The third and concluding day of Confluence, the annual fest of Hans Raj College was lined up with events like Mock Stock, Street dance, Ad-Mad, Western Dance, Choreography and Battle of Bands While for some events like Western Dance, students thronged the venue, others witnessed comparatively less audience.
Kirori Mal College’s Choreography Society
Western Dance and Choreography were the highlights of the day. Both the events saw some exceptional performances by students that were highly applauded by the spectators. Choreography started around 10:30 AM and went on for two hours. Around 10 colleges participated in this event. Lady Shri Ram College bagged the first prize and the second prize went to Kamala Nehru College’s Choreography Society – Adagio.
After Choreography, the Western Dance competition began at 1 PM with participation from around fifteen colleges. IIT Delhi boys, who gave a dynamic performance, took away the first prize in the event. The auditorium reverberated with cheers and claps while they danced. The second prize was shared by Guru Gobind Singh College and Sri Venkateswara College’s Verve whose dance performances was quite energetic as well. The third prize went to Jesus and Mary College’s Western Dance Society – Mudra.
Roquefort or Battle of Bands saw Conundrum, an alternative rock band from PGDAV, emerge as winners while the band – L For Vendetta – secured the second position. The Best Vocalist was Shiv Hastwala from Conundrum, the Best Bassist, Keyboarist and Drummer were all from L for Vendetta and the Best Guitarist was from the band Andolan.
Featured image: Hans Raj College’s Choreography Society
Mika Singh performed at Kirori Mal College’s annual fest Renaissance 2014 on the 4th of March.
But as expected, Mika was a total crowd pleaser. He started the concert with ‘Mast Kalandar’ and went on to sing all his hit numbers like ‘Gandi Baat’ and ‘Saavan Mein Lag Gai Aag’. Like always, he wore sun glasses even after dusk and was completely in his loud Punjabi element. He inculcated the college name in all of his songs and sang medleys instead of full songs. The crowd merrily danced throughout the concert.
Like every other guest night, people poured in and every inch of the ground was covered and the star performer was fashionably late. Security was lax and not even ID cards were checked before granting entry. However, the organisers did have special enclosures for girls to ensure their safety. Even while the concert was on, pepper spray was sprayed in several areas which had people running helter-skelter with burning noses and teary eyes. The rowdy crowd eventually got to him too and he started asking people around the stage to move back. People took off their shirts and flung them in the air towards the stage, threw bottles and even rocks. Mika scolded quite a few students for acting in an inappropriate manner and for being disrespectful. He even discouraged smoking.
However, the concert in itself was a success, the sound system was great and the crowd enjoyed a great deal.
The last day of Hans Raj’s Confluence not only had competitive events lined up, but also a closing act by Bohemia, the international rapper (a.k.a. Rap da Badshah). The performance that was scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. finally started at 3.
Bohemia started by his famous song Sahara which was interrupted by a technical breakdown due to overcrowding of a few youngsters near the technical setup. He also rapped few of his famous songs like Kali Denali and Ek Tera Pyar.
In between the tracks, he also had long interactions with the audience. Talking of San Francisco, his life and the initial struggle with the English language, he went on to Bollywood numbers such as Chandni Chowk to China.
Due to a sunny afternoon, few people were seen standing out of the performance ground on a shady height for the star to be visible. He mentioned that he has come all over from California just to perform in Hansraj College. His interactions were all in Punjabi, which he said is his mother tongue. On stage while addressing the crowd he said, “I am a Punjabi artist. I don’t like when people call me just a rapper. I am a singer who writes and sings only in Punjabi. I do not need the tag of an international performer”
The day witnessed Rachnotsav – the music festival with its Indian Choir Competition – Pehel. Pandit Sarathi Chaterjee presided over as the judge. The competition had various teams battling for the top positions. Sangeetika, the music society of Kamala Nehru College was adjudged the best performance. Team from Daulat Ram College, Alhaiya bagged the second position in Indian Choir.
Western Choir Competition – Choirs had enthralling musical performances when set audience to the applauding mode throughout the performances. Mr. Nilotpal Sinha and Ms. Grace honoured the event as judges. Kirori Mal College’s Musoc was chosen the best team. Sri Venkateswara College’s Crescendo and Lady Shri Ram College for Women’s Western Music Society shared the place for the first runners-up. Cash prizes worth Rs. 8000/- were given out on Day 2 of Rachnotsav.
Other two exciting competitions were going alongside. Sports Quiz and IPL bidding had 20 and 35 participating teams respectively. Prelims for the sports quiz shortlisted top 6 teams which sat for the quiz finals. Bala Subramanium from Hansraj College and Gukul from Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma (ARSD) bagged the first position and won the cash prize of Rs. 3000/-. Second prize for cash amount of Rs. 2000/- was won by Prateek Panda from Department of Mathematics at Delhi University and Borio from Hansraj. IPL bidding, the mock bidding session saw top 8 teams in finals after a quiz round in the prelims. Contestants in groups of 2 were allotted IPL teams and each team had to buy players with maximum ratings with the budget of 80 crore per team. Sahil Ramchandani and Karuna Singh, both from the host college won the bidding competition and took away Rs. 6500/- in cash and kind.
Art related competitions like Poster Making and Rangoli Making were held. Theme “Freedom” was decided for poster making and Rangoli making saw rangoli designs on nation, diversity and religion to name a few. Chahat Bansal and Swati Sharma from Keshav Mahavidyalaya won the rangoli competition for their Bollywood inspired rangoli. The contestants apart from designing it, had to explain their idea in front of the judges.
Confluence – the annual cultural festival of Hans Raj College was set open on 2nd March 2014 by the Principal of the college, Mr. V.K Khwatra. The event started with a brief introduction about the festival and how in the past Confluence has been able to receive tremendous appreciation. Mr. VK Khwatra along with other dignitaries and guests, Mr Bijendra Singh (Hostel Warden) and Mrs. Sonal Gupta (ECA Convener) lighted the holy lamp. Mr. Mohit Saini, the newly elected President of Hans Raj College also joined the lamp lighting ceremony.
Saptak Chattopadhyay, member of Swaranjali (Music Society of the college) created an aura in the auditorium by singing the Durga Stuti and Guru Vandana. The Principal then addressed the students and said, “Extra Curricular Activities are the most important part for both interpersonal and intra-personal development. Confluence, I hope, will bring a lot of learning and experience to each one of you in this regard.” He wished luck to all the participants and organizers and declared Confluence 2014 open!
The festival, later in day, witnessed various cultural competitions being organized by different societies of Hans Raj College. Rachnotsav – the Music Festival by Swaranjali, the Music Society of the college, was a tribute and homage to Late. Rachna Sharma, ECA convenor of college who passed away last year. She was a mentor to many students and inspired each member of the society to do his or her best. The Music Festival that would go on for all three days had two solo competitions on the first day.
Mr. Nilotpal Sinha, Director of House of Symphony and Ms. Grace, a well-known vocalist judged the competition. Indian Solo competition witnessed healthy spirit between the participants and the Western solo competition attracted 16 singers from all over the circuit. In the Indian (Solo) Singing event, the 1st prize was won by Digvijay Singh from Kirori Mal College in the Semi Classical category and the 1st prize in the Classical category went to Bineet Singh from Music Faculty. The Western (Solo) Singing event saw Fiona Lalmalsawmi from Miranda House being awarded the first position while Hanita Bhambri from Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies bagged the second position.
In their feedback, the judges mentioned that the contestants should focus on the song selection. They pointed that there were two ways to go about this – one is to choose a complex song and perform it in the simplest way and the other is to choose a simple song and perform it in a complex manner to impress the judges.
Alongside, Pixels, the Photography Society of the college was organizing photography competition called Plickture. The event had a photography exhibition put up in the college with the 100 photographs clicked by the members of society. The visitors had an option to paste their comment there. Also, “Photon on the Spot” was organised with theme – Irony – separately for DSLR and mobile phone users. Battle of Events will also be organized by the society where different photography societies from various colleges will be battling over 5 events in 2 days to win the TITLE OF SOCIETIES, a trophy and Rs. 10000 cash prize. Pithvi Kakkar, President of Pixels told DU Beat that results of all the events of Plickture will be declared on Day 2 of the fest.
In addition, four stage theatre performances were held as part of the college’s annual dramatics fest – Eclat.
Even after a heavy rainfall and bad weather in Delhi, the spirit of the Students’ Union of Shri Guru Tegh Bahadur Khalsa College maintained an all time high. Due to adverse weather conditions, Diljit Dosanjh’s concluding star performance at the college’s annual fest – Lashkara 2014 was postponed. The concert that was originally scheduled for 2nd March, was shifted to the next day. Finally, when Diljit Dosanjh came and performed on 3rd March in a fully packed ground, nobody could make out the fact that the the fest had ended a day ago.
Diljit sang quite a few popular tracks, including Dope Shope and Proper Patola. The crowd was so engaged and excited during the performance that the star had to sing two more songs before actually leaving. In addition to the live crowd, the performance was nationally aired live on ‘PTC Chak De’ channel.
“Diljit’s humility can be seen from the fact that he exchanged his expensive lucky watch with my friend during the concert”, said a spectator.
Held from 27th February to 1st March, Nexus 2014 – the annual fest of Sri Venkateswara College had a lot to offer. Alongside a mix of competitive events, the organisers jazzed up the fest with Jazzy B. With the unexpected rain changing quite a few things for the second day, Junkyard Groove’s rock performance and Sabari Brothers’ sufi night were held simultaneously.
What all happened? What all did you miss? Who won what? We wrap-up the fest in our highlights!
In a rock performance that lasted close to an hour, Junkyard Groove played favourites such as It’s Ok and Folk You. They also switched things up in the middle to songs such as Pearl Jam’s Animal and Sweet Child of Mine, taking the crowd by surprise both times.
To add a sufi element to Venky’s Nexus 2014, Sabari Brothers took the stage during day two of the fest. The event originally scheduled for 6 p.m., started at around 7: 30 p.m. at the college’s auditorium foyer. The Sufi legends started with the famous Chaap Tilak, moving on to a Coke Studio rendition of Humein toh loot liya and popular Bollywood number Tumse Milke Dilka hai jo haal. The combination of music and shayari along with a crowd that reciprocated with claps and dance, were the highlights of the evening.
Jazzy B
Image Credit: Mehak Taneja
The final day of Nexus 2014, might have light on competitive events but was high on energy. The evening started with Mumbai based Krazy Electrons opening for Jazzy B. The band rocked the show with their unique genre called Ethno DnB.
Chatty, the brain behind KE electrified the mood with his beats on the midi based Drum Machine. Ajay Jayanthi, the lead vocalist and Violionist, who comes from a classical background of Carnatic Music enthralled the audience, especially the female ones. The band performed a couple of numbers including, Rage of electrons, Rebel and Eena Meena Deeka.
After their performance, Jazzy B – the star power of the fest came on stage at 7: 30. The Punjabi singer started with the popular Jine mera Dil lutiya. He then moved on to other tracks such as Romeo and the latest Harry is not a Bhramchari. The concert lasted almost an hour with the star mentioning that since he usually performs for a middle-aged audience, he is performing amidst a young crowd after quite some time.
Masti Ki Basti
A tiny corner in the college’s ground had a range of games and activities lined up. Labelled as the Masti ki Basti, to name a few, the area had Lucky Seven, Mehendi art, Obstacle race and Bollywood Quiz to engage the visitors. With college students coming up with interactive tasks and ideas, the corner did have a few hits!
Crescendo – The Western Music Society of Sri Venkateswara College / Image Credit: Gurman Bhatia
First Position: Sri Venketeswara College’s Crescendo Second Position:Lady Shri Ram College for Women’s Western Music Society Third Position:Kirori Mal College’s Musoc
Rangmanchiyata (The Stage Play Competition) with the theme “Tribute to Campus Theatre” was held on Day 1 as part of Eclat – The theatre festival organised by the Hans Raj Dramatics Society. The competition commenced in Auditorium right after the inaugural ceremony. Judges for the event were Mr. Sanjeev Saluja, experienced theatre actor and director and also the member of Board of National Committee of Satya Sai Organisation and Mr. Pranay Manchanda, a young graduate from London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and an actor and director with experience of 16 years.
The Private Ear by Ramjas College
6 top teams from the theatre circuit were selected for the main event after the screening process. Day 1 of Rangmanchiyata has 4 teams presenting their productions. The other 2 teams will be performing on Day 2 and results will be declared on Day 2 of Eclat along with the street play results, also scheduled to be held on the second day. The productions presented were Mamtaz Bhai Patang Waale by Dyal Singh College, The Private Ear by Ramjas College, Batch 2002 by Hindu college and Delhi Technical University performed Kya Dilli, Kya Lahore!
The auditorium was jampacked for all 4 performances and they ended with an individual team feedback from both the judges. Mr. Manchanda said, “I look at plays not as judge but as someone from audience who may have paid 500 bucks to watch the play. Today I saw amazing performances from the campus circuit but teams need to focus more on story and one should understand the character well before portraying it up on the stage”
The final day of the three-day annual fest of Indraprastha College for Women was abuzz with a lot of competitions and events lined up for the day that attracted many students from various colleges. Among these was a dance performance by Delhi Dance Fever (DDF) in the swimming pool area pf the college. DDF is a team formed by alumni of various colleges in Delhi University from different dance societies. They put up an energetic and well-coordinated performance which was quite a treat to watch.
Under the Fine Arts events, the Best Out Of Waste competition saw around 10 participants competing. A team of three which consisted of Deepshikha, Princy and Astha from the host college won the competition for ‘Best out of waste’. Just-A-Minute competition saw 10 participants for which the J.A.M master was Shriyam, a student from Hansraj College. The first prize winner was Nikita Shukla, the second winner was Surbhi Bhatia and third prize was taken by Caroline – all from IP College for Women.
For the star night, the Delhi-based progressive Sufi fusion band Rock Veda performed at the college ground. They engrossed the audience both with their original compositions and some popular Bollywood tunes. Their original work included songs like Mere Maula and Baat Chalet, riveting the crowd at IPCW. They also engaged the listeners with some celebrated songs like Tum Hi Ho, Main Tenu Samjhawa etc.
Indraprastha College for Women’s quiz society organized an inter-college quiz competition as a part of their annual cultural fest Shruti.
Teams from colleges all over Delhi including St. Stephens College, AIIMS, Hansraj, Gargi and Ramjas participated in the competition. The competition also allowed cross institutional teams.
Out of the total number of 35 teams which participated in the competition, only 6 made it to the finals. The quiz was hosted by quiz master Shashank Mallik who has previously hosted many professional and cooperate quizzes including CBSE Heritage India quiz, cooperate quizzes at Maruti and WWF India.
Six teams made it to the finals including the cross team of IIT-D and St. Stephens, Hansraj, AIIMS and Gargi College. The first position was secured by the team of Sumit and Gaurav Anand from Zakir Hussain College and IIT D respectively. The team of Fardeen A. Mazumdar (St. Stephens), Mukund Marodia (St. Stephens) and Abhishek
(IIT D) got the second position.
“The level of competition was really high,” said Shashank Mallik, who conducted the quiz, “The cut-off was really close and teams won on difference of really less points.”
