Navratri is a holiday celebrated by Hindus during a nine-day and night period. It is a festival dedicated to the Divine Feminine, worshipping women and empowerment through the celebration of three major Hindu goddesses: Durga, Lakshmi, and Saraswati. Each goddess is honored for three days of the holiday. This year, the nine days lasted from October 3 to October 11 and served as an important time for the Cherry Hill East Hindu population.
The holiday is observed differently by regions of India; one of the more popular ways of celebrating is the artistic tradition of Garba. Garba is a form of dance that originated in Gujarat, India. It’s performed during Navratri as a dance that honors, worships, empowers, and celebrates the feminine form of divinity.
The dance is performed in circles, representing Hinduistic cycles of time. Furthermore, participants dance barefoot to show respect to the Earth they walk on every day. The holiday and dance both honor fertility and womanhood, paying respect to the female Hindu goddesses and the female population of India.
With New Jersey having the second largest Indian population in the country, Garba is an extremely popular event throughout the state. There were locations at the Indian Cultural Center (ICC), Moorestown High School, and Eastern Regional High School, as well as locations in South Brunswick and Edison.
Senior at Cherry Hill East and a dance leader for ICS Anjali Sancheti (‘25) is a long-time attendee of Garba. This year, she attended almost every night of the event, from the ones at the ICC to even South Brunswick.
“I think that it brings the Indian community together in one place to celebrate,” said Sancheti. “It’s a great way to celebrate with your friends and help other friends who are not Gujurati celebrate.”
There is a lot of diversity within the Cherry Hill community, allowing for the prominence of many culture clubs at East. One culture club that prevails is Indian Cultural Society. Every year on Multicultural Day, ICS performs and has a booth, sharing Indian traditions, dances, and food with other East students.
To celebrate Navratri as a community, ICS attends garba at certain schools each year. This year, ICS participated in Moorestown Garba and Eastern Garba, spending the night dancing and honoring their culture together. Most members of the cultural society attended both events, and some even attended ones at the ICC and South Brunswick.
Another reason Garba is so special is that attendees can bring their non-Hindu friends, allowing people of different ethnicities to see and respect the holiday. While the majority of those in attendance were Hindus, the event was still celebrated by non-Hindus as well. This adds to the fun of celebrating, as it is enjoyed by everyone in the community and is not just exclusive to Hindus.
“I thought it was a really incredible and amazing experience because I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Ravza Yilmaz (‘26), a junior at East who got the chance to celebrate Garba alongside her Hindu friends.
Overall, Garba season is a fun time for Hindus and non-Hindus alike to honor the rich cultural heritage of India. The diverse activities that different culture clubs attend and host make East unique and Garba is no exception.