Rajvi Doshi was nervous.
But when the lights came up and made the sequins glimmer on her orange-and-blue skirt and blouse, it was time to perform for 950 people.
Adrenaline set in.
"You get over [the nerves] because of the pure adrenaline rush," she said.
Doshi, a member of dance team GatoRaas and a 19-year-old nutrition sophomore, was one of about 200 performers at the Indian Student Association's Diwali Show on Saturday night.
Glow-in-the-dark lights and a stage decorated with colored Christmas lights paid homage to the Hindu festival of lights, which is officially observed Wednesday.
The show, held at the Phillips Center, featured a fashion show, dance groups, singing and a skit woven between dance performances.
Tulsi Patel, the show's director, said the Diwali Show is one of the association's biggest annual events because Diwali is an important holiday to Hindus, almost like Christmas. The festival is usually celebrated with family, which she said is difficult to do away from home.
"The show helps us stay grounded in our culture," said Patel, a 20-year-old finance junior. "That's something we may not always get in college."
Naomi Abraham, one of the show's MCs, told the audience the show was great because "we can hold onto our culture even though most of us were born here in the United States."
The show also featured the Indian and American national anthems and hip-hop infusions into Indian dance styles, with the jingle and clink of anklets, bangles and coin-adorned clothing punctuating dancers' movements.
Group Gator Adaa Fusion danced several different styles to a mix that included Bollywood film songs, Jessica Mauboy's "Saturday Night" and Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Want to Have Fun."
After attending for the fourth-straight year, Sandra Kerrutt, 21, a microbiology senior, said for her, the show is nostalgic.
"It reminds me of things I used to do as a kid but don't anymore," she said. "And it serves as a cultural reminder."
One of her favorite things is the variety of Indian dances represented at the show.
Indian dance styles represented ranged from dandiya raas, a style from the state of Gujarat danced with two wooden sticks clapped together on beat, to Indian classical style to bhangra, a high-energy dance from the state of Punjab.
A new addition to this year's show was the bhangra group Punjab Di Asli Pehchaan, which is a competitive team made up of dancers from around Florida.
The group - called by its short name PDAP - was a favorite of Jennifer Persaud, an 18-year-old marketing junior.
Persaud was determined to attend the show for the first time after missing it the two previous years.
She said she often choreographed dances for her temple's Diwali celebration back home, but celebrating in college has been different.
At home, her family celebrates by fasting from meat and eggs during the day, cooking a large meal and lots of sweets at day's end, decorating with special candles called diyas and wearing new clothes to signify a fresh start. Persaud still celebrates with fasting and a large meal, but she missed the dancing associated with Diwali.
"I wanted to really embrace it again," she said.
Members of Punjab Di Asli Pehchaan perform at the Indian Student Association's Diwali Show on Saturday night at the Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. The group is a competitive team of dancers from around Florida.
