Evenings of Nations: India

At the latest event in our Evenings of Nations cultural series, held on the evening of October 10, 2025, those interested had the opportunity to learn about Indian culture in the Faculty Council Room of the Faculty of Humanities. The event, which was also attended by the Indian ambassador to Hungary, was organized with the active participation of the Department of Indology and the Amrita Sher-Gil Indian Cultural Center.

The evening was opened by Máté Ittzés, associate professor and head of the Department of Indology at ELTE BTK. In his speech, he welcomed the prominent figures present, including His Excellency Anshuman Gaur, Indian Ambassador to Hungary, and Judit Mádlné Szőnyi, Vice-Rector of ELTE, and briefly outlined the program for the evening. His Excellency Anshuman Gaur then gave a welcoming speech in English, in which he emphasized the importance of Hungarian-Indian relations and expressed his delight at the event. Finally, János Babos, head of the ELTE Service Directorate, welcomed the audience on behalf of the ELTE Alumni Organization. He explained that the series was inspired by the fact that the university offers the second largest number of languages in the world, 71 in total, and expressed his gratitude to those who contributed to the realization of the evening. He also drew attention to the possibility of supporting the efforts of ELTE Alumni: generous donations expressing appreciation can be made at epay.elte.hu, after selecting the Alumni option. 

This was followed by three presentations. First, Péter Sági (BTK '09, '12, '17), assistant professor, gave a photographic account of his travels in India, then Krisztina Dávid (BTK '12), lecturer at the Department of Indology at ELTE BTK, gave a presentation entitled "System in Chaos: Hungarian-Indian Intercultural Similarities and Differences," in which she discussed Indian transportation customs, her experiences there, and how these reflect the typical Indian mentality. Mária Négyesi (BTK '76, '77), associate professor and former head of the Department of Indology at ELTE BTK, shared details with the audience about Indian holidays, primarily Dasara, Durga Puja, and Diwali.

The evening continued with a stunning performance by Panni Somi (BTK '92), Indologist, Bharatanatyam dancer, choreographer, and director of the Sivasakti Kalánanda Dance Theater. The dance performance consisted of two parts, the second of which was a story told through dance, which we first heard in words, interpreted by Krisztina Dávid. Following the performance, which was accompanied by thunderous applause, various activities were available to try out on site, such as yoga, henna painting, Indian clothing and jewelry displays and fittings, and Devanagari writing. We would like to thank the Amrita Sher-Gil Indian Cultural Center and its staff for their contribution to the latter. At the end of the event, there was an opportunity for informal conversation with each other and the performers.

Our highly popular Nations' Evenings series will continue in the next academic year. Follow our news!   

Photos: Thank you to Gábor Rusznák (ELTE KMRI) for his kind cooperation!