Ganeshotsav captivates German students

Thirteen students from Germany are in the city to get introduced to the culture and socio-economic situation in India. While the potholes in Pune irked them, they were fascinated by the Ganeshotsav. Coming from various fields like business, architecture, law, fashion designing and sociology, these students are part of the German academic exchange service — understanding India programme of Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD).

The initiative is to strengthen academic exchange between India and Germany by kindling interest among German students and graduates of all disciplines to study or carry out research in India. They came to Pune on September 1 and will be in the city till October 23.

Timm Neu, a lawyer, said the kind of fervour seen during Ganeshotsav is rare in Germany. "People are still very close to religion in India. The dance and drum groups during the procession were amazing. We get to see this kind of enthusiasm only at football matches or during carnivals in Germany," he said.

He was also surprised how a handful of policemen controlled the huge crowd during the festival. However, pollution and potholes on the roads irked Antonia Dietsche, a tax consultant. "The garbage heaps lying on roadsides did not make a pleasant picture," she said, "But you have a variety of dishes and sweets. I liked the Indian food."

The students said Bollywood films were quite popular in their country and most of them liked Shah Rukh Khan. A few of them had joined classes in the city to learn Bollywood steps.

Olga-Maria Hallemann said, "Some of us are learning yoga and classical dances like Kathak and Bharatnatyam in private classes, although our schedule is quite tight."

The group also includes Michael Brinkschroder, Martina Brose, Julia Ehrenreich, Kerstin Grabner, Fabian Hille, Ina Migos, Stefanie Schreiber, Katja Schubert, Michael Kuchler and Rhena Tebmann.

These highly qualified graduates of various disciplines are on a fully funded DAAD scholarship to study various aspects of India such as culture, philosophy, politics, economics and Indian society. The programme includes two months preparatory course followed by six-month internships in various companies and organisations in their respective fields in different parts of India.

At the end of the preparatory course on October 23 in Pune, the students will leave for internship to various parts of India.

The programme, the fourth to be held in Pune, is conducted in cooperation with Symbiosis International University this year. It also includes lectures by experts on various topics and industrial visits, and visits to Hiware Bazar and Ajanta caves. The group of 13 German students on the Symbiosis campus on Monday