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Admissions 2016

A Guide for Fuss-Free & Fun-Filled Pre-Admission Chills

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With the Delhi University admissions having begun, millions of students with their hopeful hearts and fearful mind sit glued to their computer screens, switching from one college website to another just to get a hint of the life they’re soon going to lead. Whether having seen nightmares or frequent fantasies, driven over by excitement or drowning anxiety, these are just a few common symptoms of a perfectly normal (at least until then) DU aspirant.

However, after the release of a first few cut-offs, while it may seem that the worst is over (and for a larger part, it is) there will still be one grueling hell of a final ride expecting you to climb on and roll with the punches. Now you can either succumb to the inevitable waves of stress and make it a bouncy one or with our help, transform it into an enjoyable and memorable admission process.

The More, The Merrier

To ease yourself from the hassles of running around the photocopy place, never, EVER forget to bring extra copies of all your official documents ranging from birth certificates, Class 10th and 12th mark sheets to passing, migration, provisional and character certificates. Carry ample amount of passport sized photographs (black and white or coloured) with essential stationary items like blue and black ball-pens, pencils, erasers, glue stick, paper clips and stapler with enough pins. Speaking of more, you might just really have to ‘speak a lot more’ to each other or others, so recharge your cell phone with extra balance to prevent missing out on anything.

Eat, Drink, Burp, Repeat

The fact is- you won’t really be given any special treatment out of sympathy or fall into the arms of some hot, single guy behind you in a Karan Johar styled romantic movie pose. If you faint out of exhaustion from standing in the queue for a long time, chances are you’ll have to go right back at the end of it and waste a few more hours again. Save yourself some trouble and keep yourself hydrated at all times by carrying adequate bottles of cold water or small juice cartons. Apply world’s favorite stress buster and satisfy your cravings with some biscuits, fruits or packets of chips which you shouldn’t think twice to bring along as well.

Look Chillin’ Like the Sun’s Foe

Don’t go all dressy. You’ll get plenty of opportunities to reveal the fashionista in you once college begins. Wearing heavy clothes or too many accessories will only add on to the excessive heat in your body, all thanks to the high humidity. Beat the summer heat and look stunningly cool by wearing loose-fitting clothes or those made out of cotton fabrics with colourful scarves (for girls) and funky hats (for guys), paired with your exceptionally unique glares to show off your college swag!

Take an adult or your most jugaadu friend with you

No matter how much you deny it, you cannot survive this alone. Even if you do make it out alive, you’re not going to enjoy it one bit without having one of your most supportive parents or your coolest friend around. An adult not only brings you a sense of warmth and care but also, a unique sense of safety and the feeling that despite hurdles, everything will be alright. If not them, bring along your most fun friend to keep you entertained throughout the process and who’d know exactly how to get things done quickly and swiftly without letting you get into any sort of trouble.

Party toh banti hai, bro!

Who doesn’t get irritated while roaming around the college premises for hours, losing/asking directions after every few minutes and moving from one slow queue to another? This coupled with the scorching summer heat of Delhi would only end up making you more irritated at the smallest and meaningless of things. When this happens, remember to take a deep breath and relax. Acknowledge where you are- at one of the best Universities of the country. Stop cribbing and start enjoying while you’re at it. Try everything- from the refreshing Banta to flavorful Chuskis and college specialities ranging from yummy Chhole Bhature to spicy Chowmein in canteens. Explore the nearby markets by doing some affordable shopping from campus street vendors. Click some selfies and make some memories. Most importantly, celebrate your admission because you deserve it. Be proud of where you are and what you have achieved!

Image Credits: www.flickr.com

Shagun Marwah

[email protected]

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DUB Speak

12 Promises to My Outstation Best Friend

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Dear Outstation Best Friend,

I know it’s been quite a while since you’ve left this town and I should probably get used to your absence by now, but I haven’t. I don’t think I ever can. I still miss those early morning assemblies where you’d be the first one I’d look for in the school crowd, just to sneak off somewhere and complete our previous night’s stories; or start a new one. I still miss spending time with you for hours and watching time fly in the blink of an eye, before its time to go home. I still miss calling you for the most random reasons and end up getting a sore throat because of our never ending conversations. Most of all, I still miss seeing you every day like a family and giggling for no reason, letting the people around us wonder why!

Despite it all, I’ve learnt to accept the goodness in the changes that life has brought our ways and am willing to continue as long as we grow together. Even though you and I have made a few mistakes, we shall not let the distance between us grow any stronger. Before it’s too late, let’s renew some of our promises to each other and strengthen our long distance love more than ever.

PROMISE #1: I promise to let you go! (When it’s time for your non-refundable flight to take off)

I’ll try to take your occasional going-away’s as lightly as possible without begging you to stay any longer or creating a complete emotional mess out of you just before you leave. Because let’s admit it, you could always find someone interesting or good looking in flights (and sometimes, their cute bff too!)

PROMISE #2: I promise to keep you updated with every single thing in my life

From the latest sitcom addictions to the places I visit the next day, I’d never let you miss out anything new or old happening with me, even if it takes several hours to just type it all down. Just in case I forget something, you’ve been granted full permission to scold me fiercely (even though you’ll do it without my consent)

PROMISE #3: I promise NOT to freak out every time I witness your late replies or broken promises of callbacks

I’ll try to remember that you too, have a life of your own now and its completely okay for you to get stuck somewhere or fall asleep, or yes, the most forbidden one- FORGET to text or call me back. Even though it’s going to be really hard, I’ll forgive you once in a while- okay fine, always! *hmph*

PROMISE #4: I promise to be EXACTLY the same on the phone with you as we are in person (since we get to live those moments quite rarely now)

No matter where we are or whoever it is we’re with, I promise to never control myself from jumping excitedly or laughing hysterically with you, even for the most random and meaningless reasons. Everyone around us should be able to recognize the person we’re on the phone with just by a mere look at us and thus, never dare to interrupt. At least until the force of nature plays its role and worsens our connection just to leave some topics for us to cover the next day.

PROMISE #5: I promise to never get jealous of your new found friends

As much as I will be okay with them for giving you company in my absence (hopefully), I would also try to resist making fun of them at every chance I get, mispronounce their names deliberately or taunt you about the memories you made with them behind my back, especially the ones that we couldn’t, just yet.

PROMISE #6: I promise to never fight/argue with you like an old married couple

If things get way out of control and you end up committing the deadly sins of either sharing more secrets with your new friends and that too, BEFORE me, or hanging out with them without telling me, then you are likely to experience some unpleasant consequences. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t stay mad at you for too long because although you’d be reminded of your deeds repeatedly, what’s that everyone keeps posting nowadays? Oh yes, “For you, a thousand times over” (yes, even for a cheater Bff like you)

PROMISE #7: I promise to talk to you as soon as I MISS you (on hearing/seeing something that reminds me of our friendship)

How badly I envy those who continue to stay in the same town as their best friend and visit the same places or listen to the songs that once defined their friendship without feeling the absence of the other and oh yes, shedding a few tears!

PROMISE #8: I promise to cancel everything and everyone on the day you arrive

Whether it’s work, extra lectures or prior commitments with other people in my life, I’ll simply erase everything out of my mind and rush as fast as I can to you to make the most of our time. I’ll start planning everything from the best restaurants to movies or talk about all the recent developments in our lives, until of course you’re done resting or cribbing about your jet lag (in my lively presence).

PROMISE #9: I promise to let it all out the moment I meet you (even if you think I should promise you the opposite)

After a suppression of thousands of emotions gushing inside of me like a waterfall, chances are that they’ll be taken out on you in the craziest of ways. So kindly forgive me in advance! While you may get slapped more than a few times for providing me with all the pain of our separation, you will also get the tightest and longest hug from me yet, because that will only express my love for you.

PROMISE #10: I promise to pick up exactly from where we left off, as if we never spent any time apart

It’ll only be a matter of few seconds before we switch back into our usual, kiddo personalities and come out with our crazier selves again, impossible for anyone to handle. I thus, hope to continue the tradition of always acting completely mental with you in public and embarrassing you to such a point that it either leads to people’s deep stares or us being thrown out of their premises, politely.

PROMISE #11: I promise to protect you from people who even TRY to hurt you

Despite being miles away, all I require is that person’s full name and contact number and I’ll teach them a lesson of such a sort that they’ll remain too scared to mess with you or anyone for as long as they shall live. (You know I can do that)

PROMISE #12: I promise to be there for you always and love you forever, no matter what

As cliché as this sounds, it’s as honest as it could possibly be. Irrespective of our number of fights, mistakes or miscommunication, you’re the one person I can completely be myself with and there’s nothing you could do or say that could possibly make me want to leave or let you go. Neither, will there be in the future.

So, yes, even though the realization of you being far away still hits me now and then, yet, I’m taking it one WhatsApp text/call at a time. Distance may have tried to push us away from each other but surprisingly, it has also brought us closer in many little ways by giving us better reasons to love each other more and provide us with something amazing to look forward to every single day. So, remember, my stupid, irreplaceable best friend: You may be out of sight, but you’ll never be out of my mind. I love you with all my heart. Always have, always will!

Yours (and yes, only yours) truly,

Hometown Best Friend

P.s. After reading this, you better be on your next flight back home.

Image Credits: www.pintinterest.com

Shagun Marwah

[email protected]

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DUB Speak

5 Best American Sitcoms of 90s that Still Remain a Classic

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During the first few days of a post-exam relaxation phase, it’s obvious that binge watching becomes an irresistible choice of indulgence. So after getting tired of sleeping for hours, I decided to turn to my television’s aid as a cure to my remaining exam hangovers. As I lay curled up in bed, flipping from one channel to another to find the most perfect show in a maze of television series, I immediately stopped at a place which relaxed the motion of my hand instantly.

Despite watching each episode more than a hundred times and owning a set of all its seasons to increase the numbers even more, I still knew I’d be unable to find any show better than FRIENDS to give me the solace I needed. That’s when I was drawn to a realization that despite being addicted to numerous shows throughout my teenage years, I always found myself coming back to those few all-time favorite classic American series which not only possess a power to cheer us up within seconds, even today, but also make us relive a bundle of golden memories that we hardly get time to remember and cherish in our busy lives.

So while some are still being aired in India (luckily), and some aren’t (unfortunately), here is a list of the TOP FIVE American Television Sitcoms of 1990s that we never seem to get enough of – and neither do we ever hope to!

1. FRIENDS (1994-2004)

With more than twenty years of its release, it remains till date, undoubtedly, the most loved and sought-after show ever produced in the history of television. Centered on the lives of six friends in Manhattan and their impetuous ups and downs, this show makes one generation after another laugh uninhibitedly and teaches the older ones that some addictions (or almost all jokes of this show) never get old. From Ross’s professed love for dinosaurs and Phoebe’s unique ice-breaking song collections to Monica’s neurotic enthusiasm and Chandler’s biting sarcasm, there was something hilariously charming in each one that glued us to them forever.

Whether it’s Joey’s “How you doin’?” to his utter refusal for sharing of food or Ross and Rachel’s “We were on a BREAK” fiasco to Phoebe’s signature composition- Smelly Cat, there’s always something one can easily find to smile or laugh about in all its episodes which almost make us oblivious to our problems in life, as long as we’re in their presence. As time passes by, these six friends in ten seasons of happiness are bound to “Be there for you” for life.

(Currently being aired from Monday-Friday at 9 pm on COMEDY CENTRAL, India)

First episode of Season One, Friends

Image credits: www.stylearena.net

2. Full House (1987-1995)

There is something magical about this very name which brings a wide smile across anyone’s face who has ever been lucky enough to watch it. Contrary to the popular belief, this American family revolutionized the family culture in the most real and sweetest way possible. The awesome trio of Danny Tanner, the Father (the sensible one), Uncle Jesse, his brother-in-law (the handsome one) and Uncle Joey, his best friend (the dorky one) showed how raising three little girls- DJ (the tomboy one), Stephanie (the mischievous one) and Michelle (the coolest one) under one roof was no piece of cake, and yet, in their most cracking sense of humor handled every single dilemma from their very first steps, school days to boyfriend dramas in an unbelievably adorable way.

Apart from Jesse’s ‘Elvis’-ness and Joey’s goofiness, what made this show even better were the comical ways in which the sisters never left a single chance to mess with each other. DJ and Stephanie’s arguments on the most random issues being complimented with baby Michelle’s priceless reactions were served like an icing on top of the cake.

Michelle Tanner, the youngest, funniest and cutest of the three siblings in Full House.

Image credits: www.cdn3.teen.com or www.lovelace-media.imqix.net

3. That 70s Show (1998-2006)

Set in the spirit of 1970s- the decade of love and rock ‘n’ roll, this is one show that dials up every possible level of craziness and gets you fixated on the most ridiculously flawed group of teenagers after only one episode. The major plot revolves around Eric Forman, a typical geek with a forever-confused look, born to Red and Kitty Forman, a father who lived for the joy of his son’s embarrassment and a vivaciously cool mother whose wittiness was incomparable to that of any teenager.

With Eric’s consistent chaos with his sensible girlfriend, Donna and the pretty rich brat, Jackie’s clash of views with her incredibly dim-witted boyfriend, Kelso, were the two relationships which formed the foundation of a never-ending amusement. Fez, a young ambiguous foreigner and Hyde, the indifferent sarcastic king of the group further completes their entire entertainment package with a kick. The influence of the gang remains as strong as it ever was as I still find myself grooving to their title song, nodding my head along with them and singing its lyrics; and finding a comfort like no other.

(Currently being aired from Monday-Friday at 8:30 pm on FX)

‘Cheap Trick In The Street’- the theme song of That 70’s Show. Caution: Highly Addictive. Listen at your own risk.

Image credits: www.8smash.com

4. Seinfeld (1989-1998)

All those who’re aware of this show know exactly just how amazing it is to reminisce some of its best moments with another Seinfeld fan/s, especially since one gets to live such moments quite rarely. Being aired only for a brief period of time in India and then rerun with a couple of episodes few years back was not enough to do the show justice. While the trend of the 80’s fashion or payphones may have been outdated, the jokes certainly haven’t.

Be it Elaine’s goofball complexity and quirky attitude towards life or George’s hilariously adorable “paranoid, totally inadequate, completely insecure” character’s relatability, Kramer’s epic entries, wackiest expressions and static hairdo to Jerry’s alluring charisma, everything in the show just blended perfectly well together. Like every true Seinfeld fan, I would have to say, “That’s gold, Jerry! Gold!” and so it shall always remain, with all the present sitcoms in comparison to it being simply “Yada Yada Yada…”

Seinfield’s Jerry, Elaine, George and Kramer- the coolest group of friends television has ever witnessed.

Image credits: www.img.buzzfeed.com

5. The Simpsons (1989-2016)

The very fact that a show of the 90s has been able to garner such an endless amount of love and appreciation that its story continues till date, reaching a peak of 27 seasons is more than enough to mark its appeal in the world. Set in the town of Springfield, the Simpsons are an exceptional, one-of-a-kind family that every child wished to be a part of. The humorous affairs mostly concentrate on the lives of Homer Simpson’s atypical anti-father/husband figure running on the ambition of unproductive-ness, endless donuts and laziness, his wife Marge, an ideal housewife and a caring mother who tries her best to keep her family as remotely sane as possible with their three kids- Bart, the impulsive troublemaker, Lisa, the vegan, smarty-pants and Maggie, an infant of the family.

Over the years, after having witnessed a plethora of animated shows, it has been proved that none of them have been able to come anywhere close to this pure comedic brilliance of animation and achieve the replacement of a family as dysfunctional and idyllic as the Simpsons.

Homer and his wife, Marge Simpson- the most EPIC couple of the animated world of television.

Image credits: www.i.imgur.com

I sometimes wonder how life would have been had these shows never been produced. Well, certainly not the greatest one, that’s for sure. If only I could go back in time and watch each one of them all over again, for the very first time, I would. So while these sitcoms continue to remain close to my heart, I’d suggest those who have never watched some of them (or any, God Forbid!) to take out some time in these holidays and experience the nostalgia of 1990s along with happiness and laughter on a whole new dimension.

Happy Holidays!

Shagun Marwah

[email protected]

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Flicks

THE CONJURING 2: Just When You Thought It Couldn’t Get Scarier!

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RATING: 3/5

CAST: Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Frances O’Conner and Madison Wolfe.

DIRECTOR: James Wan

As I sat immersed in the joy of having bought the perfect seats for the first-day-first-show of the most awaited horror movie of the year, I was all set to enjoy the experience with my nachos and coke, and a perfectly good company of my friend, who despite having never watched a horror movie in a hall before promised me of her complete ineffectiveness to them. Ah well, only time could tell!

Being a complete horror movie buff (a loyal one of Hollywood) what really fascinates me is the way they get your adrenaline pumping and provoke a response, either physical or psychological, so strong that they instantly make you react with fear. So was The Conjuring 2 successful in doing so? Pretty much!

Contrary to the popular belief, a sequel doesn’t always have to be worse than the first one. What I learnt through James Wan’s amazing direction in The Conjuring 2 and his remarkable skills of turning illusory into reality, is that while the sequel couldn’t really turn out to be better than the original, he did, in fact, manage to continue the saga in an equally terrifying and remarkable manner.

Set in the decade of the late 1970’s, a major portion of the film takes place in the Enfield town of London, England where a single mother of four young children is found troubled by a series of supernatural occurrences in their house and is compelled to call for assistance to those specializing in the field of paranormal activity research. Here’s when the dynamic duo of demonologists, Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) enter in the picture as they sweep us all away with their incredible chemistry and brilliant performances one after another. Despite Lorraine’s irrefutable decision to avoid solving anymore cases, especially after considering her recurring visions of Ed’s death and sinister creatures as unavoidable signs of danger, she is however, successfully convinced by Ed to fulfill the purpose for which they believed to have been brought together by God, and thus head for London to help the Hodgson family.

The retro English setting allows the director to play with different gothic, spine chilling styles of the era in recalling one of the most controversial paranormal activities of the time and thus, basing the movie on the true story of Enfield Poltergeist- where an 11 year old girl, Janet Hodgson (Madison Wolfe) was known to come under the possession of the spirit of an old man named Bill Winkins, a former resident of the house in which they currently lived. The role of Peggy Hodgson is pulled off quite smoothly by Frances O’Conner who not only portrays the concerned and lovable side of a hardworking, single mother but also of an extremely brave woman, propelled with enough courage to do whatever it takes to protect her children from the barriers of suspicion or danger.

Labeled as the “Amityville Horror of England”, the whole town begins to view it either as a haunted house or a family’s clever form of hoax to receive grants from the government. Madison Wolfe in her attempt to play the character of Janet Hodgson switches from an innocent, clueless child ruled by the constant fears of her surroundings to a wicked, self absorbed demon so effortlessly that one is compelled to remain fixated on her irrespective of the predictability of a few scenes. Her powerful acting is what makes the entire plot so much more believable, thereby proving that nobody else could have done better justice to this role than her.

As the story unfolds, not only is the spirit of Bill Winkins successful in terrifying all the members of the family (and everyone around me, including my friend) through shaking beds, moving objects and crashing doors, it soon gets followed by Janet’s unfortunate demonic possession as well. While a few clips such as that of flipping television channels or the self moving fire engine toy at night becomes absolutely unnecessary in a sequence which is already well aware of a demonic presence in the house, what really does manage to overpower them is Janet’s sudden teleportation across her unsafe home as soon as she closes her eyes and her alarming levitations sending chills down our spine. The special effects and cinematography of the segments were so well constructed and effective that they even aroused a fear in me to prevent shutting my own eyes for the first few nights, only to be awaken in a completely different and unnatural setting with no assurance of returning back.

Despite the movie’s storyline being focused on the role of Bill Winkins in hurting the Hodgson family, his ghoulish voice and laughter alone was nowhere powerful enough to frighten us and neither did the silly appearance of ‘The Crooked Man’ hold any useful relevance. The most ominous and horrifying element of the movie though was something much more inhuman and unforgettable than the rest, and this was an addition of the ‘Demon Nun’ who’s mere sight in Lorraine’s recurring visions and in the second half of the movie emerged grotesque and sinister enough to easily make us lose our grip on ourselves and frighten us to death.

The sound direction also remained quite impressive throughout the movie and powerfully complimented the eerie atmosphere wherever needed. With the most suspenseful and stunning end to the story, leaving us both happy and satisfied, this movie of 134 minutes despite being dragged at some parts in the first half, gladly repays it with its own share of light hearted moments such as that of Lorraine’s beautiful reminiscence of having found Ed- the only one who believed in her more than anyone else, Ed’s playful guitar session on Elvis Presley’s Can’t Help Falling In Love with all the children gathered around him, to reinforce their love for each other and the overall journey of having an irrevocable faith and trust on everyone you love.

Thus, what seemed like an exceptionally good blend of both, fine horror creeping us out more than just once or twice and the parting of lips into smiles during several intervals between wide-eyed alarming reactions of fear makes you stay glued to the screen all throughout the movie, as it certainly did with me and my friend who now longs to watch such movies more often, even at the price of being unable to sleep at night. So, watch it if you’re a horror fan or those wishing to experience a little thrill in life as this sequel is more than just praiseworthy- it’s Scream-worthy!

Image Credits: www.lensmenreviews.com

Shagun Marwah

[email protected]

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Admissions 2016

Time to Put Your Best Foot Forward: DU Guidelines under ECA category

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It’s that time of the admission season yet again when Delhi University gets to witness the euphoria of fresh talent and brightest young artists on the largest scale. With bundles of glorious certificates and sole instruments of hope, students dressed in vibrant costumes with drops of perspiration running down their forehead are seen bustling from one college to another to do justice to their talents through admission under ECA- Extra Curricular Activities. A sense of exhilaration and anxiousness fills the air as the guidelines for admissions under ECA category are announced.

They are mentioned as follows:-
1. All candidates seeking admission under ECA category must register online on DU Admission portal, while information regarding the requirement in different activities and number of seats available under ECA quota for each college can be found on their respective website or college prospectus individually.
2. The existing provision of 5% ECA quota (subject-wise) shall continue to remain the same this year as well.
3. A total of 25% weightage is given to the certificates of all candidates, who must submit substantial evidence of having won/participated in the concerned activity at International, National, Zonal and School level during the last three years, that is, from 1st April, 2013 till 31st March, 2016 only. Any candidate found submitting false certificates shall be debarred from gaining admission to any course in any college for three years.
4. With a 75% of weightage, the ECA Trials are held at two levels namely Preliminary trials and Final trials. The dates for the Preliminary/Final trials shall be notified on the University website or displayed on the College Notice Board well in advance, giving students more than enough time to prepare for the same in their concerned activities. Each candidate shall be allowed to appear at the Preliminary level only once.
5. The procedure of ECA trials under required activities may vary from one college to another. Shortlisted candidates may confirm with the cultural coordinators of the respective colleges or have a look at their websites for information regarding the same.
The trials for admission under ECA category shall be conducted by the ECA Admission Committee nominated by the staff council of the college. Usually, it consists of the Principal (Chairperson), Culture Committee Incharge, Nominee/s of the Culture Council and at least two experts/artists from some of the most prestigious institutions such as National School of Drama, Sri Ram Centre for Performing Arts, Faculty of Music & Fine Arts, Indian Council for Cultural Relations, College of Art, Sangeet Natak Academy, Sahitya Kala Parishad and All India Radio / Doordarshan.
The activities approved by the admission committee for ECA are as follows:

ECA Category

Activities included
Dance Indian Classical, Indian Folk, Western
Choreography Choreography
Vocal Indian Classical, Indian Light and Folk, Western Classical, Western Light
Instrumental Indian Classical, Indian Light, Western Classical, Western Light
Theatre Dramatics, Street Play
Creative Writing Creative Writing in Hindi, Creative Writing in English
Debate Debate in Hindi, Debate in English
Fine Arts Sketching & Painting, Sculpture
Digital Media Still Photography, Film Making, Animation
Quiz Quiz
NCC NCC

NSS

NSS

The merit list of all selected candidates containing marks of the ECA certificates and trials along with the course/subject allotted to them shall be displayed on the respective college Website and Notice Board for three days. Candidates must resolve all grievances, if any, within three days before confirming their admission.

Verification of original ECA certificates and screening of applicants/forms submitted by the candidates will be done during the process of admission. The decision of the ECA Admission Committee shall remain final. It is mandatory for all selected students to submit an undertaking at the time of admission stating that they shall perform for the College and University, all the years, during their undergraduate course of study.

For more information, visit http://www.du.ac.in/du/ or stay tuned to DU Beat.
DU Beat wishes all students best of luck!

Image Credits: www.pintinterest.com
Shagun Marwah
[email protected]

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Arts & Culture

UMEED- ‘A Drop of Hope’ that every child deserves

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We can easily agree that childhood is the most beautiful phase in a person’s life. Majority of us have been blessed to live with such comforts and joys that we are  able to recollect our own childhood memories with bitter-sweet nostalgia. For some however, they may only remain bitter. I talk about those whom we come across at least once in our daily lives, selling flowers and toys on the roadside, malnutritioned kids performing acrobatic acts and dangerous stunts in the hope of alms or children roaming helplessly in the streets without shelter, clothes or even a few drops of water to quench their thirst. They eventually either resort to begging or get chained in the dungeons of work where they are repeatedly exploited under grueling conditions.

For Subhrajeet Gautam, a young college student like many of us, this remained a frequent sight. What really made him different though, was that unlike most of us, he did something about it. Driven by an extraordinary dream to see a day where no child would be deprived of basic essentials such as food, clothing, education and medical security, he joined his college social service society to gain substantial knowledge. Through the society he not only visited children in slums and hospitals, but even held regular classes for those living on the streets to gain basic education. On 26th January, 2011 with an amount of just Rs. 1,500 in his pocket, he formed an organization called Umeed- a Drop of Hope, with a small camp of cloth donation as its first campaign towards humanity.

Since its inception, it was Mr. Subhrajeet’s spirited passion and conviction that “all individuals, in their own little ways, possessed the power to become great agents of change” which drove Umeed to make a significant difference in the lives of more than 80, 000 children. Umeed was also honoured as the most active NGO of Delhi and Rajasthan by Smt. Sheila Dikshit and Ashok Gehlot in 2011.

To promote social service and inspire every human soul to understand the true importance of caring for other human beings who are not as gifted or fortunate enough is the main aim of Umeed. Their social activities and community service operations include donations of basic amenities like provision of food, medicines and clothes to the needy, education to the underprivileged children and every possible help to poor families including an enhancement of their living conditions by providing them a healthy, safe and happy environment. By means of Nukkad-Natak- street theatrical performances, awareness campaigns and educational programs, they also work towards the improvement of social welfare and eradication of poverty, illiteracy and other deep-rooted evils of the society.

What started as a campaign with only one hundred volunteers in 2011, today comprises of more than 30, 000 volunteers in over seven states of the country, transforming it into a National-level NGO.
In Delhi, the team of Umeed has been working on three projects. They are:-

KNOWLEDGE FOR ALL (KFA): To encourage students with ample knowledge to invest a few hours of their days in teaching underprivileged children. This project runs in three slum areas namely Kirti Nagar, Laxmi Nagar and Indraprastha.

PARIDHAN: A cloth drive in which volunteers are required to collect unusable clothes, books, toys, stationary, etc from residential areas or colleges, and after getting them recycled, are made to distribute among the poorest families and children of the societies who need them the most. It urged to spread the “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Realize” mentality among everyone in the society.

GO GREEN 16: An initiative to save the environment by promoting afforestation all over the country and making our planet earth greener and more beautiful through means of tree plantation, tree adoption, drip irrigation etc.

Sonal Garg, an active volunteer of the mission KFA at Laxmi Nagar believes that, “Every child is an extremely passionate and curious learner. Every now and then, I am surprised to come across children who are so ingenuously dedicated towards their studies that when it’s time for them to leave, they become sad and beg us to stay for as much time as possible, and teach them something new. Their little enthusiasm-filled eyes speak of how much strength and wisdom they possess even in the worst conditions of life. You even form a special bond with them which compels you to come back again and again.”

Thus, every person with a simple desire to serve the society wholeheartedly can be a part of the Umeed family. They offer virtual as well as summer internships. To apply, log on to www.umeedngo.org and fill in the form requested.
For more information, visit:-
Facebook page – www.facebook.com/umeedthehope

Image Credits: www.umeedngo.org

Shagun Marwah

[email protected]

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Innovation Projects

Kamala Nehru College’s Innovation Project’16: Switch to Energy Efficient Lighting and Home Appliances like CFL/LEDs

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In the current world scenario warm surface temperatures and worsening climate impacts have become an increasingly common problem. Delhi University’s Innovation Project team of Kamala Nehru College: KNC-301 with an earnest desire to limit all the activities leading to high energy consumption and save the world by teaching everyone to be as energy efficient as possible, in the smallest and yet, most significant of ways.

This young group of student researchers is therefore working on a project entitled- Implementation of a Successful ‘Switch to Energy Efficient Lighting and Home Appliances’ Campaign in Delhi: A Social Marketing Strategy. The team comprises of the following students: Aakanksha Gupta, Alisha Allagh, Anushka Agarwal, Diya Mukherjee, Meghna Tripathi, Nitima Jain, Chetna Ahuja, Tanya Gupta, Priyal Kalra and Shubhi Singh. The team is supurvised and guided by Principal Investigators Dr. Soma Sen Gupta, Dr. Sona Mandal, and Dr. Pankaj Kumar; and Dr. Anjan Sen, from the Department of Geography, Delhi School of Economics as their Mentor.

Even though our society is fully aware of the benefits of the efficiency improvement of home appliances, a large majority becomes apprehensive on buying and using products which promise the same. Some of the major concerns addressed by them are either in the favor of extremely high costs of LEDs and ‘Star-rated’ appliances or safety risks caused due to the fear of the ultraviolet radiation leakage from CFL bulbs. The main aim of the innovation project is to study social marketing approach which can be used to eradicate such myths and introduce a behavioral change among the masses so that they switch to energy efficient lighting like CFL/LED bulbs in their homes without any hesitation.

The innovation team of KNC critically evaluated the measures undertaken by different stakeholders in the promotion of energy efficient home appliances. On 5th March, 2016, an interactive session was organized with the officials of Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), New Delhi. They learnt that Mr. Sanjay Seth (Secretary) and Mr. Saurabh Diddi (Technical Head) had initiated various policy measures like, the Domestic Efficient Lighting Program (DELP) and #iledtheway campaign to promote and distribute four LEDs per household at Rs.93 per bulb, on the production of their electricity bill and aadhar card. They had even issued ‘Star Rating’ labels for as many as 21 products.

The second session was held with Phillips (India), one of the leading lighting companies of the world in which Mr. Tapas Roy Chowdhury (Regional Sales Manager) and Varun (Sales Executive) explained that through continuous technological development in the lighting sector, Philips not only envisages energy efficiency, but even a reduction in the prices of LEDs. Moreover, their process of distribution and promotion through celebrity advertising has made LEDs gain popularity as well as acceptability.

Priyal Kalra, a student member of the project is of the view that, “as the youth of the nation, we wish to be more involved with taking care of the environment and persuading others to do so as well. Hence, the project gave us an opportunity to know how a social marketing strategy can help in changing the attitudes and behaviors of people and their perceptions regarding energy efficiency”.

On a field trip to Vishakhapatnam, the first city in India to implement energy efficiency through one hundred percent use of CFLs, the project team organized a survey and witnessed a high level of awareness and cooperation in the adoption of LED technology and high star-rated appliances, not only among the people of households, but even with road side vendors and street lighting. Less materialistic lifestyles, higher levels of education, and a better distribution strategy of the government were found to be the reasons behind this success.

A questionnaire based data was then, collected from 250 households in Delhi and NCR to determine the factors preventing a shift from traditional incandescent bulbs to CFLs/LEDs.  An effective campaign will be designed for the acceptance of these energy efficient appliances in Delhi through a social marketing strategy by blending the eight Ps together- product, price, promotion, place, public, policy, partnership, and purse string.

Image Credits: KNC-301, DU Innovation Team

Shagun Marwah

[email protected]

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Interviews

In conversation with the newly elected President of Maitreyi College (2016-17)

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Abhilasha Rajput, a Second Year student of B.Sc Physical Sciences was recently elected as the new President of Maitreyi College, Delhi University for the session 2016-17. With a passion-driven attitude and a dynamic personality, she is known to grab every opportunity that comes her way. Along with being an essential part of the Student Union for more than a year, she has also been an earnest and a zealous member of Vistas- the photography society of Maitreyi and represents as the coordinator of several NGOs such as Umeed and LFT (Leaders for Tomorrow) for her enthusiastic contributions and work. As a proficient artist, she is currently in the process of selling her homemade handicrafts and creations online as well.

DU Beat got a chance to speak to her about the journey of her triumph and unleash her secrets of success.

Congratulations Abhilasha! How did you feel after being declared as the new President of your college? What do you think has been your real key for success or a quality that made you stand-out from the rest?

Thank you so much. I was overwhelmed on hearing my name being announced for the post of the President. The feeling is so good, that it’s indescribable. I believe that it was my unflinching dedication and complete honesty for every task that I fulfilled, which eventually paid off. Being a Committee Member in the Student Union for a year had given me the fortunate opportunity to learn all the functions of my college, make new contacts everyday and establish good relationships with students. More than that, the consistent encouragement and self assurance which I received from all my peers, juniors, seniors as well as my teachers was more than enough to sustain every ounce of strength and faith I had in myself. I would like to thank my parents, friends and teachers for their constant support and guidance.

What was your biggest challenge while running for the post of the President? How did you respond to your competitors?

Thankfully, there wasn’t any such troublesome obstacle in my way, apart from the few common problems that one is very much likely to face in every election campaign. Along with dirty politics, a few fights had also taken place between my competitors. Everyone played their own games and friends were being betrayed. But, in some ways, these only made me stronger and more resolute towards my goals. Throughout my campaign, I remained completely positive and determined to work as much as possible, and teach all the negative campaigners about the real secret of sincerity and hard work which alone made me achieve this victory today.

What were your main objectives in the election campaign and how do you plan on achieving them?

My main objectives in the campaign were to make our college campus cleaner and gardens more beautiful, provide fresh drinking water to the students via water coolers, ensure hygiene in every nook and cranny, and make Maitreyi reach greater heights by conducting bigger, better and more successful events in the future.
I plan to work on all this along with my student union team as soon as possible and would try to accomplish each and every goal without ever giving up.

What fueled your interest in joining the student union in the first place?

I feel it was my leadership factor that encouraged me to join the Student Union. It started when I decided to volunteer for college events like Annual fests, Seminars, Fresher’s parties, etc, and very soon, found myself get easily compelled by this kind of work. Volunteering for the ‘Admission Procedure’ introduced me to the recruitment procedure of the Student Union. So, I decided to come out of my comfort zone,worked extremely hard and became one of the Committee Members for the year 2015-16. My ex-presidents, Shelly and Manisha have been great mentors for me. They were one of the reasons I built up the courage to register myself for this post, as they boosted my confidence and hopes at every level.

In what spheres of Maitreyi do you intend on creating a difference and why? What would be your overarching purpose as a leader?

My ultimate goal would be to devote myself completely in the process of improvement in all sections of the college whether it’s in academics, sports, cultural events, or cleanliness, take into account the problems and most importantly, do everything I can to take Maitreyi to the list of the top ten colleges of Delhi University.
If there’s anything I have realized over these past few days following my victory has been the fact that everything happens for a reason. I still remember the time I was a little hesitant on joining an all girls’ college and remained unsure about my choice for several days. However, it was my mother who truly believed Maitreyi to be the best college option for me. How dearly right she was!
The ways in which my college has mended me, developed my skills and pushed me out of my comfort zone is something I would forever remain thankful for. So in return, I have and will continue to serve my college as my family, in as many little and big ways as I possibly can by being the president.

 

Shagun Marwah

[email protected]

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Top Societies of DU Fest Season 2016

Top Societies in DU Fest Season 2016: I Vogue, SGGSCC for Fashion

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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 various cultural fests of this season. Whenever a society won the first prize, they were awarded 3 points, for the second position they received 2 points and for the third position, 1 point was added to their tally.

For the fashion category, I Vogue, the Fashion Society of Sri Guru Gobind Singh College of Commerce scored the maximum points with their tally being at 6 points. Maitreyi College, Amity University and Hans Raj College followed next with 3 points each and the fashion societies of VNMC, Ramjas College and Dyal Singh College shared the third position with 2 points each.

 

The Winning Society at a Glance

 

I VOGUE, Sri Guru Gobind Singh College of Commerce

Stuck between a modern and a conservative set of minds, we still find a large part of our society to be completely against the idea of people having different sexual preferences, thus compelling many of them to lead a captive life with a constant fear to come out as ‘themselves’. At I Vogue, the team aims to move everyone towards the path of modernity and create such a change where the LGBT community respectfully gets to stand at par in the society and its members to be considered as ‘Humans’ like others. Their act, being a unique fusion of both conservative and modern thinking, therefore brings about Duality as the basic theme emphasizing on the acceptance of the LGBT community, and its costumes are designed according to the modern and ancient era with base colors kept as authentic as black and white along with stunning shades of gold and silver.

Ashwani Verma, President of I Vogue says, “The members of I Vogue start working on everything, three months before the beginning of the fest season with full dedication and perseverance, leaving no stones unturned. Being in a team, we have all learnt to be extremely tolerant of different views and now, not only encourage but even accept each other’s opinions like our very own. I strongly believe that we are mostly led by one, most important mantra, which is to simply ignore ‘I’ in a team and focus on ‘WE’ in every performance; and this, I can proudly say, has been the key to all the victories we have achieved this season.”

Performing Members Ashwani Verma (President), Vasu Goel (Vice President), Sarthak Kathuria, Harsh Kapoor, Divank Satwani, Mohil Jain, Sahib Singh, Ushmeet Kaur, Navneet Kaur, Rivleen Kaur, Harjot Kaur, Reva Goswami, Ashween Kaur, Tavisha Dua and Riya Jain.
Head Designer and Stylist:- Sarthak Kathuria
Make-up Artist:- Kanku Vyas
Head Choreographer:- Ashwani Verma
Backstage Help:- Gurleen Kaur, Srishti Bhatia

Winners Tally: I Vogue

Five fests were included in our analysis for this series: Tarang, LSR; Ullas, KNC; Confluence, Hans Raj College; Mecca, Hindu College and Crossroads, SRCC. Here is the list of winning performances by I Vogue:

1st Position: Mecca 2016 (Hindu College) and Confluence 2016 (Hans Raj College)

(Hover on the icons below to know more about their victories)
Shagun Marwah
[email protected]

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Innovation Projects

KNC’s Innovation Project: Switch to Energy Efficient Lighting and Home Appliances

By

In the current world scenario where warm surface temperatures and worsening climate impacts have become an increasingly common problem to bear, here arises our very own Delhi University’s Innovation Project team of Kamala Nehru College: KNC-301 with an earnest desire to limit all the activities leading to high energy consumption and save the world by teaching everyone to be as energy efficient as possible, in the smallest and yet, most significant of ways.

This young group of student researchers is therefore working on a project entitled- Implementation of a Successful ‘Switch to Energy Efficient Lighting and Home Appliances’ Campaign in Delhi: A Social Marketing Strategy. The team comprises of students such as Aakanksha Gupta, Alisha Allagh, Anushka Agarwal, Diya Mukherjee, Meghna Tripathi, Nitima Jain, Chetna Ahuja, Tanya Gupta, Priyal Kalra and Shubhi Singh; Principal Investigators like Dr. Soma Sen Gupta, Dr. Sona Mandal, and Dr. Pankaj Kumar; and Dr. Anjan Sen, from the Department of Geography, Delhi School of Economics as their Mentor.

Even though our society is fully aware of the benefits gained from the efficiency improvement of home appliances, a large majority becomes apprehensive on buying and using products which promise the same. Some of the major concerns addressed by them are either in the favor of extremely high costs of LEDs and ‘Star-rated’ appliances or safety risks caused due to the fear of the ultraviolet radiation leakage from CFL bulbs. The main aim of their study is to explore how a social marketing approach can be used to eradicate such myths and introduce a behavioral change among the masses so that they switch to energy efficient lighting like CFL/LED bulbs in their homes without any hesitation.

The innovation team of KNC, thus, decided to critically evaluate the measures undertaken by different stakeholders in the promotion of energy efficient home appliances. On 5th March, 2016, an interactive session was organized with the officials of Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), New Delhi. They learnt that Mr. Sanjay Seth (Secretary) and Mr. Saurabh Diddi (Technical Head) had initiated various policy measures like, the Domestic Efficient Lighting Program (DELP) and #iledtheway campaign to promote and distribute four LEDs per household at Rs.93 per bulb, on the production of their electricity bill and aadhar card. They had even issued ‘Star Rating’ labels for as many as 21 products.

The second session was held with Phillips (India), one of the leading lighting companies of the world where Mr. Tapas Roy Chowdhury (Regional Sales Manager) and Varun (Sales Executive) explained that through continuous technological development in the lighting sector, Philips not only envisages energy efficiency, but even a reduction in the prices of LEDs. Moreover, their process of distribution and promotion through celebrity advertising has made LEDs gain popularity as well as acceptability.

Priyal Kalra, a student member of the project is of the view that, “as the youth of the nation, we wish to be more involved with taking care of the environment and persuading others to do so as well. Hence, the project gave us an opportunity to know how a social marketing strategy can help in changing the attitudes and behaviors of people and their perceptions regarding energy efficiency”.

On a field trip to Vishakhapatnam, the first city in India to implement energy efficiency through one hundred percent use of CFLs, the project team organized a survey and witnessed a high level of awareness and cooperation in the adoption of LED technology and high star-rated appliances, not only among the people of households, but even with road side vendors and street lighting. Less materialistic lifestyles, higher levels of education, and a better distribution strategy of the government were found to be the reasons behind this success.

A questionnaire based data was then, collected from 250 households in Delhi and NCR to determine the factors preventing a shift from traditional incandescent bulbs to CFLs/LEDs.  An effective campaign will be designed for the acceptance of these energy efficient appliances in Delhi through a social marketing strategy by blending the eight Ps together- product, price, promotion, place, public, policy, partnership, and purse string.

Image Credits: KNC-301, DU Innovation Team

Shagun Marwah

[email protected]

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