Members of the Hispanic Society of Lafayette and the South Asian Student Association came together Wednesday night to celebrate food, music and cultural connection.
“Having an event where we showcase both foods that are similar starts the conversation about, ‘What are similar and different things we experience on campus?’” said Nonu Raizada ’26, the president of the South Asian Student Association, also known as SASA. “I think it was just to be a conversation starter more than anything.”
The event, held in Grossman Library and dubbed a “Cultural Exchange,” featured cultural cornerstones from different Latin American and South Asian cultures.
The menu was arranged to draw connections between cuisines from Latin American and South Asian cultures. Students could enjoy popular rice dishes like arroz con gandules or chicken biryani, stuffed pan-fried dough such as pupusas or parathas and deep-fried pastries like empanadas or samosas.
“They’re very similar dishes structure-wise, but they have different cultural significance,” Raizada said, adding that the spices and herbs used truly made each dish distinct.
The event also included a presentation on the similarities between the different dishes and similar genres of music from Latin America and South Asia, including flamenco and Indian classical music.
The idea for the event emerged from conversations between Hispanic Society of Lafayette treasurer Justin Morales ‘26 and SASA Vice President of Marketing and Outreach Nitasha Gupta ‘26 on the similarities between different Latin American and South Asian dishes.
“We thought that this would be a great opportunity for two organizations that haven’t really collaborated in the past to collaborate with one another,” said Denisse Villegas ‘25, the president of the Hispanic Society of Lafayette, known better as HSL.
Raizada said that SASA has hoped to collaborate with more cultural groups, including HSL, for a long time.
“For many students on campus, you can’t go home and have your comfort foods,” Raizada said. “You can’t talk the language that you speak at home at school. I think these are things that a lot of students and both of our clubs can relate over.”
Villegas said she felt it was important to build a bond between the different cultural groups on campus.
“I feel sometimes we do tend to go towards individuals that are a part of a similar group as us,” Villegas said. “So creating these events, it’s in the hopes of bringing upon more of that unity between different individuals on campus.”
