara of India and Pakistan; and Annette Rajesh, in a kurti, worn in India and Southeast Asia.
The Multicultural Club’s biggest event of the year, MCC Fest, commenced Saturday just as the messiest storm of the season blanketed campus in rapid fire with slush, ice and snow. Panthers found their way nonetheless through the blustery downfall to the Albert M. White Gymnasium for the annual fete celebrating the many cultures from which ACPHS students hail.
As the evening started, the gym was resplendent with colorful costumes and the soothing guitar strumming of student Rohan Rahman, a native of Bangladesh. Campus organizations did some tabling, and on one long table in front of the bleachers, food from many lands was laid out for feasting: arepa, samosas, soft pretzels, ziti, picada, falafel, empanadas, mattar paneer and more. In addition to Rahman’s music, performers played violin and performed a Bollywood dance and a Chinese fan dance. And in the spirit of coming together, students from neighboring Albany Law School were invited, capping off their own Diversity Week.
The festival’s tradition dates back to the club’s founding in the 1980s, according to Janany Jeyakumar, this year’s club president. The intention, she said, has always been to highlight one of the core experiences of college life – learning about people with different backgrounds. “This campus is amazing, and I want students to know more about my culture and other cultures they could be exposed to,” Jeyakumar said.
