In Hindi, "Awaaz" means "voice" -- a voice that third-year College student Shalin Sood, founder of the a capella group Awaaz, thought was missing from the University. Sood had tried out for other a capella groups but had always envisioned starting an Indian-American a capella group at the University.
"Bollywood is so popular today," fellow Awaaz member and second-year College student Raj Shah said. "It's beginning to be known worldwide, so why not have an a capella group composed of Indian-Americans to reflect that?"
All the group members agreed it was an "appropriate" time to start the group.
Inspired by his love of singing and learning, Sood started contacting the Indian community at the University in October to seek potential members. He said he knew he needed to find students who were serious about realizing the idea because he wanted to succeed where others had failed. A few years ago, according to Sood, another Indian a capella group quickly dissolved due to a lack of commitment from its members. Sood said he was not going to let that happen.
The cross-cultural aspect of an Indian a capella group is unique among the many singing groups around Grounds. Awaaz is comprised of eight members from a wide variety of backgrounds.
"Our members represent Pakistan, Bangkok, Dubai and then a good mix of Indian-Americans from the States," Shah said.
Awaaz is joining the ranks of its Indian female counterparts who make up the six-member group, Ek taal.
"It's an Indian-American take on Indian and American music," Sood said. "Most of us grew up in the U.S., so we are taking on American music with our own interpretations as well as singing Hindi songs."
Sood emphasized teamwork as he expressed his excitement for his new group.
"I'm really excited -- although we are all different, it sounds cliché, but we have become a band of brothers," he said. "Hopefully we'll make a name for ourselves. We couldn't do it without each other."
The first Awaaz interpretation will be a spoof of the Backstreet Boys' "Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely" -- Awaaz will sing "Show Me the Meaning of Being Desi." The group also will perform the song "Faith," originally by George Michael.
"We are working songs that show a mixture between Hindi and English," second-year College student Dheeraj Sachatheva said.
Sachatheva added that each member has written his own verse in the first song to produce a sort of satire about stereotypes. The song will discuss stereotypes of Indians in the United States; for example, second-year College student Kunal Nijhawan will sing about math and sciences being popular academic choices among Indians while fourth-year Engineering student Arun Chhabra will sing about the game of cricket.
"It's something I wouldn't have normally done, it's something I don't think any of us would have pictured us doing, and that's good," Shah said.
Shah added that the group will perform both English covers of pop and hip-hop songs as well as Hindi songs, and the group aims to integrate Indian flavor into the American songs.
"We want people to be like, 'Wow, I love that song' and enjoy our interpretation of it," Shah said.
Shah said Awaaz has a lot to offer from a cultural perspective as it will change words and verses to make it its own with Indian and University influences.
Penn Masala, a 10-year-old Indian a capella group from the University of Pennsylvania that has reached national acclaim, was another influence for Awaaz, according to Shah.
Recently approved as a University Contracted Independent Organization, Awaaz has no members with formal musical training, though some have taken music classes at the University. The group practices multiple times each week for more than two hours and have received vocal training and assistance from third-year College student Kelli Harris, who is the musical director of the Silhouettes, one of the all-female a capella groups on Grounds.
Awaaz members identified time commitment for rehearsals as one of their biggest challenges. Sachatheva joked that the group runs on IST, "Indian Standard Time," a typically later schedule than what is planned. The group members' parents have warned them to keep their grades on track as they commit so much time and enthusiasm to the a capella group.
"We do it to entertain others just as much as we do it to entertain ourselves, just as for anybody else," Shah said. "We've never left a practice thinking it wasn't worth it."
Awaaz has performed at Virginia Commonwealth University and at the Apalla, an event celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month held in Newcomb Hall. The group's biggest show will be its performance at India Day April 23, which will be a day-long event to celebrate Indian culture with music, dance and food.
Members of Awaaz said they hope that with their performances they can attract more members, as two of their current members will graduate after this semester.
Shah said the group's attitude is very upbeat and that "it's all about fun."
Sood said the group is focused on surpassing other people's expectations for Awaaz.
"Everyone expects us to fall down," he said. "All these guys work hard and are excited."
Fourth-year College student Ubaid Ul-Haq captured Awaaz's focus from a different perspective.
"We want to give the crowd something that they will remember," he said.
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