In an effort to bring a community together with their newest project, two friends, one still searching for a place in his community, the other deeply rooted in his, will hold an open photo shoot Saturday at JR’s Bar and Grill in Dallas.

“Colors of Diversity,” the collaborative efforts of alumni Tracy Nanthavongsa and Melvin Varughese, is based on the Hindu religious spring festival Holi, but with an artistic message: “Unity among the human race.”

During the shoot, participants’ faces and clothing will be sprayed with water and then covered with a pallet of different colored powder. Nanthavongsa said he will photograph people as singles or in groups of two to five. Each person photographed will receive a free print.

The concept behind the two friends’ project comes from Varughese’s background. Born in Kuwait with South Indian roots, Varughese, the project’s creative director, recalled how the idea of “Colors of Diversity” evolved. He said he first envisioned a community gathering to celebrate a South Indian Custom called Onam.

Varughese described how Onam shows equality among a community — the focal point of the photo shoot.

“During lunch on Onam, South Indians eat off of banana leaves and everyone is sitting on the floor. No one is sitting in chairs or anything,” he said. “Everyone eats from the banana leaves and gets the same amount of food — even the adults. It’s a symbolic way of saying everyone is equal, eating amongst each other. And I liked that.”

Varughese said the logistical planning for an event like Onam is difficult, especially while taking prerequisite classes for his future in medical school. Still, he wanted to organize an event to bring a community together. And he wanted to do it soon.

Looking to his South Indian roots again, Varughese recalled another community gathering — Holi, a Hindu tradition.

“As I continued to research about it, I found it’s not really just a religious thing,” he said. “It’s a social thing. Everyone would throw colored powders and become a crazy, psychedelic creation. So no one is perfect. Everyone is flawed, but it’s beautiful and it shows unity.”

So he took the concept to Nanthavongsa, a Dallas fashion photographer, who was looking for a new photo project at about the same time. From that point, the project began to take shape.

“I had an idea of wanting to do the same type of project,” Nanthavongsa said. “Then Melvin called me with the idea of Holi, and I go, ‘Oh my God! If we can turn this into a photo concept it will be amazing.’ ”

Nanthavongsa said he hopes taking the traditional concept of Holi and turning it into an artistic message will bring a community together.

“Whether you’re gay, straight, a woman, a male, people that have been abused, we just want people to come together and not be discriminated against or judged on the color of your skin or your sexual orientation,” he said.

Before they could begin conceptualizing their efforts though, Varughese and Nanthavongsa had to find a venue willing to host the photo shoot. After looking into several locations, Nanthavongsa said JR’s Bar and Grill agreed to let them use the upstairs bar.

Chris Bengston, Caven Enterprises on-sight events coordinator, which owns JR’s, said she sees the photo shoot as an opportunity to make an impact.

“I think anytime you can visually impact people, you have a better chance of getting your point across,” Bengston said. “I believe the old saying, ‘A picture is worth a 1,000 words,’ is a very true statement. Look at the impact the

NOH8 campaign has had all across America. I was lucky enough to be part of the NOH8 photo shoot and I am very proud of that. Standing up for something through pictures allows an individual to speak loudly but in a very silent manner.”

NOH8, meant to read “no hate,” is a silent protest campaign against California’s Proposition Eight, which restricts homosexual couples from marrying.

Chemistry freshman Van Khounvivongsy will attend the event. He said he wants get behind what the photo project stands for.

“What appealed to me was how it is based off of the Holi festival and the whole idea of unifying everyone and removing the idea of the a caste system,” he said.

Like the artist friends’ search for a venue, Varughese said he’s still searching for a community to accept him. What makes this search more difficult is his personal struggle with coming out to his family and his South Indian community.

“I’ve always thought about making friends with other people in my community, but I would always put myself back in the closet,” he said. “[Being gay], it’s kind of taboo with some Indian communities.”

He said this is why he sees Saturday’s event as a positive move in the right direction for him and anyone searching for their place in any community.

“At the event, there’s going to be so many different type of people there and so many different stories,” Varughese said. “Coming to the event will have such a great impact.”