Alena Ruhstaller

Indian Club meets weekly in D16 with a joyful and open environment.

According to World Population Review, India is the second most populous country in the world with a population of an estimated 1.35 billion in 2018.

However, Indians only make up 2.8 percent of the population in the Bay Area and 0.9 percent of the overall population of the United States. Indian Club at Carlmont hopes to bring more awareness about their heritage to the school.

“The purpose of Indian Club is to bring people closer to their culture and bond with others to explore the Indian culture more while finding other people at school who share the same interests,” Grace Purcell, a junior, said.

Club members acknowledge their Indian background by bringing a taste of their culture to the student body at Carlmont.

“We sell popular Indian foods, like samosas and mango lassi, and, occasionally, we do Henna to demonstrate some of the hallmarks of our culture,” Amruta Thuse, a sophomore, said.

The club members exhibited another aspect of Indian heritage by performing traditional Indian dance routines at the 2018 Heritage Fair after two months of preparation.

“Participating in the dance for Indian Club at the Heritage Fair was an amazing experience. I not only got to learn about Indian dance, but I got to help spread the culture to our school as well,” Purcell said.

The presence of Indian Club allows the members to further enrich themselves in a culture that their parents passed down to them by bonding with others who share the same experiences.

“[Indian culture] means a lot to me because my parents and everyone before them grew up in India, so it’s always fun to learn what customs and lifestyles they had living in India,” Thuse said.

Through embracing their heritage, members also aspire to shape Carlmont’s student body into a more accepting environment towards various cultures.

“It’s important to spread Indian culture because it’s good to see what other cultures are like at school and how diverse we are. Many people don’t really know about their cultures and sharing them with others helps them to gain new experiences,” Purcell said.

Indian Club meets weekly on Mondays in room D16 to explore different aspects of Indian life.