The world seemed like a beautiful place on Saturday evening, when students from 21 countries came together to perform at the cultural festival of Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU). Students from Turkmenistan, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Mauritius, among others were spotted rehearsing their dance moves, before the evening commenced. .


Actor Girija Oak-Godbole and fimmaker Aditya Sarpotdar were the chief guests at the event and were seen enjoying the scintillating performances. Forty-five countries, including India, participated in the flag march and gave the evening a colourful hue. Over-whelmed by their presentation and truly giving it a 'Get Together, World Together' feel which also happened to be their theme this year, the dignitaries gave a standing ovation to the students.

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Aditya Sarpotdar said, "I passed out 15 years ago from this campus, but to be back as a chief guest and sit along with my mentors is a proud moment in itself." The highlight of the evening was a lavani performance by Aynabat, a student from Turkmenistan. She expresses "I love India and have grown up watching Bollywood movies and love Shah Rukh Khan. It was my dream to perform an Indian traditional dance and I am happy to perform a lavani at SPPU."

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Colourful dance performances from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Namibia brought to the fore a slice of their country's cultural beauty. It almost felt like the world indeed was under one roof!

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— Moumita.Chakraborty@timesgroup.com