Antiquity, the annual Academic meet of the History Department of Lady Shri Ram College was held on 16th February, 2013. One of the most awaited History fests in Delhi University, Antiquity truly lived up to its hype this year, with some brilliant lectures and academically intriguing competitions. The History Department President, Vidushi Singh, inaugurated the fest, and her inspiring speech left students truly questioning the true meaning of myths and legends in their life and their reliability as intangible sources of heritage. According to Vidushi, “As students of History, the one thing that we have come to realize is that it is important to question our identities and the myths and legends that create it. Only then can we stop reigning in our curiosity and enquire about the blind acceptance of certain myths that govern our lives. This is one of the prime reasons that made us choose Myths and Legends this year as a theme for Antiquity.”
Dr. Shireen Moosvi, renowned Professor of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) spoke about ‘The age of Akbar and the legend of Anarkali’. Her talk transported students to the reign of Akbar, and was immensely beneficial for the third year students who are currently studying Mughal India. Indeed, a ruler is truly defined by the supporters he keeps, and Dr. Moosvi clearly highlighted it during her lecture about Akbar. Her hypothesis about Anarkali also left the students spellbound. The second lecture was delivered by Dr. Narayani Gupta, renowned Professor of History at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. Dr. Gupta spoke on the legends surrounding Delhi. With a dash of humour and a couple of eye opening facts, she received a thunderous applause at the end of her speech.
The Quiz, which was the highlight of the fest, was one of the most challenging events. Sudarshana Chanda, the quiz master, one of the best quizzing students of LSR conducted the quiz. She has been conducting the quiz for the past three years, each year making it even more challenging and interesting than the previous one. The Paper Presentation competition was held in the afternoon, and saw participation from students of LSR as well as other colleges, and departments other than History. The competition was won by students of Miranda House, whose presentation on ‘Bengal folk paintings’ left the audience spellbound. Some really intense and thought provoking presentations were presented, one of them by Flavy Sen Sharma, on ‘Women in the Jatakas’. Flavy came second.
According to Diksha Jhalani, the Secretary of the History Union, “I feel Antiquity is the best platform for undergraduate students belonging to any and every field to come and display their talents as well as learn more about the subject. It is definitely by far the biggest event I have worked for.” Diksha has been actively contributing throughout the year to the Union activities, and the hard work showed in the excellent organization of every event in Antiquity. Madhurima, the treasurer of the Union, also echoed the same view, and was seen throughout the fest actively working with all the volunteers to ensure all technical glitches and other problems were solved.
Antiquity ended on a bright note, with all participants going back to their respective colleges learning something new about the discipline of history, and re- instating their love for the subject. The all- inclusive atmosphere truly makes Antiquity a unique experience for every student and it is hoped that Antiquity returns next year bigger and better!
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