Photo Essay: SASA Wows Audience with “Pagal Khaana: House of Madness” Cultural Show
Directed by Antrita Manduva, Raghav Pardasani, and Ishi Sood, the almost two-and-a-half-hour show was high energy from beginning to end, keeping the audience excited and laughing or clapping along.
The UChicago South Asian Students Association (SASA) held their annual cultural show on Saturday, March 29, at 8 p.m. in Mandel Hall. The show was accompanied by an art display outside the hall that showcased SASA members’ visual art, poetry, and photography.
Pagal Khaana: House of Madness, a short film SASA produced, played in segments between each performance and guided the audience through the experience of high school senior Anush (Vivek Cherian) as he struggled to embrace his family and culture. Heartfelt and witty, the film left the audience with the message that there is much to be gained through deepening our bonds with family and friends and, ultimately, culture.
Directed by Antrita Manduva, Raghav Pardasani, and Ishi Sood, the almost two-and-a-half-hour show was high energy from beginning to end, keeping the audience excited and often whooping in encouragement, laughing, or clapping along.
The official show program is quoted throughout for an accurate description of each performance.
SASA members’ artwork—largely focused on their cultural experiences—are displayed gallery-style outside Mandel Hall for attendees to view. (Natalie Earl)Audience members file into Mandel Hall to find their seats for a sold-out show, with SASA reporting over 720 tickets sold. (Natalie Earl)Show directors Ishi Sood (left), Raghav Pardasani (center), and Antrita Manduva (right) welcome the audience and open the show. (Natalie Earl)The first performers of the night, from left to right, Harsha Mandayam Bharathi (mridangam), Sammy Thiagarajan (guitar), Parjanya Tiwari (vocals), Anuraag Kaashyap (vocals), Rishabh Subramanian (vocals), and Pravan Chakravarthy (violin), bring the audience “classical music from across South Asia, including Carnatic, Hindustani, and sub-styles within these genres.”
Rock band AC/Desi wows the crowd with a performance of South Asian pop and rock songs. The group is composed of Amam Jain (vocals), Mridvi Khetan (vocals), Sammy Thiagarajan (guitar), Tia Khosla (keyboard), Hetav Mehta (guitar), Avyay Duggirala (bass), and Ayush Gautham (drums).
SASA members perform a dance choreographed by Apsara, “combin[ing] classical forms of dance—Bharatanatyam, Kathak and Kuchipudi—with Fusion music, such as Bollywood, Rap or classical South Indian.”
Chicago Aag performs a cappella medleys of popular South Asian and American songs. The group is composed of Anuraag Kaashyap, Trayi Ajit, Eden Anne Bauer, Saumya Gondotra, Aanya Bhola, Rishabh Subramanian, Neel Maheshwari, Arnav Modak, Ishaan Goel, Grey Singh, Aria Saxena, and Parjanya Tiwari.
With huge smiles, exaggerated gestures, and impressive footwork, Kaveri performs a modern interpretation of “South Indian folk dance traditionally seen in Tamil and Telugu films.”
Class of 2025 SASA members—dressed in blue jeans and white tees—take up the stage in the final photo of the night. (Natalie Earl)
Correction, April 7, 2025, 5:35 p.m.: This article previously mislabeled Bhangra performers as Kaveri and AC/Desi as a classical music group. A photograph of SASA’s graduating seniors was also added to match a caption that was previously beneath another photograph of a different dance group.
Correction, April 10, 2025, 12:49 p.m.: The caption of the final photo was updated to include what the Class of 2025 SASA members were wearing.
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