Navaratri Festival Student Music Showcase

Saturday, September 27, 2025 at 3:00pm
World Music Hall

Free and open to the public.

Enjoy a cup of chai (Indian spiced tea) and an afternoon of music featuring two Wesleyan student groups immediately following the Saraswati Puja (Hindu ceremony) in World Music Hall.

This event is part of the 49th anniversary Navaratri Festival at Wesleyan.

Atman, meaning "soul" in Sanskrit, is a fusion band focusing on the intersection of South Asian and western styles. Formed in late 2023, Atman has since performed at several South Asian events on the Wesleyan campus. Band members include Samvit Singhal '27 (tabla), a Hindustani percussionist and jazz pianist from New Providence, New Jersey; Kaustubh Vasudevan '26 (piano), a classically trained pianist from Singapore who enjoys arranging and performing contemporary hits; and Suchita Sridhara '26 (vocals), a classically trained Carnatic singer from Rockland County, New York.

Saakshi Challa '27 is a Carnatic vocalist and will be performing with two accompanists. Currently a disciple of Vidwan Sri Palghat Ramprasad and his senior student, Smt. Rasika Murali Mohan, Challa has been blessed to undergo rigorous training in advanced musical concepts related to concert performance and vocal health techniques. Earlier, Challa initiated her training under the late Smt. Geeta Murali. With the approval and blessings of her Guru, Palghat Ramprasad, she has been actively performing full-length Carnatic vocal concerts in the greater Boston area. Most recently, she was honored to receive the Young Indian Cultural Ambassador award from Sruthi UK and UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization). Challa is currently a double major in Computer Science and Economics.