Hello friends and family! It's the most wonderful time of the year - the season of giving. Dhirana members have been hard at work for our preparations for Dhirana 2018! We could not be more appreciative of your support and donations to this cause that we all are so passionate about! However, the hard work does not stop here. The only way to reach our goals is with all of the love and support from our family, friends, and alumni.

We would like to announce the launch of our EngagePitt fundraiser for Dhirana 2018! Over the next two months we hope to reach our goal of $2,000 to help fund our expenses for the dance competition. If you would be so kind as to follow this link to our new campaign page, click the GIVE NOW button and support Dhirana 2018 this holiday season, it would mean a lot! Any and every donation counts and brings us closer to our goal!

We are thankful each day for this opportunity to help our community in the best way that we can, and we thank you for the part you play in allowing us to have this opportunity to do so.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Pitt Dhirana 2018

On behalf of the entire Dhirana 2017 Board, we'd like to thank our donors for their generous contributions to our cause! Our Engage Pitt campaign raised $3,138, surpassing our original goal by over $1,000!!! Your donations will not only help to continue the tradition of classical dance in the Pittsburgh area, but they will also help our organization continue its philanthropic activities. After the success of the Gala, Dhirana is even more motivated and excited for the upcoming show on February 18th! Every year we are amazed by our committees and their persistent attitude, our fellow students who attend our campus fundraising activities, and by you, our sponsors who allow these activities and the show to be possible through your donations. As competition weekend quickly approaches, the members of Dhirana are working tirelessly to organize every single detail of the show down to the second.

With that being said, The Dhirana 2017 Board would like to invite you to join us on February 18th to see what you helped make possible. Please visit our website, www.dhirana.com, for more information on how you can purchase tickets! Thank you once again and we look forward to seeing you at the show! 

This past weekend, Dhirana raised over $2,500 at our very first Sponsorship Gala! This surmounted our expectations, as this is the first year Dhirana has done an event like this! Not only was the Gala successful in achieving our fundraising goal, it was also a night of fun, dance, teamwork, and meeting new people!

We would like to thank all of our sponsors who donated at the event and have donated thus far. The support we received at the Gala was incredible, and we, the Dhirana board, are pleased to announce that we are raising our fundraising goal to $3,000! Our fundraising campaign runs until December 15th, and after seeing the success of the original campaign, we have decided to use that momentum to achieve an even bigger goal! The extra funds raised through the campaign will help us to pay for the rental costs of the venue, as well as cover expensive lighting and sound fees that come with putting on an event of this capacity. If you did not get a chance to donate at the Gala, or would like to donate more, please help us to achieve our new goal! We are ever so grateful and thankful for your support toward our organization, and hope we hope to see you at our show!

Speaking of the show, we are getting closer and closer to the actual day of Dhirana. This past weekend the lineup video for the show was released, which you can watch below. It has clips of the eight collegiate teams that will be competing at Dhirana 2017! This lineup consists of teams from all different parts of the country, which is one of the amazing aspects of Dhirana. It brings together people and their passion for classical dance from all over the nation. The next two months, on our part, will consist of rigorous planning, organizing, decorating, and fundraising from all of our committees. We will be hard at work to make the day of Dhirana, February 18th 2017, a success and we encourage everyone to come out and watch the show! 

It’s gala week! Here at Dhirana, we are busy putting the final touches on gala planning. With 5 local dance teams, as well as Pitt’s own classical dance team, Nrityamala, performing, Indian food, and clubs and organizations at Pitt, there is something for everyone to enjoy at the gala this Saturday.

Our five local dance schools consist of high school students who will each be performing beautiful classical dance pieces for about ten minutes each. The tremendous amount of work and time that was put in by the dancers will really show. If this is your first time watching a classical dance piece, you are in for a real treat!

Pitt’s very own classical dance team, Nrityamala, will also be performing. We will be able to see the countless hours and dedication put forth by these girls when we watch the piece they perform for us.

The delicious selection of Indian food is really something to look forward to at the gala as well. Our menu consists of classic favorites such as samosas, pakoras, biryani and sweets!

We will also have the opportunity to hear about a few of the many organizations around Pitt’s campus. Each of these organizations has something unique to offer and helps diversify Pitt. From volunteer work to chorale and everything in between, there is something for everyone. If you have a passion for anything, you will likely find it here at Pitt. If you want to get a taste for some of these organizations, the gala is where to find it.

So what IS Dhirana up to lately?? I’m glad you asked…

Dhirana has been busy with many different events recently. Every week, typically on Friday evenings, we hold an event called Dance with Dhirana! Dance with Dhirana was created to allow anyone who has felt interest in Dhirana to keep in close contact with the organization. We have had many different types of dance teams come and teach interested participants – PantheRaas, Pitt Nrityamala, Pitt Ballet Club, Swing dance, and there’s still some more to come! If you’re interested in learning new dances and also staying close with Dhirana, look no further than Dance with Dhirana.

Gala planning is another task we have been tackling. E-board, sponsorship, and logistic committees have been working feverishly to plan the Dhirana 2017 gala. Don’t know what the gala is? Well that’s okay, because it’s the first one Dhirana has EVER had! The aim of the gala is to connect the Pittsburgh dance community with our organization. There will be 5 local classical Indian dance schools performing, various clubs/organizations from the University of Pittsburgh, and yummy food from your favorite local Indian restaurants! If you’re interested in donating to Dhirana and want to become more familiar with our organization, then please attend our gala. The gala is at 6:30pm on Saturday, December 3rd in the William Pitt Union Ballroom so mark your calendars!

Our design committee has also been working hard to create the Dhirana 2017 brand and logo. Our colors this year are navy blue and yellow (you can clearly tell that we have our Panther pride). Check out our awesome 2017 logo...

They also just finished updating our website and if I do say so myself, it looks pretty amazing. Check it out at http://www.dhirana.com.

So that’s all for this week. Stay tuned for more Dhirana updates in the weeks to come!

#respectheclassics