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The members of Oracle's Indian Affinity Group wanted to do something special to mark this year's Diwali, a festival of lights celebrated throughout India and by Indians throughout the world. That's why they kicked off their party with at a 40-minute medley of Bollywood music, which accompanied a skit about an Indian wedding.
Just to make the event resonated with the Oracle families in attendance, they even threw in a few merger jokes.
"Diwali is the most celebrated festival across India, across the whole Indian diaspora," says Sripriya Gopal, who chaired this year's planning committee. The party at Oracle headquarters included an afternoon of singing, dancing, henna tattooing, and, of course, plenty of food. "In someways we are trying to mimic all that happens back home and we're trying to bring back the old memories," says Gopal.
This is the fourth year the affinitiy group has planned a Diwali celebration, and it was by far the biggest. Sixteen hundred people—employees and their families—attended the party on Friday, Oct. 16 at Club Oracle. It was so crowded, that some people had to be turned away. Similar, smaller celebrations were thown by Oracle employees in both Denver and Orlando this fall.
"Oracle offices are all over their world; there are projects being done on multiple continents. It's important for people to interact with people in different continents, different countries, and different cultures," says Aravind Giri, who coordinated the Denver celebration this year. "Events like this definitely help create some kind of awareness."
Oracle Diversity sponsored all three events. For the event at headquarters, Club Oracle provided a free space, both for crucial rehersals and for the event itself. Club Oracle staff also helped with decorations and security. "Oracle Diversity is proud to sponsor events like the Diwali celebration, which provide participants with a stronger connection between the workplace and their heritage, and enhance their experience as Oracle employees," says Jane Robertson, the director of Diversity. "The Diwali event showcased the richness of the Indian culture—and of Oracle's culture."
Gopal says she knows the celebration would not be possible without dedicated committee members and participants, who give up weeknights and weekends for planning and rehearsals, and donate everything from food to costumes, to make sure that the event is a success. One of the group's goal has been to give a platform to Oracle families interested in Indian culture—no matter what their ethnic background—to perform and share their talents with their coworkers.
It was hard work, but worth it, Gopal says, to see everyone come together, especially at a company as large as Oracle, where it can be difficult to get to know people outside of your division. "People from all kinds of departments come in together, and then we get to know what's happening within Oracle," Gopal says. She says watching how people choose to participate—whether by cooking, singing or by participating in a dance routine—also reveals something about what they are interested in.
The Indian Affinity Group plans to keep celebrating Diwali at Oracle headquarters next year, and hopes to work on more events throughout the year. "You really have to see it to believe the euphoria that comes at the end of the event, and the kind of commitment and effort that goes into getting this done," says Madhavi Jain, who worked on PR for the event and as the master of ceremonies. "It's a wonderful thing that gets done."
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