There are so many cultures and religions in the world. In India, Hinduism is the most common religion. Freshman Divya Kollipara was born in India and I recently talked with her about religion and culture.

Q: Where do you & your family originate from?

A: “Me and my family are from India. I was born there and I lived there for about 5-6 years. I moved here when I was 6.”

Q: Do you ever visit your home country to visit family?

A: “Yes, I visited them once but that was a few years ago. I haven’t been able to visit because of the pandemic. I do facetime with my family so I can see them virtually.”

Q: What is the name of your religion?

A: “My religion is Hinduism, and I’m from a state in India called ‘Andhra Pradesh’. We speak Telugu. In India, almost all states speak different languages, and in Southern India (where I’m from) there are four languages including Telugu. All four of those languages sound similar so if you know one of them you will be able to piece together the other three languages.”

Q: What is your favorite part of your culture?

A: “I would say the clothing and jewelry is my favorite part.”

Q: What would you want people to know about your culture?

A: “I guess I would want them to know about the dancing and music. There are many forms of classical dances in India. The most popular one is Bharatanatyam. I have been learning this dance for the past seven years. I also took Indian classical singing lessons for about 4-5 years, the word for Indian classical music is ‘Carnatic.’”