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Lakshya, KNC grabs first prize at PRATIBIMB 2017

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PRATIBIMB’17, the street play fest of Sri Aurobindo College hosted by Moksh Dramatics Society, came to an amazing end with a string of memorable moments attached to it. It lived up to the expectations of the event and proved to be bigger and better. In fact, one of the best. With 15 top teams of the drama circuit of Delhi University performing at the event, the atmosphere was filled with a competitive outlook, a blend of creativity and dramatisation of facts and figures, all well described and depicted. The performances were astonishing and gripped the attention of the audience without breaking up their interest. They stood their to witness these performances straightaway without an interval. The battle of creativity, art of acting and the essence of drama were displayed at their best. Every team proved to be better than the other and thus, the judges found it difficult to choose a winner amongst winners.

shri aurobindo college
Lakshya from Kamala Nehru College bagged the first prize while Natuve from Shaheed Bhagat Singh College (M) came in second.

But every competition needs a conclusion. Thus, the prizes were announced in spite of the cutthroat competition. The first prize was grabbed by Lakshya, the Dramatics Society of Kamala Nehru College. The second prize went to Natuve, the Dramatics Society of Shaheed Bhagat Singh College (M). The best actor was awarded to Divyam of SBSC(M) and the best actress was awarded to Tejaswani of Lady Irwin College. In order to honour the writers, Likhat sponsored the Best Script Award and Ayaam, the Dramatics Society of Maharaja Agrasen Institute of Technology won the prize.
This event was a well organised and coordinated one with a beautiful ambience and lovely hospitality of the hosts. It fulfilled the expectations and thus, indeed opened up the fest season of DU with a great beginning. Moksh- The Dramatics Society of Sri Aurobindo College proved to be humble hosts and with their skills and abilities, made PRATIBIMB’17 a memorable event.*

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Your Beat

Changing World Politics – The Rise Of The “Top-Lobby”

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To a certain section of the global political thinkers, the election of Mr. Donald Trump as the president of United States of America was not unprecedented. They were the same people who happened to know of Brexit once the referendum was called for.

What and where are we missing?

 

Democracy and Nationalism- these are  the two similar contemporary cause-effect couple. The very element of eventual acknowledgement of a common higher identity after a millennium of mass chaos and anarchy is what led to the rise of the utopian concept of Democracy. But the definitions and individual perceptions kept evolving over the time, giving rise to Nazism in Germany in 1933 and that of Trumpism, as political scientists describe the phenomenon,  in 2016.

A renowned political science professor from University of Sydney opined in his blog post after the U.S. elections, “Voters globally wanted a change. They were fed up of the prevailing hypocrisy in the mainstream politics. They had been angry over the establishment and the politicians. They did no more want to caste the namesake votes and let the ball  bounce from the court of the Leftists to the Rightists and sometimes the Centre, something which they had been doing for centuries to no avail. Poor remained poor and the Rich got richer. Disappointment, Dissatisfaction and Unemployment- remained undressed. So the middle class finally got a change, a substitute to the conventional,  in Trump. They didn’t care about his being racist, misogynist or anything lest he was different.”

We step into a world where the people, for some decades, shall either choose their version of Donald Trump, a leader who has promised changes which have ironically appealed some masses, over a conventional politician who has done them no good. Essentially, the rise of Narendra Modi in India can also be viewed on the same lines. We can also assess the success of Theresa May in Post-Brexit England, Marine Le Pen in France and Malcolm Turnbull in Australia on similar lines.

A “want for change” describes it all in a nutshell. The “Top-Lobby” shall be chosen for many years to come not because it has quality, but because it is the only choice to the left-right-centre.

Image Credit- today.com

Nikhil Kumar

[email protected]

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Life at Delhi University

5 Things Every DU Student does in Winters

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Whine about 8:30 classes Morning classes played antagonists in the sweaty days of the summer, and their peculiar attribute of unhappiness is carried forward to the foggy days of January and February as well. Minds old and young can comprehend the struggle of waking up early in the morning and amassing all perseverance into stepping out of the warmth of the blanket, and the unfortunate result ends up being a sad zero in the attendance record. In the words of everyone, “Dear morning classes, go away, we don’t need you!” Problematise regular wardrobe selection As cute and adorable winter outfits might look and attract us with all their stylish supremacy, it might be a struggle to put together an ensemble of our dreams every chilly morning. The weather variations don’t help either; for a brief while, the mornings are a source of significant shivering and grumbles but the afternoon brings in the very bright sun, and all those additional layers of sweaters could never appear to be more redundant. To wear or not to wear, that is the question! Hog tea and coffees Hot beverages are to winters what F.R.I.E.N.D.S is to a binge-watcher. The perfect embodiment of love and warmth in a cup is what these sources of happiness provide, with the yearning for those plastic cups increasing with the decrease in the temperature! Your love for coffee or tea from Sudama’s during the times of winters can give the Gilmore Girls a strong competition at Luke’s! Bunk classes for funsun-time As the day processes and the sun conveniently moves out of the confines of the clouds, the inhabitants of every college begin their journey from the darkness and cold air of the classrooms to the greenery of the grounds which rejoice under the warmth of the bright yellow sky. Once the residents settle in the designated areas and bask in the rays of comfort, the motivation for attendance in the scheduled future classes is significantly minimised, for the gleaming sun is our personal heater! Schedule the fest timeline plans Fests and winters are synonymous to a Delhi University student. The semester which we have embarked on comes with the woes of attendance issues and incessant internals and assignments. The only saving grace amidst the cold and bleakness can be the bountiful of merriment which resides with the days and times of the fest season, and the abundance of them require planning regarding when to go and where to go! Have you done these yet?  Image Credits: DU Beat Saumya Kalia [email protected]]]>

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Uncategorized

Delhi Poetry Slam 2017: Inspiring poets across the nation!

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DelSlam

Delhi Poetry Slam provides a platform for budding poets from every corner of India to showcase their original work, reciting their poems and helps them get guidance from renowned people from India and abroad.

Poetry does what little else can – inspire. Poetry is the salve and soul of the civilized world. Slam Poetry is where poets evince their emotions of all kinds in front of willing audiences who want to immerse themselves into the flowing streams of words. Amidst mist, chilly winds and the frozen breaths, poetry is what can be celebrated with the people of Delhi Poetry Slam. From 4th February 2017, DelSlam begins another journey with the talented poets of Delhi and 28 other states plus 7 Union Territories. Since the past few years, the participation in DelSlam has been quite significant with the emerging poets competing for the prize money and their poems getting published in a poetry book.

This year DelSlam, all set with its new programs has introduced Wingword Poetry Prize which is for the poetic talents which are yet to be discovered. Poetry enthusiasts from every nook and corner of the country can produce their piece, maybe a humorous tale, or a love story, a ballad or even a soliloquy. Every kind of poetic piece is most welcome in this program. A huge sum of prize money has been announced as well that will help attracting participation. This competition is open to all Indians of the age group of 15-24 years. The course has been designed for beginners, who have an ardent desire to express themselves but haven’t had a chance earlier. Thus, in the Korean Cultural Centre, Lajpat Nagar, this February DelSlam puts forth a huge opportunity to the ones seeking out to learn slam poetry and convey emotions and perspectives about the world with the help of a powerful and supportive committee. Befriending like-minded people and sharing ideas, DelSlam is giving a chance to share everything you have ever wanted to.

Also, DelSlam has got international performer Alok-Vaid Menon from New York who will be there as the mentor to the participant poets during the program that will take place from 4th Feb-22nd Feb’17. The poets at DelSlam perform on various genres and on topics like taboos related to sex in our society, misogyny in the rap industry and many more.

Here’s a link to watch these young poets delivering artistically their original works that have been updated into a YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuv7kk9fhHwKtIjK2Nta6qQ

Image credits: http://theyellowsparrow.com/

By Radhika Boruah

[email protected]

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Stages of Procrastination

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procrastination

Do you find yourself in impregnable walls of alarmingly close deadlines, overwhelming work, and nowhere to go? Read how procrastination victimises the minds, motivation, and lives!

One of the greatest arts a college student garners over the three-year period is of specialised time management. The term, for a collegiate, involves the regular juggling of assignments, internals, mid-semester exams, societies, internships, and probably a social life. As the pile of nothingness transforms into a maelstrom of chaotic work, one is bound to wonder what goes wrong every semester. What happens to our assiduously planned out schedules and hopes? What hinders our ‘sky is the limit’ ideology?  Ironically, we do. Or more precisely, procrastination does. The process commences with the building of a strong foundation of deception, goes on to inducing lethargy in our lives, and shines in the glory of stress and frustration. Accustom yourselves to the three-fold structure of the perturbing habit!

1. False Hopes and Security

As soon as work intrudes into our let’s-do-nothing-time, the will power squashed within us screams of every probable excuse for us to grant leave out of the mess which lies ahead of us. The humanistic instincts of self-consolation and self-deception comes into play and, thus begins a cycle of work minimisation and inaccurate hope feeding. From “I can finish the assignment in maximum two days, so let’s leave it till then” to “Internals ke pehele ek din padho, ho jayega,” it’s curious how the mind is in cahoots with our pit-low desire to succeed in life!

2. Laziness and Denial

To be fair to the likes of this world, laziness is an inherent trait of this generation. A confluence of incessant scrolling our Facebook feed, clicking puppy-snaps on Snapchat, and stalking year-old pictures on Instagram, our schedules always manage to be occupied. Our lackadaisical attitudes are the USP of our personalities, and this characteristic connects the next dots which form the base of procrastination. In our endeavour to be lazy, denial of truth is like the icing on the cake. Imagine a red devil on your shoulder, telling you to hide the bitter truths of assignments and tests in the deepest pits of your memory. The nerves in your brain churn out a vicious process of indolence, deniability, and severe delusion.

3. Crisis and Midnight Work-Management

The concept of deadlines is like the blaring sound of an alarm clock in the morning. It’s unappealing, stressful, and a symbol of incoming tragedy. By the rules of mathematics, the addition of laziness and self-deception gives a distraught sum of impending crisis. Assignments are often initiated post-midnight, get completed mere hours before the class, and are exceedingly proofread in sighs and close-calls. As the crisis becomes a re-occurring element in our lives, our midnight work duty calls begin to improve over time, till the extent one can write articles and ideas as the envoy of the entity called Procrastination.

Image Credits: Healthline

 Saumya Kalia

[email protected]

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Delhi University Colleges organise self-defence classes post NYE mass molestation

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self-defence

In the wake of mass molestation at Bengaluru which sent shock waves around the nation, colleges in University of Delhi (DU) are going a step ahead by encouraging students to enroll for self-defence classes, and some are even imparting skill development training to empower.

Kirori Mal College (KMC) organised a 15 day long self-defence training camp for girls in collaboration with Delhi Police. “It’s difficult to change the sick mindset in our country. Women empowerment should be more than a slogan. Through this self-defence training, we will enable girls to defend themselves when in need” says Nikhil Agrawal, a third year student of the college. The program which is an initiative of SAHAS – Women Empowerment Cell of the NSS unit of the college started on January 9th.

Hindu College also started a self-defence and skill development program called Project Veerangana. An initiative of Enactus Hindu, the program imparts basic self-defence training for women and also helps them to turn their self-defence skills into a source of livelihood. “The objective of our project is not to just impart self-defence training to women but also help them become young entrepreneurs so that they can market their skills for a basic livelihood and teach more women how to be safe,” said Vishruti Jain, president of Enactus Hindu College. Under a three-tier process, the first 10 days saw a workshop conducted by the special police unit for women and children in association with Evergreen Public School. The self-defence workshop included 40 school students and 30 women from the slum area. After the training process, these women will in turn impart lessons to the other women under the supervision of colleges and schools. The program plans to impart lessons of entrepreneurship and communications to them, so that they can earn a livelihood by imparting these lessons in schools and colleges.

Satyawati College has also begun its self defence training program for girls which would be of 15 days beginning from 20th January. This initiative is being taken up by the NSS unit of the college in collaboration with Delhi Police Ashok Vihar police station. Rashi Nimi, the NSS vice president of Satyawati College says, “Crime is increasing day-by-day and so are the numbers of molestation cases. In such times, it is important that women be empowered in whatever way they can be. The students are very happy that such programs are being conducted, and if the response is good, we will organise it again.”

With growing cases of molestation in colleges and DU being a top choice of meritorious girls across the country, the colleges are serious towards ensuring safety of their students.

Srivedant Kar

[email protected]

Image credits: Prithvijeet Singh Thakur, KMC

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Lady Shri Ram College for Women

Econvista 2017 organised by LSR

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econvista

Econvista is the annual fest of Department of Economics of LSR which was held from 19th Jan-21st Jan’17.  

Econvista 2017 – The International Economics Symposium was organised by Department of Economics of Lady Shri Ram College (LSR), University of Delhi from 19th-21st January, 2017. The first day of the fest began with a learning session ‘Ideas Conclave’ which was graced by speaker Arvind Virmani, an Indian economist who was appointed India’s representative to the International Monetary Fund in 2009 prior to which he was the Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India. In his talk he focused upon the issue of corruption that has paralysed the entire system giving the students a flavour of how policy making works.

Keeping in line with the theme of Econvista ‘17 of exploring alternative development paradigms, The Ideas Conclave witnessed a panel discussion on ‘‘Achieving Inclusive and Sustainable Development: Feasibility & Challenges of Market Economy.” The Chairperson was Dr. Geeta Gouri, a former member of Competition Commission of India while the esteemed panelists included, Dr. Farzana Afridi, Dr. Surajit Mazumdar and Dr. Anirban Kar. The discussion began with Dr. Afridi highlighting the dire income inequality that exists today, particularly in context of the liberal market reforms of the past few decades implemented in emerging markets of the developing world. Dr. Mazumdar took the discussion further by bringing to the forefront the exclusive nature of our economy in status quo. In a labour surplus country like India, people face unemployment or are paid low wages as sellers of their labour services. Following this, Dr. Kar elaborated on problems that remain unsolved through free market operations, such as the under provision of public goods or coordination problems.

Ideas Conclave unleashed its third event of the day, ‘Theatrical Play’ by the renowned Chilsag Entertainment Network. The performers not only charged up the whole atmosphere by their chuckle some act, but also left the audience to ponder over the quotidian yet paramount subject of ‘Woman Empowerment’. The concluding and the most awaited session of the day was – slam poetry by a group called ‘Slip of Tongue’. The theme of Econvista 2017 was “Thinking Beyond the Invisible Hand: Exploring Alternative Development Paradigms”. This session can easily be accredited for having gathered the largest audience as compared to the other sessions. The slam poetry performances revolved substantially around the theme of development and its denotation to them. The first performance was by a trio of Diksha, Shubhra and Cheryl wherein they spoke about norms that women have been following till date.

The online events were Economic Reelties, Eco Trails and Eco Toons, and flagship events were Dr. Saroj Gupta Memorial Paper Presentation, Policy Dilemma, Eco Prayog, Mock IP, Checkmate and Eco Matters. Zestomania was, as per popular opinion, one of the most exciting events of the second day at Econvista’17. Also, the interactive events were Galloping Producers, M Triple A and Zest-O-Mania. The amphitheater became interesting with a flurry of activities as teams from colleges from all over the country engaged in a battle of speed and intellect. All these events entertained participation of students from most of the colleges of Delhi University, and from colleges outside Delhi.

Radhika Boruah

[email protected]

Image credits: www.fuccha.in

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Arts & Culture

Book Review- The Burning Forest: India’s war in Bastar

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“The first casualty when a war comes, is truth”, this quote stares straight at times when people sit to discuss wars. History has been the best witness of how often truth has been molded by victors of wars. Across all the wars, it is the common people who bear the brunt of the conflicts.

This book, written by Nandini Sundar- an award winning sociologist at Delhi School of Economics is a firsthand account of facts, stories and happenings that shaped the war between the Indian State and the Maoists. The book largely deals with the lost lives, casualties and stories of large scale violence that was thrust upon the tribal villages in the name of anti-insurgency operations by the Indian State. Starting from her earlier days when she spent time in the area as a PhD student to her field visits and numerous other times spent in Bastar, the author collects shades from the time to tell the reader the tale of how things were, and how they have been made into what they are now.

She tries to bring to light the marginalized stories about large scale human rights violations, mass molestations and almost everything that has been obscured by the dominant narratives and state control. The book makes the reader express the same words that Supreme Court judgement also featured, ‘Its Horror! It’s Horror!’

If you believe that everything is in black and white in the anti-insurgency operations conducted by the security forces in the jungles, this book is a must read for you. The book throws light on one of the worst of state supported killings of civilians in the history of India as well the legal battles that were fought for justice.

War is not just about suffering and death, but also about the complex workings of bureaucracies, militaries, political groups and societies that form its scaffolding. This book is a must read for students to widen their horizon and discover that which is often concealed in the gaps and silences of the popularized or state sanctioned narratives.

It is imperative for us to know, ‘the Horror!’ that happened in our own country.

You can buy the book here: The Burning Forests
Srivedant Kar

[email protected]

 

 

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DUB News

Student’s Union calls for a strike at Shaheed Bhagat Singh College

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The differences between the College Administration and the Student’s Union at Shaheed Bhagat Singh College (Morning) further widened this week. The crisis between the administration and the union, which has existed for sometime, continued after the removal of the student union’s board from the Canteen Area by the college authorities.

Abhishek Bishnoi, the President of the Student Union and Prateek Kothari, the Vice President of the same body, in conversation with our correspondent maintained that the college has been indifferent to their demands since election time. According to them, the proposals for the Power Backup system and better infrastructure at the Canteen area among other things had been rejected multiple times by the administration.

Prateek Kothari further added that “Even the Student Union display board was erected after many efforts. But the college administration took another offence, this time in response to a grievance post on social media. The display board was torn down. Only after many protests, it was reinstated at a different location.”

The student union’s members also complained about the lack of financial incentives. The Vice President of the student’s Union in this regard said, “Even the bare minimum funds are never made available to us. For instance, only 2.9 lakh has been sanctioned to us for the fest, which is an impossible amount to work with” .

The Students Union had also approached the college authorities, who had refrained entirely from any clarification on the matter. According to the Union members, despite repeated efforts no response has been recorded from the administrations side as yet.

The students of the college seemed harboring similar questions. Sparsh Saini, a first year student, having keenly observed the conversation, had made his opinion and said, “Something is missing. If the fests don’t do well or the infrastructure is bad, it’s the college’s reputation that gets tarnished”.

A strike has been called for in the first week of February by the Student’s Union of the college. “The administration cannot go on kicking us out of the rooms and turning deaf ears to us”, Union members added.

Feature Image Credits: www.sbsec.org 

Nikhil Kumar

[email protected]

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DUB Speak

Is our society really progressive?

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The 21st century human takes pride in being a part of the Forward March of humanity. Inventing ways of leading a smarter life on Earth, we’ve almost believed that the direction in which we’re surging ahead with all our power is the perfect direction to move in. We like calling our ways ‘progressive’, but does a forward march necessarily mean that we’re progressing ahead?

Progress as a society would mean evolving from a place of ignorance to that of awareness, taking everybody together in that direction. But is our society’s advancement from the past to the present an advancing growth of values, mind and the rationale?

Scrolling through the latest music releases, I find catchy titles and music with really good beats, which means that the entire nation is grooving to the music while chanting something like, “Gandi Baat”.Funnily enough,the creators of such music talk about the existence of subtle sexism even in the music of the older times, which means that the meaning thence derived about ‘progressiveness’ is the shift from subtle to explicit and unabashed sexism. While accepting and openly promoting such evolutionary trends, are we actually progressing ahead with our value systems?

Being a woman, I walk alone on the streets with a belief of doing a very bold task, but at the corner of my mind I know that however bold I feel, the intent gazes that follow me all the way do intimidate me. I keep the fear away from my face, but I avoid meeting those men in the eye. And that is what makes me rethink of our society’s progress, the fact that even my mother and my little sister have gone through the same trail of emotions while walking on the streets. Similar gazes, similar defense, have we really progressed?

Flipping through the newspaper, I find the government promoting religious scriptures with all its might, or people fighting over others’ food preferences sidelining their own livelihood in this ‘secular’ nation. Talking about this with my peers, I get insights about incidences of religious intolerance in our nation’s history. Does this then mean that all we’ve been doing ever since is deciding on the superiority of one religion over the other?

As people of a country growing at a phenomenal rate, isn’t it time that we pause and think whether our march ahead is taking our society towards a more rational light? No economic growth is capable of realising the progressive potential in its true sense unless the people of the nation aren’t surging in the right direction. It is time we ask ourselves crucial questions, because if we continue walking blindly ahead, we’re soon going to see our people and society collapse due to misdirected advancement, while being incapable of understanding the cause of the collapse.

Priyal Mahtta
[email protected]

Image Credits: www.dreamstime.com

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