Discover the Indian Student Association "Namasté Français"

The Indian cultural association at EDHEC business school intend to widen the horizons of the diverse Indian Culture and to promote it through grand luminescent events, festivals, food, and literature, hoping to give everyone an opportunity to experience and enjoy the aesthetic lifestyle of India.

Our team :

President - Swaraj Kasar

General Secretary - Vidhi Agarwal

Treasurer - Sahejdeep Singh

Head of Marketing - Kishore Karthikeyan

Marketing Team: Tarun Prakash, Srishti Agarwalla, Amirah Sofea AHMAD PUAD, Purvi Patawri, Lochana Suresh

Head of Cultural - Anukriti Asthana

Cultural Team: Jahnvi Sabu, BinduYashaswini Gunti, Madhuri Panchumarti

Head of Event- Anagh Bhardwaj

Ananya PUNIA, Arushi Hira, Rachit Shah, Praneeth Garikipati,

Finance Team: Sai Preetham Thukral, Pragya Sankar, Vishnu Aravind Gopalakrishnan

Can you tell us in a few words how your project came about?

Our first interactions with the extremely diverse community at EDHEC made us realize the curiosity,  fascination, and interest they had towards India - Indian cuisine, clothing, and culture to name a few.  Being away from India and blessed with an Indian community within the school instilled a zealous desire to recreate a sense of “home” and belonging among us. 

Further, the idea and opportunity of being ardent ambassadors of the country and being able to bring in immense energy with festive vibes was more than enough to commence this journey.

Additionally at the time, Diwali, a major Indian festival was approaching, and this was an opportune moment to kickstart this association.

Can you describe your association?

The first words that we want people to think about when they think about our association are, “Desi” and “Fire”. Through our events and activities, we wish to actualize a part of India at EDHEC. Along with the 250 Indians studying at the Lille campus, we want to engage students of other Nationalities too in sharing their love for the culture of India. Our targets this year are to organize dhamakedar (fantastic) events, increase awareness about our association, and build a strong foundation for our association. Our team comprises of

3 Board Members – President, General Secretary, Treasurer, and 4 Departments – Marketing, Cultural, Events, and Finance. The treasurer is the head of the Finance department while the individual heads lead the rest of the departments. While we are split into departments we like to work across departments to generate new ideas. 

What is your first assessment of this adventure? What is your biggest success?

Since our inception, we have been very active in organizing grand and successful events. Each and every event has been a big success. Last year we organized Holi and Diwali events attended by more than 150 people. This year, we have already organized two events in the first semester - first a Chai (Tea) Stall where our snacks and tea were sold out within 1.5 hours, and the second Diwali event which was attended by about 150 people.

What advice can you give to students who would like to join your association?

Be full of zest and life! Be passionate about the things that you choose to do and be ready to get immersed in all things India.

What are the next steps for your association?

As an association, there are many things that we wish to achieve this semester. Firstly, we have planned three fantastic events starting with yet another stall. It will take place on the 24th of January, wherein we would be selling Indian snacks, traditional wear and jewelry. Along with that, we will be organizing a Bollywood party and Holi event in March. In addition to making these events a success, we want to set up excellent practices and traditions within our association that would be carried forward by the next NF team. We know that our projects are ambitious, but that ensures that we push ourselves and have fun while doing it! In the upcoming months, we wish to engage as many students and faculty members as we can and make the sound of dhols and laughter heard loud and clear within the EDHEC community.

Do you have any expectations from the Alumni community? 

We are a young association that holds inclusivity, enthusiasm, and India close to its heart. We wish the Alumni community to support us by attending our upcoming events, guiding us in our endeavor, and investing in our projects. We would be happy to collaborate with you or your association to Make an (Bigger) Impact!

More information: 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/reachnamaste

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/namaste.francais/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/namasté-français-edhec/

Email: namastefrancais@edhec.com

Contact: +33 769536537