The opening scenes of Legally Blonde, the movie about a quintessential sorority queen, are awash in shades of pink. Pink and blonde.

Very blonde.

Well, move over, Delta Nu. A new wave of brown-haired women is taking over the sorority scene with a range of options for South Asians—social sororities to service sororities and everything in between. Just ten years ago, the concept of the South Asian sorority didn't even exist, but today there is an array of sorority options to fit any Greek-minded South Asian woman. And they all had their start in the Lone Star State.

A sorority of their own
When University of Texas-Austin graduate Mitzi Chamakala started college, she noticed a preponderance of campus Greek organizations centered around various ethnicities. In the 80s, East Asian sororities gained popularity, and a wave of Hispanic sororities soon followed. By the time the 90s rolled around, "it was South Asians' turn," says Chamakala. Since many South Asian women were joining East Asian sororities, Chamakala and others realized "there was a need for something—maybe people aren't finding what they're looking for."

So in November 1998, she partnered with a group of other South Asian women at U-T to create a group tailor-made for themselves—and the Kappa Phi Gamma sorority was born. Chamakala marvels at the circumstances that brought the founding members together. "Maybe it was luck or fate," she muses. She admits she only knew two of the 27 women who started the group, so it was important for them to bond. "We went on a sisterhood retreat ... We realized we were a very large group and we didn't know each other well," she recalls. Through bonding and working together, they finally formed an executive board in April. A constitution outlining "what we stand for, what are we here to do and how we tie it to our culture" soon followed. The primarily social sorority now has seven chapters around the country.

But Kappa Phi Gamma wasn't the only Texas-grown phenomenon. Just 160 miles away, 17 South Asian women at the University of Houston had big plans of their own. One month after Kappa Phi Gamma was formed, the Delta Phi Omega sorority came to life with the goal of promoting "the advancement of South Asian women." Built on its five pillars of sisterhood, respect, loyalty, honesty and friendship, DPhiO bills itself both as a social and service sorority. With a total of fourteen chapters—ranging from Washington state to Oklahoma—across the country, today Delta Phi Omega is the largest South Asian sorority around.

Though Texas seems to be a breeding ground for the South Asian sorority, a group of women at Texas A&M University were not convinced existing sororities offered what they were seeking. So on October 1, 1999, they formed Delta Kappa Delta. "We looked at all types of sororities, not just South Asian—but we did want to stress our culture," says alumna and national president Sylvia Kalluvilayil. "They [the founding mothers] yearned for something that gave back to their culture and their community. They wanted to help those who were unfortunate around them as well as abroad in South Asia. Therefore, the concept bloomed of a service sorority enriched in culture and rich in community service." Delta Kappa Delta centers wholly around service, and its four chapters around the country require 21 to 25 hours of "pure service"—that is, hours devoted to service work, not sorority work—each semester.

I pledge allegiance
After these three sororities took hold on their founding campuses, they began to attract larger audiences. 2004 graduate Khati Bandali brought Kappa Phi Gamma to Baylor University. "When I went to Baylor, I wanted to be part of a sorority, but I couldn't find one that actually fit who I was. I'd known one of the founders [of the founding chapter in Austin] and I called her up," she recalls. After gathering together a group of like-minded women, Bandali and company headed to Austin to visit the founding chapter. "We went to rush and to interview, and then we started the new member program. After that, we were considered a colony." All new Kappa Phi Gamma branches start out as colonies—and then it's up to them to prove to the national board that they have what it takes to attain chapter status.

Delta Kappa Delta doesn't focus as much on expansion. Kalluvilayil says, "All of our expansions have been [initiated by] people who heard about us and approached us. We don't actively go out to a school. If we meet someone, we'll tell them about us. We like to have the interest in us initially because it's a lot better—you want someone who is looking for that. We do tell them there are other South Asian sororities so they can find what they're looking for."

And South Asian sororities are no exception to the ubiquitous "rush" frenzy that pervades college campuses each fall. Kappa Phi Gamma relies on the rush process to find women who exhibit the sorority's eight ideals: leadership, scholarship, sisterhood, service, womanhood, culture and betterment of self. Rush week gives the sorority a chance to screen potential members—but the screening isn't one-sided: Potential pledges get the information they need to decide whether the sorority is a good fit. Bandali says the sorority works best when all types of women are part of the make-up. "We look for well-rounded people—it doesn't matter what you look like, how smart you are, whether you like to party. We want all sorts of people. We want leaders, people to be strong and able to take the sorority to greater heights." Chamakala adds that Kappa Phi Gamma women range from "girls running marathons in Hawaii for charity to girls who are politically active."

Service through sisterhood
While not every South Asian sorority sister is running a marathon for charity, service is a key component of the three sororities' activities. Delta Kappa Delta emphasizes service as a reason for the group's existence, and its focus on childhood abuse prevention actually began with a trip to India. In December 1999, founding mother Sheila Krishnan traveled to India to visit ashrams (shelters) housing young children. Krishnan hoped to identify some ashrams to which Delta Kappa Delta could donate clothes and other items. After encountering numerous abandoned and hungry children, she was determined to do something even greater to help. She shared her experiences with other members, and the group agreed to make the issue its focus.

"We go into the boys and girls clubs and talk to the different kids [about] the kind of things strangers do; we educate little kids about people they don't know. It's in all kinds of forms, physical, mental—mentoring kids is a big thing," says Kalluvilayil. But the group isn't limited in its scope: "The second aspect of our service is education. Teaching about your culture, [or] teaching at after-school programs, mentoring, educating adults about the signs of child abuse. We do all types of seminars and we call in professionals to teach parents how to not take stress out on the kids. And the third part is regular service, like cleaning a park or going to a nursing home."

Delta Kappa Delta takes its service mentality one step further by committing to serve the image of South Asian women. The sorority does not "host parties or sponsor events that may gain profit from the purchase of alcoholic beverages ... sisters do not wear letters when consuming, purchasing or possessing alcoholic beverages because we feel it goes against what our organization stands for," says Kalluvilayil. "It's something we all [the national founding mothers] agreed on. We wanted something that really promoted South Asian women. What one person does affects the whole sorority. Sometimes when people drink, they're not in their best form. We know the meaning behind our letters, and we don't want to disrespect that or each other. Also, because our philanthropy is childhood abuse prevention, a lot of abuse does occur when people are under the influence [of alcohol], and it would be kind of awkward to get our profits form the sale of alcohol and then give the profits back to a philanthropy that focuses on childhood abuse awareness and prevention."

Delta Phi Omega also hopes to help the children of the world. Monica Sethi, a University of Maryland senior, says, "The sorority is dedicated to promoting children's literacy around the world by raising money for organizations that help underprivileged children." DPhiO regularly sponsors Pratham, an organization promoting children's literacy and education throughout India. During its Literacy through Unity weeks at chapters nationwide, DPhiO raised more than $7,000 for the organization. Mital Brahmbatt, University of Houstan graduate and DPhiO founding member, believes that the community work has had an impact. "Through all of my community service work, it solidified to me that my passion is helping others and being an advocate for children who have no voice."

Kappa Phi Gamma chose a service focus that hits a little closer to home. When the founding mothers got together at one of their first sisterhood retreats, they found that "every single one of us had been affected by cancer," recalls Chamakala. So the group chose cancer awareness as its philanthropy focus, and every chapter and colony holds an awareness week to raise money for cancer. Some chapters also do other service projects—Bandali notes that each Thanksgiving the Baylor chapter holds a canned food drive, while twice a week the sisters volunteer at a family abuse center.

The bond that keeps on giving
Of course, sorority members certainly gain from their experiences. Current DPhiO Alpha chapter president Komal Sidhu says her experience has given her lifelong confidence. "When I was a freshman at the University of Houston, I cringed at the thought of having to speak to someone I didn't know, but now as president I talk to people I don't know all the time." Keerthy Pulijal, U-T Austin senior, adds, "DPhiO gives you life experience. You can learn everything form dealing with people to writing proposals to public speaking to being a good leader and a good team member."

Madhuri Patel, vice president of the Houston DPhiO chapter, agrees. "When I first moved here, I was a shy girl from a small town in East Texas. DPhiO has brought out the shyness in me, it has broadened my communication skills, it has given me a great opportunity to meet various people in different organizations."

And the Greek system continues to benefit members long after they've left campus. Chamakala says the built-in networking system is invaluable. "As an alumna I have so many resources—I [can] look [other sorority women] up on our contact list and you automatically have that bond." Amy Kadakia, a Houston DPhiO alum, agrees. "Being in a sorority that is nationwide, I can go to a different city and not have to worry about having a place to stay or having someone show me around. I know my sisters will be right there for me." She also believes that the sorority has given her confidence: "I am able to speak my mind about things when I would hold back before. I've learned that if you want to be heard, you have to speak up!"

Though most sorority women are quick to list the advantages of Greek life, many are frustrated by the stereotypes they face. Deepu Madduri, a University of Oklahoma alumna and DPhiO sister, notes, "Everyone associates sororities with all partying, drinking, and just not good things ... but only after you are part of something do you realize its true value, how much you can learn from it and how it can benefit you."

Of course, much of that true value is in the lifelong friendships sorority sisters forge. Saira Rabbani, a junior neurobiology major at U-T Austin, states, "My closest friends are in DPhiO. I met them while pledging and these girls will be my future bridesmaids and godmothers to my kids ... we have coast to coast sisterhood."