Lodhi Garden Onam meet brings together DU students from Kerala

Nearly 150 Delhi University students gathered in a large circle at Lodhi Garden on Saturday evening, singing Bollywood songs as a few students played guitar in the centre.

YuvaKairali, a Malayali student collective, organised the meet and invited freshers from Kerala to spend time together during Onam, observed from August 16 to 26. For many students, it was a first chance to make friends in Delhi while celebrating the festival away from home.

Niranjana Uthaman, a first-year student at Ramanujan College, said moving to Delhi had felt daunting and that the garden’s green setting made the gathering unexpected. Sreyas C, a first-year student at Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, said Lodhi Garden drew him to the meet because of its cultural and historical landscape.

Devabala Padmakumar, an MA Political Science student and YuvaKairali’s president, said senior students wanted newcomers to know they had a community in the city. The group sent out a simple invitation to meet at Lodhi Garden. Vice-president Sreevarun, a final-year Hansraj College student, said the group had not expected the turnout.