Festivals are always an integral part of college life. They are like cherries on a vanilla cake, the double cheese burst of pizzas, the citric effect of a lemonade, the touch of autumnal zephyr, the sunlight of winter morning, the first showers of monsoon………………………………zada curled ho gaya , I know. Okay, let’s not make it more poetic and hectic for your giant brains; coming to the point…. This is about all you need to know of the various colours of cultural festivals at the premier IITs. So here we go…..
IIT Kharagpur
Spring fest, since 1960
Organised in: last week of January
Slogan: the true spirit of Youth
Website: www.springfest.in
Events: Dramatics, music and dance competitions, fine-arts contests, quizzes, and other literary events. Non-competition based events include Star-Talk.
Major Attractions: Perpz, the all day dance floor with a DJ, a jukebox complete and Frolic-o-Frolic.
IIT-Delhi
Rendezvous, since 1976
Organised in: last week of October
Website: www.rendezvous11.in
Events: The events are organised under four heads in Open Air Theatres.
• Spectrum is the inter-college group dance competition
• Kaleidoscope is an inter-college fashion Show & Choreography competition
• Blitzkrieg is the rock band competition followed by a professional performance by a popular band
• Dhoom is the Indian musical performance by renowned artistes
IIT- Mumbai
Mood Indigo, since 1971
Organised in: end of December
Website: www.moodi.org
Events: The events are organised under four heads.
• Pronites are concerts or Pro-shows where musical programmes of different genre like rock, classical, sufi, folk and Bollywood are organised. National and international artists perform on this stage.
• Competitions: In this category, competitions on music, dance, dramatics, literary arts, fine arts and speaking are organised. This section has more of a cultural tinge to it.
• Horizons: Fashion shows, magic shows, stunt shows, panel discussions and other unique and unconventional events and workshops mark this category.
• Informals: It caters to the crowd that assembles on this occasion. Funny, wacky and spontaneous events along with thrilling adventure sports are organised in this section.
IIT- Guwahati
Alcheringa, since 1996
Organised in: January-February
Website: www.alcheringa.in
Events: Various kinds of events are organised in this section. They are divided into different methodical modules. It includes dance, music, class Apart, drama, shades (Fine arts module), Alfaaz (Literary module), quiz, Fun n Masti (informal events), Alcher online and sports module.
Besides this, there is a musical festival programme that goes by the name Pronites. It is held on all the four nights. There are four categories each performed on different nights. They are: “Saaz” – The classical night, “Blitzkrieg” – Expect anything, “Crescendo” – The popular night and Juggernaut – The rock night.
IIT- Kanpur
Antaragni, since 1966
Organised in: January-February
Website: www.antaragni.in
Events: Various kinds of events are organised in Antaragni in different categories.
• India Inspired: Intellectually and politically inclined, this is a platform for discussing national issues and policies.
• Kavi Sammelan: As the name suggests, this is an event where poets assemble to showcase their poetic brilliance and flair.
• Model United Nations: This is a new event added in 2010 in which solutions are proposed for global issues after deliberation and consultation.
• Competitions: Different types of competitions in dance, dramatics, fine arts, film and photography, and musicals are conducted. Apart from this, debates, discussions, word games and writing contests are also organised.
• Workshops and Talks: Workshops on various topics such as film making, western dance, etc. are organised by eminent experts. It has seen participation from people like Mahesh Bhatt, and Subhash Ghai.
• Professional shows: In this category, musical shows by the name Prima Nocte, Synchronicity and Blitzkrieg are organised. India Haat showcases the rich cultural heritage of different states where performers represent their art and culture. Ritambhara, is a fashion show with a difference. It promotes upcoming talents in the field of designing and modelling.
IIT- Madras
Saarang, since 1974
Organised in: January (Last weekend)
Website: www.saarang.org
Events: The starting point is a classical night superseded by the Choreo night, the Light Music night and the rock concert. More than fifty events are organised in Saarang.
• Lectures and performances: Reputed national and international personalities participate and enlighten the audience with their lectures and shows.
• Competitions: Painting, drawing, elocution, quizzes, Sudoku and various other interesting competitions are organised in which students participate from all over India.
• Professional shows: Under this category , musical nights of different genre are held under the names of Rock Show, Classical Night, Popular Night.
IT- BHU
Kashiyatra, since 1982
Organised in: February
Website: itbhu.ac.in/gymkhana/kashiyatra12/
Events: Kashiyatra has a variety of events under different names where students from all over India showcase their talent.
• Natraj: The dance event in which different types of dances ranging from western solo to duet are performed.
• Bandish: Musical competition involving various genre of music like solo song, instrumental event,etc.
• Toolika: Painting and sketching competition having different categories like Mehndi, rangoli, claymodelling, tattoomodelling,etc.
• Samvad: It is the platform for showcasing your oratory skills. Debates, extempoes are held in this category.
• Abhinay: Mono acts, theatres, Nukkad events and mimes are organised.
• Crosswindz: An inter-college festival which concludes with the performance of a professional rock band.
IIT-Roorkee
Tarang
Organised in: March
Events: A wide range of events from dramatics, choreography, workshops, music competitions are organised in Tarang.