Sangam heroes test their might

You won’t find Spiderman, Batman and the Hulk dancing to bhangra-infused techno in a Marvel or DC comic book.

But during Saturday’s Sangam Nite 2005, more than 450 audience members got to see Spidikistan, Bhutman and The Incredible Bangla-Hulk do just that.

Other superheroes present included Wolfghanistan, Icepal Man, Maldivian Wonder, Super-Lanka Man and Desi Storm.

Together, the superhero parodies represented the eight South Asian countries that constitute Sangam, a student group devoted to increasing South Asian awareness.

The theme of this year’s evening of cultural entertainment was the S-Men, the group of superheroes charged with keeping South Asian culture intact in a battle against the villainous Legion of Evil.

“The superheroes represent the preservation and the roots of your beautiful culture,” said Sangam member Hannah Masoud.

Through dance, music and a fashion show, the superheroes and a variety of other performers kept South Asian culture not only intact, but elevated, many in the audience said.

Organizers and performers said they wanted to share the culture and identity of each country represented — Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Maldives and Sri Lanka.

“South Asia is so diverse,” said Jason Matthews, Sangam’s vice president and the event’s co-emcee. “So the main thing is breaking down stereotypes and spreading awareness (of) how multifaceted it is.”

Sangam members said the event was meant to bring the unique cultures together.

“Each dance has a different rhythm, a different beat and a different tempo which represents the diverse cultures of South Asia,” said Masoud, who modeled in the fashion show. “The night as a whole represents their unity.”

The superhero theme, flashy video interludes and the performance’s many pop-culture aspects attempted to fuse the traditional and the modern.

The purpose of the S-Men theme was “to show our culture and to show how it has changed with today’s technology,” said singer Jaymin Patel. “We’re tying to create a fusion, because if it were all cultural it would kind of get repetitive.”

Organizers made a rule that each performance must incorporate aspects from at least two different countries. Most Sangam members are Indian, Matthews said, but he wanted to ensure the other countries played an integral role.

For some, the emphasis on inclusion was especially important.

“Personally, I appreciated the fact that I can connect with people of different cultures because I am Pakistani, and there are a lot of Indian people here,” Masoud said. “The fact that we created this night of dance, music and comedy demonstrates that we can all be friends.”

After the show, audience members praised the performances.

“It was fantastic, very well organized,” said junior Vignesh Rajan. “It was one of the best shows I’ve ever seen on campus”

Freshman Eve Carson said the night was educational and fun.

“It was exciting for me to see all the different cultures in the UNC South Asian community,” Carson said. “I hadn’t really been aware of it, so I was glad to learn more.”

Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.