Nepalese Night Provides a Taste From Home

The Nepalese Student Association (NSA) organized a Nepalese Night on Sunday to celebrate the Dashain festival. Students dressed up in their finest attire and got treated to an evening full of music, dance and Nepalese cuisine.  

Dashain is a festival in Nepal where people celebrate light and goodness for 15 days. It’s a time for family reunions and exchanges of gifts and blessings. They celebrate that good will always win over evil.  

Many Nepalese students aren’t able to attend the festival due to their studies at USD, so NSA hosts an event every year to celebrate Dashain.  

Preeti Mainali, an NSA member, said she misses her home, and with this event, she feels less homesick.  

 “Because of this event, the homesickness goes away for a while, and we can celebrate Dashain with all the Nepalese students,” Mainali said. “We also get to share a part of our tradition with international students, and that’s very nice.”  

The evening consisted of speeches, traditional music and dance and Nepalese food. The event was hosted in the MUC ballroom, and all of the guests dressed up in either formal or traditional clothing.  

The second host of the event and NSA member Prasana Dawadi said the group did everything from decorating to even cooking the food.  

“We did everything ourselves,” Dawadi said. “From getting the decorations and organizing entertainment to cooking the food. To be able to cook with Nepalese ingredients, we went to Omaha. There, we could buy some Nepalese products.”  

On the menu were traditional Nepalese dishes such as Pulau rice, Khasi Ko Masu (halal goat curry) and Aloo Ko Achar (seasoned potato pickle).  

Entertainment was provided by Nepalese USD students and alumni. The Dhaka Topi band was one of the musical performers of the evening.  

Pragati Rouniyar, NSA president, said they have been planning the event since the beginning of the semester and made sure everything went according to plan. 

The Dashain festival is one of the two main events hosted by the Nepalese Student Association. Other than smaller gatherings, their next main event will be the Festival of Color in March. 

Photo Credit: The Volante | Maddie Martinez