A cappella group Astha will hold their fall concert “A Concert of Cornucopious Proportions” on Nov. 6.

Astha, which formed five years ago, started as a Hindi a cappella group with songs from Bollywood. Their name means “faith” in Hindi.
Today, it is still an a cappella group, but it now incorporates pop songs into their Bollywood influence.

“When you do popular song from Bollywood, you are almost guaranteed people know it,” senior Sakshi Mathur said. She is the president for the group. This is her fourth year as a member.

“You would be surprised everything happens to magically work out,” Mathur said of the mix of pop and Bollywood music.

After starting with only seven members, Astha has grown to 13 performing this semester with one member abroad, the largest it has ever been. Mathur remembers when Astha was one-year-old, and no one really knew what it was. Today this is not the case.

“I love how we are so loved,” Mathur said.

The group has two major performances a year: one in the fall and one in the spring. They also perform with Beyond All Reason and Bare Naked Statues and at events for the Indian Student Association.

“I just want us to continue to be as amazing-sounding as we are this year,” Mathur said. “We have so many talented people.”

Freshman Eleanor Humphrey came to Saint Louis University and knew she wanted to sing in a co-ed group. She thought that Astha was the most interesting. Although she didn’t have any previous Bollywood influence, Humphrey said she likes how she is always learning in Astha.

“This is probably the most fun thing I’m involved in,” Humphrey said.

Astha’s “Concert of Cornucopious Proportions” will begin at 7 p.m. on Nov. 6. Tickets are $5 in advance and $7 at the door. Proceeds will go toward the group’s spring competition at the University of Iowa.