International student project "We will show you!" launched at UNN

On 1 February 2024, the Day of India was held at Lobachevsky University. More than one hundred students from UNN and Privolzhsky Research Medical University gathered for the celebration dedicated to the history and culture of the republic. The Day of India was the first event of the international student project "We will show you!". The event was timed to mark the Republic Day, India's National Holiday, which is celebrated on 26 January.

A rich programme was prepared for the guests: a video presentation of the country, concert performances, stands with national costumes and craftsmen's products, and the tasting of Indian cuisine. Alexander Bedny, UNN Vice-Rector for International Affairs and Networking, was welcomed as a special guest according to the national tradition. He greeted the audience in both Russian and English.

"University is not only an educational and scientific endeavour, it is also a cultural one. Today's event is a unique opportunity to get acquainted with the richest culture of India, its centuries-old history. Lobachevsky University is developing scientific and educational cooperation with universities of this country. Now we have about a dozen partner universities. It is important that among them are the leading universities of India. We work with them both in education and research. We have many new joint projects ahead of us. I am sure that our cooperation will continue to develop," said Alexander Bedny.

There are 14 students from India studying at Lobachevsky University. One of them is Dhananjay Singh, a 4th year student of the UNN Institute of Information Technology, Mathematics and Mechanics. The young man is an excellent student and takes an active part in the life of the university.

"Currently, there aren't very many of us, Indian students, at Lobachevsky University, but we are all from different states of our country and represent diverse cultures and traditions. We have different languages and different religions. For example, we have Hindus, Muslims, and I am a Buddhist. And we would like to show how diverse the culture of India is, how it can differ from state to state," said Dhananjay Singh.

The project "We will show you!" is implemented within the framework of the "I care - I can!" programme of UNN international students' social initiatives, which was initiated by Dmitry Medvedev, Head of the International Students Support Office at Lobachevsky University. The main goal of the programme is to remove barriers in communication between students from different countries. The participants of the project "We will show you!"  represent six national student councils: Algerian, Indian, Latin American, Egyptian, Syrian, and Turkmen. During the spring term, they will hold festivals with national flavour. It is planned to stage these events at different venues in Nizhny Novgorod, for example, at the House of National Unity.