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DU Beat in conversation with Arjun Kapoor and Alia Bhatt for 2 States

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From talking about their characters and relationships to the movie as an adaptation of Chetan Bhagat’s novel, the star cast of the movie 2 States, Arjun Kapoor and Alia Bhatt recently sat down with our correspondent.  Take a look at them talk about their experience of shooting  in IIM Ahmedabad, their chance to be students once again and what they enjoyed the most as students. Arjun also tells us how he is envious of actor Varun Dhawan and wants to do comic roles in the future.

Presenting Arjun Kapoor and Alia Bhatt in conversation with our correspondent Iresh Gupta.

Iresh : Tell us something about your character Krish, and in what ways could you relate to it? And what is it that the students will love about the movie and the character?

Arjun : I identified a lot with Krish in terms of emotional quotient, not because he is Punjabi or I am Punjabi, but there is a lot more to it. He is somebody who doesn’t show his emotions. He has a certain take on life. He is very a responsible kid. There is a certain selfless nature. Whatever he does is for his mother. He is brought up properly with family values. There is a certain understanding that he has developed to keep his mother happy and that is something that I completely related to. For a 23-24 year old kid, he hasn’t lost his way, though there have been ups and down in his life. He is a sorted out kid. So the viewers also will be able to relate to the character fully, I suppose.

Iresh: Alia, how was Ananya for you as a character?

Alia : Ananya is much more mature than I am. She is very active with her thoughts and her intelligence is the reason behind it. She is very sensitive to the people she loves. I relate to her ideas. She has an opinion and she puts it forward. The character also thinks that she is right 90% of the times. And when it comes to Krish she would go on her way to convince her parents. And also, in many ways she was very inspiring for me as a woman.

Iresh : The book by Chetan has done really well and is quite popular, especially among young people and students. Has that built up any pressure for you two?

Arjun : It didn’t actually, till I met you all or met all his readers because I haven’t read the book. They all made me realize the unprecedented love the Chetan novel has. This hit me when our first trailer came out; we had six million hits which according to Dharma Productions, was the highest for any Dharma movie till date. Then we realized the expectation the film carries for age groups especially young people, as you say.

Iresh : Alia what do you think? How difficult is it to maintain the originality when a movie becomes an adaptation of a book?

Alia : See, when I hadn’t read the book I was little apprehensive about the fact that this book will be made into a movie. But when I read the adaptation, I read the book, I was happy. After watching the movie now, I feel that the basic skeleton of the book is there. The emotions are in place. Cinematic liberty is what we took but at the end of the day the emotion remains the same.

Iresh : Alia, you have been a student before for Student Of The Year. So how was it this time for 2 States?

Alia : This movie has characters of more older students, it is not high school. The movie is about a relationship that we develop while we are in college. But it was fun working and shooting in a campus.

Iresh : Arjun, any research that you undertook to be a student after different genre of roles you did in the past?

Arjun : I have grown up from being 17 to 25 and I was pretty alert as a student with whatever studies I did then. No research was required as such but there was this body language that Abhishek (Verman) wanted for this character as a director. I had to retain that no matter what I am doing as student in the film.

Iresh : How was it shooting in the campus of IIM-Ahmedabad? Was it among the college students?

Arjun : It was really nice to go back to the college. I enjoyed that experience. I enjoyed shooting in IIM, it is a fantastic campus. And it made much easier for us to believe that we are college students because college poora khaali tha, chutti ke time par gye the. We were there last April for shooting. We used to wake up in the morning, come to college, work whole day and go back. So it was a really cool experience.

Iresh : Alia,  how was it working at IIM-A for you?

Alia : It was a great experience. Even when Chetan came to the sets, he was quite happy for the fact that we got IIM-Ahmedabad as the campus which he had visualized in the book. It reminded him of his days in the college with his wife. For us, that was a big thing.

Iresh: Arjun what is that you enjoyed the most as a student?

Arjun : I got to dress well, that is what I enjoyed the most in the film. I got to wear clothes that I would wear in normal life and roam around. I played my age, more or less. I was allowed to dress how I would want to dress. When I say that I could relate to the boy, the sensibility and his aesthetics, the jeans, the shoes, the cargoes, the glasses I wear and the haircut I got. I would like to get rid of this (points towards his present look) for quite some time. So I liked all those changes that happened to me. It was a nice refreshing change.

Iresh : Arjun, when you look at all these movies coming today, what is the genre you would like to do or one director you would want to work with?

Arjun : I would love to do comic roles. I am really envious of Varun Dhawan. Really, the kind of genre that is taken up by David Dhawan, the movies he makes, is something that I would like to do.

Iresh : You both have been to Delhi University before for promotions. So how was the experience? And one last message for our readers?

Alia : We have got lots of love from the age group that you cater to. It is amazing to see how the young generation that is our own generation relates to and also appreciates our work. So all of you out there, please go watch 2 States, One love! It is a movie for everyone. It is coming out on 18th April. Do watch!

Image Courtesy: Mehr Gill for DU Beat

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DU Dhaba

Cafe Kaffeine: The place with fun, food and live band music

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Kaffeine – Café, Bar and Grill located at 50-A, first floor, is a small hidden cafe that one might come across as he strolls through  the by-lanes of Hauz Khas Village to hang around with a group of friends or for a casual chat over a cup of coffee. Though it appears dark and shady from outside, Kaffeine is a place to experience some live music and variety of food with losing out on money almost directly proportional to the benefits received.

If you wish to get a feel of some leisurely shack in Goa, this can be the place to visit. With a very cozy atmosphere, the place has wooden decoration and furniture. It provides a great ambiance with live music in the evening during all days of the week which attracts crowd of all age groups. Also, with different music bands performing every day, the place won’t bore you by offering mere food. A person visiting the place alone could enjoy as much for the band sits right among the audience at a little distance. Sufi music by the fresh musicians dazzles you more than the beer at times.

Singer Smruti Jalpur and other members of the live band entertaining the visitors at Kaffeine, Hauz Khas Village.
Image Courtesy – Aditya Remy Shah

As the place is really small, it generally tends to get overcrowded. But at the same time it provides you the private place in the corner where you can sit with a book or let the host indulge you in a conversation. The cafe also accommodates the guests in an open area right to be in sync with the lively village.

With a different taste of food, the place is ideal to have a mug of beer with a friend. Famous for their Italian cuisine, the restaurant provides all types of food ranging from different kinds of salads to a proper meal. It has a different menu for breakfast and is very famous for its Tandoori platter. Non-vegetarian dishes are demanded more by the customers but Kaffeine doesn’t disappoint veggie lovers either.

A small drawback lies in not having a great variety of desserts. But then there is less, with no mess. A recommended late night place for youngsters, it offers to serve till  1 A.M. during the night. The royal treatment  extended towards the guests is priceless, and the smiling staff shall never really disappoint you.


Feature Image Credits : plus.google.com

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Campus Central

Photo talks in North Campus – Youth Photography Festival

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The Education Tree initiated Youth Photography Festival in New Delhi starting 29th March for four days. The inauguration for the festival was held at DLF Place, Saket on 29th March which was followed by Photo Treasure Hunt. A live photo booth was set up for the first day as well. Day 2 at Youth Photography Festival had an early morning photo-walk at Chandni Chowk where the photographers captured the real essence of tradition Dilli. Second day also witnessed a photo exhibition and a jam session at DLF Place.

For the last two days, the festival moved on to the North Campus, Delhi University for photography talks by experienced and young photo artists. The artist talks were held at Kirori Mal College and Ramjas College on 31st March and 1st April respectively.

It is most important to understand your own photographs: S.Paul

S.Paul, India’s most published and awarded photographer internationally shared his personal experiences in the field of photography during the photo talk on 31st March at Kirori Mal College. Talking about cameras and photographs, Mr Paul also displayed his work for the audience on screen, wherein he was explaining the reference and relevance of each photograph. His display collection mainly revolved around the theme “trees”, which denoted The Education Tree, organizers of Youth Photography Festival.

Mr. Paul during his 2 hour session created an interactive environment in the chat room. He was cracking light jokes to which the visitors were all praises for the photographer. The artist was talking in Hindi and answering queries of photographers who had come to attend the photo talk.

S paul

He stressed on the fact that a photographer should understand his own work. “Being a good photographer is not that difficult, but being a good analyst is must”, he said. Mr Paul also felt that if someone cannot explain what he or she has clicked, that person is not a good photographer. He also talked about various competitors and friends when he decided to choose photography as a career and discussed pictures subject wise like community, nature, fashion among others.

On being questioned about how should one choose his subject for photography, S. Paul said, “Let us take street shooting, for example. In your first visit do not take the camera along. Studying the culture of street is must, knowing what happens when and where is necessary for a photographer. If one happens to understand this, then take your camera to shoot your subject.”

Photographer can’t afford to miss a shot: P. Kumar

P. Kumar is a wildlife photographer and a teacher of zoology at Hans Raj College, Delhi University. He talked about how a photographer should learn composition to be good at what he wants to be. He dictated various incidents of his life associated with the field of photography. He displayed his wildlife works on the screen and explained the story behind each picture. His collection included photographs from wildlife sanctuaries, zoos and jungles. The screen also displayed works which ranged from seas to mountains and from cities to villages.

Kumar based his lecture on the four P’s – Passion, Purpose, Photography and Prayer. He associated the photographers with the elements of photography that are faith, prayer and conviction. He also talked about abilities of a photographer that can go waste if there is lack of these elements.

P. Kumar

P. Kumar displayed his pictures with Anurag Kashyap and Abhinav Kashyap (alumnus of Hans Raj College) and talked about his heroes. Displaying magazine covers on which his pictures were featured, he says, “Photography needs an element of desperation. Until and unless you are dying to click something, that won’t be shot well.” He mentioned how the kind of camera isn’t important, but the style is. “You will have a big camera and a heavy tripod, you will take 20 minutes to set up and you will miss the shot. In photography, one can not afford to miss a shot. If he or she does, he is not a photographer”, he adds.

A little was also discussed about structured system created for the photographers where they do mainstream photography and do not understand the meaning behind it. Before ending the session he threw some light on conceptual imagery and played a few videos shot by him.

It depends on what part of your work you wish to show: Shiv Ahuja

Shiv Ahuja is a young music photographer who based his talk in Ramjas College on 1st April. Shiv, who is a musician himself developed an interest for photography. He also shared his experiences with the bands he used to shoot and the concerts he covered as a photographer. Ahuja highlighted his relations with Raghu Dixit and narrated the story of how he happened to be the photographer of his band.

As a photographer, Shiv says that he loves to travel. “Travel is one thing I can not compromise on. When I travel or go places for a show, in one concert I click around 500 pictures, but out of them not every picture is a great picture. It depends on what you want to show to the world”, he adds. So he gave the photographers tips about ‘how to be smart while creating portfolios.’

Shiv Ahuja Session

When asked a question about who does he keep in mind while clicking a photograph, the reader (magazines) or the subject (the musician) or his own interest, Shiv answers that it is the final reader who is always in mind. “I am clicking for a magazine. So what matters is what the publisher will like and if published what the public will like.”

Deaf artists get no exposure : Pintoo Kumar

Last speaker for the photography festival was Pintoo Kumar. Pintoo is a deaf photographer associated with Atulya Kala, an organization that works for deaf people. Pintoo through his translator, Smriti told everyone that he is an orphan who was born in Calcutta. He tells about the problems he faced in the school/university both in terms of finance and treatment. “Life for us is a copy paste game”

Pintoo Kumar

“I love capturing moments. I love telling stories about the culture through my pictures”, says Pintoo. Instead of displaying his photography works on screen, he displayed pictures of those deaf and dumb artists who face the same problems as him but who made made something meaningful out of their lives. Photographs of a deaf writer, another deaf artist, a deaf classical dancer, a deaf and mute tea vendor from Delhi and a picture of him were displayed on the screen. He expressed how all of them are not given opportunities and are given excuses of not being equally able.

Pintoo also displayed four photos which pointed out the sign language for four letters of the word ‘deaf’. Pintoo sets out to understand and engage with his surrounding and transcend the barriers of communication. He was appreciated by everyone by raising the hands, which is a sign language for clapping.

With this the Youth Photography Festival #YPF came to an end.

Image Credit : The Education Tree

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Hans Raj College

Development and Internships: Entrepreneurship Summit by Enactus Hans Raj

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Enactus Hans Raj organized its annual Entrepreneurship Summit on 2nd April. The event had speaker sessions on personality development for girls and social responsibility. A management training workshop was also held along with the much highlighted Internship Fair 2014.

Opening Ceremony

The opening ceremony for the summit was held in the college auditorium. The guests and dignitaries for the event were Mr. Anshul Gupta, founder of Goonj; Mr. Shakun Khanna, Strategic Management consultant, IBM; Ms. Shuchi Soni, Programme Manager from Enactus India (North), Mr. V.K Khwatra, Principal of the college and Ms. Sonal Gupta, ECA Convenor.

The event began with the lamp lighting ceremony by all the guests which was followed by honouring them for presiding over for the summit. V.K Khwatra then delivered a speech for all the young entrepreneurs. “What matters the most is personality. Today you all are here to learn entrepreneurship and get jobs and internships. What matters more than content of your resume is how you present yourself for that job”, he remarked.

The Entrepreneurship Summit was then declared open by Shrey Saxena, President at Enactus Hans Raj. This was followed by Vedika Dabriwal, Vice President and Enactus’s General Secretary, Harshita Muraka elaborated about the projects of Hans Raj Enactus for the year that were Project Swaad, Project Mithaas and Project Lekhni. A 10 minute video presentation revolving around Enactus Hans Raj, its projects, its members and appreciation received was played.

 ‘Mirror image of present India’ presented by Guest Speaker, Anshu Gupta

Mr. Anshu Gupta, Founder of Goonj was the Guest Speaker for the day. Goonj is an NGO which works to ‘make clothes a matter of concern’. Goonj collects underutilized clothes and other materials from urban homes, and uses them as resources for the poor.  Apart from clothes Goonj’s collection include things like shoes, toys, books, electronic gadgets, furniture, utensils and other urban waste.

Mr. Gupta during his session portrayed the ‘mirror image of present India’ in terms of social activities and tried to define norms of the social section. His speech included many questions that still remain unanswered as per him. “Harr kali sadak par hum toll tax kyun dete hain?”, “Harr ek ghar pe purifier kyun lagana padta hai?”

The discussion also included his comments about safety of girls. “Hum apni behen ko ghar par akela kyun ni chorh sakte?” He talked about the infamous Dehi bus gang rape as well. “Janta boht kam jaanti hai. Asli chor toh hum log hain. 500 waale challan ko 100 rupaye ki rishwat se nipta dete hain. 400 ki chori toh ek insaan ek challan pe kar leta hai.” Anshu pointed out the fact that citizens unnecessarily blame the police and the government. He talked about subsidies and health situation in the country. His speech had some youth connect where he rightly mentioned that, “Internships toh tum log sirf certificate ke liye karte ho. Motive aur toh koi hshamai hi nahi.”

The audience, which was a gathering of around 500 people, was all ears to what Anshu had to say. His speech was acknowledged by a standing ovation from everybody in the auditorium. This was followed by a question answer round. Samaksh Gupta says, “His speech was well drafted and he was inspiring and mesmerising. His startling facts could inspire anyone to move out of their comfort zone to extend a hand for helping.”

Personality development workshop for girls by Suditi Bhadauria

A personality and confidence building workshop was organized by Veet as a part of the summit exclusively for girls. The workshop was addressed by Suditi Bhadauria, a behavioural corporate trainer.

Her interactive session encouraged full participation in the learning process which led to automatic modification of the behaviours. Divya says, “Her session gave us a lively outlook to the world. Our confidence is surely boosted.” Other girls in the session also felt that Suditi had the capability to mentor the group and her words will have a lasting effect. In her words, “Girls should not doubt themselves and think of themselves as future leaders.”

 

Management Training Workshop by Shakun Khanna

Mr. Gupta’s session was followed by a management training workshop by Mr Shakun Khanna who inspired the budding entrepreneurs to be top notch professionals. He pointed out that the problem of the present generation is to make choices. “It is not about survival. It is more about improvement”, he says. He talked about how one should focus on his or her strengths and develop them but also said that it is important to fix your weaknesses to be successful.

According to him hard work is an important factor but he adds that, “Hard work may not take you to the word class levels.” Talent, for him is the most important factor. He stressed on the fact that talent leads to success and one should have that sense of rhythm in entrepreneurship.

Divya Puri, who attended the workshop says, “His speech was a myth buster. As youngsters, we had a lot of misconceptions in our mind related to business and facts.” What appealed a lot to students there was that Mr. Khanna was not trying to forcefully make the students believe in business and entrepreneurship. He said, “Being an entrepreneur is not the only way to achieve your dreams. Follow what you like and you will be on the top.”

Think Business – The B-Plan Competition

The Summit also organized a business plan competition. Through the preliminary round, three finalists were selected who presented their business plan in front of the judges for ten minutes. Along with the business plan, the competition also consisted of guesstimates. Ayush Kashri from Maharaja Agarsen College won the competition. His idea of collecting flowers offered to various temples and then selling it to various companies to make perfumes and other cosmetics was chosen as the best idea.

Internship Fair 2014

The highlight of the Summit was the Internship Fair. From 30 companies last year, this time the fair witnessed 60 companies giving out internships to almost 500 candidates. Companies like Axsiom, Mindworkzz, Sawrneempropmart.com, Avanti (NGO), School of Inspired Leadership (SOIL), Pravah (NGO) among many more had put up their stalls. The fair saw the candidates moving from one stall to other submitting their resumes and talking about the job profile.

The fair also had new start ups being launched. Ankit Bagga, co-founder of EDZY says, “We as a start up got an overwhelming response in terms of footfall. We also got applications from many DU students.” The fair provided internships for all fields like marketing, management, social entrepreneurship, to name a few.

Shikha Maheshwari, a candidate who applied for internships says, “The fair offered a lot of choices and opportunities. There were lot of companies especially for the field I wanted to apply. It was very well organized.” With the fair, this year’s edition of Entrepreneurship Summit by Enactus Hans Raj came to an end.

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Kirorimal College

Star cast of Main Tera Hero visits KMC

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For the post festival celebrations of Renaissance – the annual cultural fest of Kirori Mal College, the star cast of Main Tera Hero visited the college for promotions. The much awaited event saw a turnover of around 3500 fans of Varun Dhawan and Ileana D’Cruz. The stars who were expected to arrive at noon, reached the college premises by 1:30 pm. But the wait seemed to prove worthwhile for the crowd by Varun’s dance performance right after his entry. He then asked the crowd to chant the name of his co-star from the film to welcome her on stage, and the fans willingly obliged.

Varun Dhawan then told his fans about his movie and his character ‘Seenu’. Seenu’s character, as defined by the actor himself is chichora and nautanki. He also delivered a few famous dialogues from his movie. “Jab main sheher chorh ke gya tha na? Mujhe poora sheher chorhne aaya tha.” On the audience’s demand, both the actors then danced on their song, ‘Palat’.

Dhawan also mimicked the famous wrestling champion, The Rock. The organizers had chosen five lucky girls from the campus to meet Varun Dhawan on stage. The stars also performed on ‘Besharmi ki Height‘, another number from Main Tera Hero. Bharat Jain, who has hosted most of the star events in Delhi University, hosted this show too. Bharat, on Varun’s request chose five boys from the standing audience to come up on stage and show their ‘besharmi ki height‘ in front of Ileana. Ileana, who received many ‘I love you’ confessions in various styles, told DU Beat, “It was crazy to see fans showering their love on us. Delhi is insane.”

Varun then sang the famous Punjabi rap of ‘High Heels’, which he’d also sung at Shri Ram College of Commerce last year, for promotions of ‘Student Of The Year’.

Towards the end, he thanked the college principal, Mr. S.P Gupta by calling him up on stage. He also thanked the Union members for the organizing the event. Saurabh Prabhakar, the event head and Marketing Consultant for Main Tera Hero remarked, “The visit to Kirori Mal College was the best decision. The film and Varun, both have a huge youth connect and what better platform than Delhi University to promote a film.”

Varun was overwhelmed by the response in the University and said that he is ready to do anything for his fans.  The Main Tera Hero team was in the campus for almost 45 minutes. Ileana and Varun ended their session by clicking a selfie with all the fans.

Jashvender Chauhan, President of Kirori Mal Students’ Union, who was delighted by the student turnout for the event said, “After Gunday promotions and the main cultural fest Renaissance, this event also proved to be a grand success. Renaissance’14 came to a glorious ending. Our college will remember this year as the most memorable year of events. It was our pleasure to host their promotion today.”

Stay tuned for DU Beat’s exclusive interview with these two stars!

Image credit: Sahiba Chawdhary

 

 

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Hans Raj College

Three days of quizzing at Illuminati’s Con Qurso

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Illuminati – the Hans Raj Quiz Club organised their annual quizzing festival Con Qurso on 28th, 29th and 31st March. This year’s festival comprised of four main quizzes and two filler quizzes. Cash prizes and various number of quizzes attracted inter college and inter-university teams as well The event also saw participants from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and Indian Institute of Management (IIM). All the six quizzes were hosted by members of Illuminati.

Here is a look at different quizzes and their respective winners:

Sports Quiz

Sports Quiz began at 9 am on the first day of the festival. The quiz showcased the wide range of questions related to all sports all around the world. After the preliminary round, eight teams made it to the finals of the sports quiz. Conducted by Harshit Tandon, the quiz witnessed participants from various departments of the university and other universities of the capital.

1st Prize: Aniket Mishra (Deptt of Comparative Literature, Delhi University)

Shounak Purkayastha (Deptt of Mathematics, Delhi University)

Bharathan Chandrasekaran (Deptt of History, Delhi University)

 

2nd Prize:

Pratik Panda (Deptt of Mathematics, Delhi University)

Jasojeet Mukherjee (Zakir Hussain College)

Udipan Sinha (Jamia Millia University)

Cash Prize worth Rs. 4000/- were given to the winners and Rs. 2500/- to the runner up team.

Bollywood Quiz

Conducted by Manan Bhan on the first day itself, this filler quiz saw the maximum turnout. With over 40 participating teams, the bollywood quiz covered decades of celebrated cinema. Questions ranged from minimalist posters to legendary dialogues and from Mughal-e-Azam to 3 Idiots. The winners were awarded with the cash of Rs. 2000/-

1st Prize: Bharathan Chandrasekaran (Ramjas College)

Bishal Kumar (Ramjas College)

General Quiz

Last competitive quizzing on first day saw generalized questions being asked to the participating teams. The General Quiz covered the areas of music, entertainment, sports among other topics. After shortlisting, a total of six teams moved on to the finals. With over 70 questions being asked in total for both prelims and finals, this quiz witnessed a close contest. Runner up team were presented with Rs. 2500/- in cash and the winning team bagged Rs. 4000/-. Quiz master for the general quiz was Manan Bhan.

1st Prize: Sreshth Shah (Amity University, Noida

Prasanth John Abraham (IIM, Calcutta)

Harsh Vikram (Amity University, Noida)

 

2nd Prize:  

Shounak (Department of Mathematics, Delhi University)

Bharathan (Department of History, Delhi University)

Open MELA Quiz

The only quiz at Con Qurso that permitted non-college quizzers was the MELA Quiz that was conducted on 29th March by Atishay Sehgal. With professionals participating in the quiz, it covered Music, Entertainment, Literature and Art (MELA)

The quiz had a turnout of over 15 teams from which six made it to the finals. Despite an open participation, college quizzers took away the major prizes. This main quiz also gave out Rs. 6500/- as cash prizes.

1st Prize: Anagh Mukherjee (Jamia Millia University)

Abhishek Kapoor (IIT Delhi)

Ankan Kazi (Open participant)

 

2nd Prize:

Ayan Madan (Hindu College)

Sameer Thomas (Hindu College)

Rahul Mehra (St. Stephen’s College)

India Quiz

Organised on the last day of the festival, India Quiz covered various aspects of our nation including culture, heritage, politics, sports and current affairs. Six teams after fighting the battle, were selected for the final round. Quiz masters for the quiz were Pratik Panda and Abhishek Mishra. Cash prize was equivalent to other main quizzes of the festival.

1st Prize:Mukund Marodia (St. Stephen’s College)

Shubham Prabhakar (Netaji Subhas Institute of Technology)

 

2nd Prize:

Mohak Chhibber (YMCA University)

Biz-Tech Quiz

The second filler quiz and the last competition of the festival was Biz-tech quiz. The questions revolved around the commece and business sector along with insight into the world of technology.

Conducted by Abhishek Mishra, Biz-Tech quiz gave out a cash prize of Rs. 2000/- to the winning team.

1st Prize: Mukund Marodia (St. Stephen’sCollege)

Mohd Fahad (Delhi Technical University)

 

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DUB Speak

A teenager’s expedition to G.B. Road – ‘the land of pink nipples’

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 Bucket List (Class 9)
 Point No 3. Visit a brothel.

The fact that I never mentioned the reason to visit, goes in my favour today. Half of what was needed is achieved. The biggest red light area of the capital, Garstin Bastion Road (well known as GB Road), had an eighteen year old kid (adult?) paying a visit to what is also known as the ‘land of pink nipples’.

The fear to take up the challenge was always at the back of my mind. So visiting the area after 7pm, when the business there gets into its vibrant mode, was not an option.

12 Noon– New Delhi Metro station

The autowala gave the most indescribable look and winked at me, when I asked him, “Bhaiya, GB Road.” He tried to tell me that he would take me to the best kotha of the region. (I was wondering if it was kotha no 64, since that is famous). But I chose to walk. The weird part is that one would never know when ‘that area’ comes and passes you until and unless you see a fat lady in a red blouse looking out of a barred window from the first floor. She is probably the head of all those sex workers in there. Excited, I suddenly took out my camera and she shut the window.

I moved on. A place with worn out rickshaw pullers, disinterested shopkeepers and an unpleasant smell, it could only be famous for one thing. Suddenly someone patted me from behind. “Bhaisahab, khoye khoye lag rahe ho, 600 mein aapki umar ki, abhi.”
He was a pimp. And here the illusion broke. The business goes on during the day-time as well, in those small low sheltered rooms above those local shops.

A little scared and a little surprised, I could not see any policeman nearby. “Do they not monitor the area?” I asked myself. “What a life these shopkeepers lead here! What a life!” – I thought and laughed. With this I saw a panwaala, who during our five minute conversation told me about what a newcomer (Yes, newcomer. I would consider going again.) like me never knew. I was asked to be aware of pimps and pickpockets. He told me about the plight of women (and girls) in there. Women are generally forced into this work. The kothawaalis (or prostitutes) are not allowed out of their kothas during the day time. They come down at night, only to take back a few costumers up those tightly structured stairs. There were certain obvious questions in my mind for the panwaala, but then it was my first time and I wanted to go back home fast.

To my relief I saw a police station right there. I asked the hawaldaar bhaiya there, “Bhaiya mujhe kisi kothe mein andar jaana hai. Kisi se baat karni hai. Unko jaan na hai.” But since then I am thinking about what he said. “Nikal lo beta. Yahan koi kisi ko ni jaanta. Randiyon ko koi nahi samajh sakta.”

It is a place where world seems dead and these tavaifs are kept in dingy rooms only to be neglected (and used). They smile on their face, while signalling someone to come in, but they themselves want to come out of that place, I suppose. But some stories are untold.

While forming that bucket list, I wanted to know how these brothels work and the concept that this profession undertakes. But I also questioned myself, “Is paid sex actually unethical?” I honestly still wish to visit kotha number chausath(64). ((Oh, I forgot to tell you. I got 4 flying kisses, too).

With these thoughts I took the road back to the New Delhi Metro station. As I was walking, I saw a woman calling out to me silently while applying red lipstick on her lips. But this time, I didn’t take out my camera. I just smiled and left.

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Campus Central

DU alumnus takes up theatre for the visually impaired

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Samarth, which means capability. Samarth is an organisation based in Delhi University which practices theatre with blind students from various colleges. Samarth has over 35 students from Miranda House, Sri Venkateswara College, Hindu College, Daulat Ram College and Gargi College. The organisation, that works with seven volunteers in total believes that the future of these children in education should also be secured. Along with constant support in education to all of them, the are taught the basic theatre fundas related to lights, stage and acting. Founded in January 2014, the root of this cause was laid two years ago by Mr. Sandeep Rawat who later went on to create Samarth. Mr. Rawat who is a graduate from Dyal Singh College worked with these students during his college days. Mr. Sandeep said that, “Yeh bacche apni education mein hi fasse rehte hain. Inhe university se koi support nahi hai. Yeh sab extra activities karna chahte hain, par yeh bhi majboor hai.” The founder also feels that there is little that has been done for these students in the university. According to him and the parents of these students, the administration here provides fee concessions for their education, but later they are not supported in any way possible. Students are not provided with any special study material and they also complain of getting no support from the teachers. Samarth brings out the ‘capability’ of those who can act without knowing the spotlight, without watching their co-stars and without even knowing where their viewers are. The organization tries that the message of equality reaches out to larger audience which would force them think and question norms of the society. It tries to prove that these kids are equally capable as others. For this Indu, a Political Science student of Miranda house who practices with Samarth said, “Samarth means ability. Yeh ek boht bada platform hai jispe hum, main aur mere friends apne confidence aur talent ko dikha sakte hain, ki hum kisi se kum nahi hai. Hum sab vo kar sakte hain jo aur log bhi kar sakte hain.” Deepika, who handles the cultural activities at Samarth informed that the organisation does not aim to restrict the students only to theatre but the group also plans to provide training in other fields like music. Samarth believes that these students should not be subject of pity to others, but they shall be awarded equal rights. The team has performed its first production Udaan at 4 colleges and has recently bagged the first prize at IIT Roorkee. But, Samarth raises an important question to the university theatre circuit. They want to compete with all the normal college theatre societies in the upcoming year for various competitions.

During the conversation it was found that the organisation struggles in terms of financial matters. The funding is presently being done by the volunteers itself. The group through this feature appeals to everyone in the University to kindly help them financially for betterment of these students. Readers are also requested to please introduce other blind students in need to Samarth. Apart from this if anyone wants to volunteer or donate for Samarth can get in touch with its volunteers.
Contact Person : Mr. Sandeep Rawat
 Phone Number : +91 9891507039
 For more details visit : https://www.facebook.com/samarthhaihum
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Hans Raj College

History lecture, quiz and debate for Samvat at Hans Raj

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The History Department of Hans Raj College organised Samvat – their annual department festival on 27th March. The festival that began at 12’o clock in the afternoon witnessed a history debate, history quiz and a keynote lecture along with other recreational activities and competitions.

The associated theme for the festival was ‘Time, Space, People and Culture.’ A photography exhibition was set up near the registration area for the visitors and participants who evaluated each photo on display. The exhibition showcased various pictures related to the above mentioned theme clicked by members of Pixels, the photography society of the college. Kartik Gupta was declared the winner for the exhibition with maximum number of visitor comments.

dr david zou
Dr. David Zou

Dr. David Zou, a professor at Department of History, Delhi University gave a lecture on ‘What is History’ in the conference room of the college. With Dr. Zou, Ms. Sharmila Srivastava, head of the history department of college led the session. He shared his personal experiences with famous personalities and also talked about print culture and literary culture. Shrishti Singh, a 3rd year history student who attended the lecture says, “The lecture was very informative and interactive. He talked about censorship of books which was the most interesting topic.”

kite1
Kite Flying

A history quiz was also conducted as part of the festival. The quiz revolved around both modern and ancient history and the questions covered historical events of various ages and timelines from all over the world. Conducted by members of the quiz society, the history quiz saw participation by 15 teams. The competition saw participants from the host college and cross college teams also took part. After the preliminary round, six teams moved on into the finals. Pratik Panda and Bishal Kumar from Hans Raj College and Kirori Mal College were declared the winners.

A history debate on the topic ‘This house will exempt all books and works of art from government bans’ was conducted. Debating societies from the university circuit participated in the competition. Ananya and Navjeet from the debating society of Miranda House were adjudged the winners for the debate. Ananya, depicting here views on the topic says, “The motion today was one which, no matter how many times it’s debated, can never lose it’s relevance, considering as historical precedents suggest that attempts at curtailing free expression are a recurring phenomenon.”

Apart from the main events at the workshop filler activities also attracted students. Pottery workshop was held in the college where students were seen making earthen wares with their own hands. Kite flying was also organised. Principal of the college, Dr. VK Khwatra exuberantly challenged other kite flyers and himself handled the manja well.

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Campus Central

Top Societies at Delhi University Fests: S.G.T.B Khalsa for Street Theatre

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Every year, societies from colleges across the campus compete neck to neck and put up spectacular performances during the fest season. This year too, saw certain teams shine a little brighter than the rest. We bring you a series with college societies that put their heart and soul into their respective fields and took home the top prizes at various cultural fests. The best college society in each category was selected by creating a tally of the top 3 positions at competitive events held during 13 cultural fests of this season. Whenever a society won the first prize they were award 3 points, for the second position they received 2 points and for the third position, 1 point was added to their tally. S.G.T.B. Khalsa’s Ankur stands at the top of our tally with 13 points. The society is followed by Kirori Mal College’s The Players at the second position with 9 points. The third place is a tie between Shivaji College’s Vayam and Sri Guru Gobind Singh College of Commerce’s Manchatantra.

The Winning Society at a glance

Ankur, S.G.T.B Khalsa College Ankur from S.G.T.B  Khalsa ,  proved its mettle during street theatre competitions with its play, ‘We, the people!’. The play talked about the role of active participation of an individual in a democracy where governments are formed through electoral voting. Though the message they hoped to deliver had a complex thought behind it, their mantra for success was simple, “We try and keep it simple with our deliberate attempt to creatively experiment, unlearn and start from the scratch.” Names of performing members: Prabhjot Singh, Dhruv Vats, Raman Bhalla, Saheb Kaur, Firoz Khan, Divay Agarwal, Gaurav Batra, Nagender Garg, Ashmeet Kaur Ahuja, Ronit Sharma, Shriya Mukim, Tarun Kaur, Rashmi Khurana, Harpreet Singh, Guneet Singh Nanda, Sarabhjot Singh, Apurva Chaudhary, Srishtee Basera, Vipin Pokhriyal, Himanshu Brar, Harsimran Kaur, Himanshu Dua. Musicians: Ashmeet Kaur Ahuja, Nagender Garg, Guneet Singh Nanda. Note: The thirteen fests included in our analysis for this series include SRCC’s Crossroads, Gargi College’s Reverie, Sri Venkateswara College’s Nexus, LSR’s Tarang, Hans Raj’s Confluence, I.P. College for Women’s Shruti, Daulat Ram College’s Manjari, Hindu College’s Mecca, Jesus and Mary College’s Montage, Miranda House’s Tempest, Kamala Nehru College’s Ullas, Kirori Mal College’s Renaissance, SGTB Khalsa’s Lashkara. Out of the fests listed, only 10 had conducted a competitive Street Theatre Competition.]]>

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