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Anushree Joshi

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A thing that brings all the aspirants of the University of Delhi in this country to a sense of fascination is the University’s engagement with the performing arts. With a plethora of opportunities in fields like dance, music, dramatic, students are exposed to the discipline and the adventure of the arts that interest them. DU Beat brings to you the first of the six installations of its analysis of the top society in DU. The hard work was persistent, and the competition heartening. Let’s delve into who made the cut and how.

Methodology

The best college society in each category was selected by creating a tally of the top 3 positions that could be won at various events. The society that secured the 1st position was awarded 3 points, the society that secured the 2nd position was awarded 2 points, and finally, the society securing the 3rd position was awarded 1 point.

25 college fests were considered in the making of the tally. The selection of these 24 colleges was based upon an analysis done by speaking with members of numerous college societies, and tracking the fests they considered most prestigious. Competitions organised independently and those with less than 4 participating teams were excluded. The considered colleges are:

Shaheed Rajguru College
Maitreyi College
Daulat Ram College
College of Vocational Studies
Shivaji College
Institute of Home Economics
Lady Irwin College
Shyama Prasad Mukherji College
Kamala Nehru College
Delhi College of Arts and Commerce
Ramjas College
Sri Aurobindo College (Morning)
Sri Aurobindo College (Evening)
Sri Guru Gobind Singh College
Kalindi College
Hindu College
Keshav Mahavidyalaya
Bharti College
PGDAV College (Evening)
Moti Lal Nehru College (Morning)
Ramanujan College
Kirori Mal College
Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies
Satyawati College (Evening)Maulana Azad College


Top Three Positions

IVOGUE, the fashion society of Sri Guru Gobind Singh College, has won the best society accolade this time with 25 points. Galore of Maitreyi College followed at the second position with 22 points, and the third position was won by Debonair (Daulat Ram College) with 18 points.

Points Tally: Fashion

The Winning Society at a Glance

Ankit Aggarwal, President at IVOGUE, shared his thoughts on the team’s fourth consecutive victory- “This year our performance is titled as ‘Lost in our Reflection’ which portrays need of an individual to introspect and know about their true-self. This piece inculcates intellectual and experimental fashion together. We are really proud of the fact that we are a self-made society, we have done the designing, choreography, and every other task by ourselves, not depending on any outside help. It warms my heart to be surrounded by this talented bunch of people, their constant hard work for being the best and showcasing our best earned us victories and get acknowledged as the best fashion society yet again.”

Performing Members

Design:

Ankit (President)

Daman (Vice President)

Ishpinder

Harbandana

Divyjot

Public Relations:

Pranay (Head Coordinator)

Ankit

Ayush

Lakshay

Anshika

Choreography:

Daman

Ankit

Pranay

Harbandana

Divyjot

Other performing members:

Rabnoor

Kunjan

Kirandeep

Muskan

Chayan

Jasmine

Jugti

Prabhjot

Bisman

Ishita

Winners Tally

Out of the colleges we considered, I VOGUE won at the following:

1st: College of Vocational Studies, Ramjas College, Kirori Mal College, Keshav Mahavidyalaya, Ramanujan College, Maulana Azad College

2nd: Maitreyi College, PGDAV College (Evening), Kamala Nehru College

3rd: Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies

Data Analysis and Compilation by:

Sakshi Arora

sakshia@dubeat.com

Anushree Joshi

[email protected]

Feature Image Designed by:

Palak Mittal for DU Beat

[email protected]

A thing that brings all the aspirants of the University of Delhi in this country to a sense of fascination is the University’s engagement with the performing arts. With a plethora of opportunities in fields like dance, music, dramatic, students are exposed to the discipline and the adventure of the arts that interest them. DU Beat brings to you the first of the six installations of its analysis of the top society in DU. The hard work was persistent, and the competition heartening. Let’s delve into who made the cut and how.

Methodology

The best college society in each category was selected by creating a tally of the top 3 positions that could be won at various events. The society that secured the 1st position was awarded 3 points, the society that secured the 2nd position was awarded 2 points, and finally, the society securing the 3rd position was awarded 1 point.

33 college fests were considered in the making of the tally. The selection of these 33 colleges was based upon an analysis done by speaking with members of numerous college societies, and tracking the fests they considered most prestigious. The considered colleges are:

Sri Aurobindo College (Morning)
Aryabhatta College
College of Vocational Studies
Dyal Singh College
Daulat Ram College
Delhi College of Arts and Commerce
Gargi College
Guru Gobind Singh College
Hansraj College
Hindu College
Indraprastha College for Women
Jesus and Mary College
Kamala Nehru College
Keshav Mahavidyalaya College
Kirori Mal College
Lady Irwin College
Lady Shri Ram College
Mata Sundri College
Maitreyi College
Miranda House College
Moti Lal Nehru College Morning
PGDAV College- Morning
Ramjas College
Ramanaujan College
Ram Lal Anand College
Satyawati College
Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies
Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Khalsa College
Sri Guru Nanak Dev Khalsa College
Sri Venkateswara College
Shaheed Bhagat Singh College
Shivaji College
Shri Ram College of Commerce


Top Three Positions

ECHO, the western music society of Jesus and Mary College, has won the best society accolade this time with 36 points. Euphony of Gargi College followed at the second position with 23 points, and the third position was tied between the western music society of Lady Shri Ram College (WMS-LSR) and Sound Machine of St. Stephen’s College with 15 points.

Points Tally: Western Music

The Winning Society at a Glance

ECHO, the western music society of Jesus and Mary College, is known to be a colossal army of 22 talented and strong women who thrive to share every inch of their soul through their musical oeuvre.

Jannis Joe, President, expressed her delight to DU Beat-  “It’s been one hell of a ride, and we would happily buy tickets to it again. Leading this dream team has been a complete pleasure and honour. I’m so grateful to have such passionate members who not only put their heart and soul into our piece, but also do justice to our vision. Honestly, I never could have asked for a better platform to echo our love for music. Thank you for giving me a larger than life experience.”

“Every member has literally put her blood, sweat, and tears into the making of this piece over months of diligent perseverance, right from the arrangement, to every part and every harmony. Apart from the wins, personally, our chief momentous achievement was the success of teamwork and the complete cathartic satisfaction of expressing ourselves while living every moment of our experience through our music, knit together as one. Thank you for this journey on such a brilliant platform,” shared Sara Joseph, Vice President.

They added, “This fest season was absolutely amazing and memorable. We are deeply touched and humbled by the tremendous response we got this year, and would like to thank and congratulate all the other teams for putting on a good show and fighting the good fight.”

Performing Members

Jannis Joe (President)

Sara Joseph (Vice President)

Akhila Sarah Mathew

Alisha Abigail Mohanty

Anisha Mathew

Anukriti Menon

Ashnita Ashwin

Blessy Jacob

Crystal Dessa

Dhanya Kuriakose

Faith Samuel

Hema Georgina Biswas

Khushi Pallavi

Michelle Masih

Prathibha John

Rency Verghese

Rhea Anthony

Samantha Elizabeth D’Cruz

Sanjana Kishore

Sharon George

Shincy Sara John

Srisha Sarkar

Winners Tally:

Out of the colleges included in the tally, ECHO secured victorious positions at the following college fests:

1st: Dyal Singh College, Delhi College of Arts and Commerce, Hansraj College, Kamala Nehru College, Kirori Mal College, Lady Shri Ram College, Miranda House, Sri Venkateswara College

2nd: College of Vocational Studies, Gargi College, Moti Lal Nehru College (Morning), Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies

3rd: Hindu College, Indraprastha College for Women, Ramjas College, Shri Ram College of Commerce

Data Analysis and Compilation by:

Shivani Dadhwal

[email protected]

Anushree Joshi

[email protected]

Feature Image Designed by:

Palak Mittal for DU Beat

[email protected]

A thing that brings all the aspirants of the University of Delhi in this country to a sense of fascination is the University’s engagement with the performing arts. With a plethora of opportunities in fields like dance, music, dramatic, students are exposed to the discipline and the adventure of the arts that interest them. DU Beat brings to you the first of the six installations of its analysis of the top society in DU. The hard work was persistent, and the competition heartening. Let’s delve into who made the cut and how.

Methodology

The best college society in each category was selected by creating a tally of the top 3 positions that could be won at various events. The society that secured the 1st position was awarded 3 points, the society that secured the 2nd position was awarded 2 points, and finally, the society securing the 3rd position was awarded 1 point.

33 college fests were considered in the making of the tally. The selection of these 33 colleges was based upon an analysis done by speaking with members of numerous college societies, and tracking the fests they considered most prestigious. The considered colleges are:

Sri Aurobindo College (Morning)
Aryabhatta College
Bharti College
College of Vocational Studies
Dyal Singh College
Daulat Ram College
Delhi College of Arts and Commerce
Gargi College
Guru Gobind Singh College
Hansraj College
Hindu College
Jesus and Mary College
Kamala Nehru College
Keshav Mahavidyalay
Kirori Mal College
Lady Irwin College
Lady Shri Ram College
Mata Sundari College
Maitreyi College
Miranda House College
Moti Lal Nehru College Morning
Moti Lal Nehru College Evening
PGDAV- Morning
PGDAV- Evening
Ramjas College
Ramanaujan College
Ram Lal Anand College
Satyawati College
Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies
SGTB Khalsa College
SGND Khalsa College
Sri Venkateshwara College
Shaheed Bhagat Singh College
Shivaji College
Shri Ram College of Commerce
Shyama Prasad Mukherji College
Zakir Hussain College (Evening)
Zakir Hussain College (Morning)

Top Three Positions

Hansraj College won the accolades with 29 points, followed by Kirori Mal College and College of Vocational Studies at the second and third positions with 18 and 16 points, respectively.

Points Tally: Street Play

The Winning Society at a Glance

Siddhartha Bedi, Vice President of Hansraj Dramatics Society, spoke with DU Beat-“What we achieved this year has been such a dream come true for all of us, especially for the outgoing batch. The achievements and the positions are all wonderful, but the kind of love that the circuit has showered upon us this year has been beyond phenomenal. If I had to credit the success to anyone, it would obviously be the team in itself. I don’t think we would’ve been able to accomplish even half as much as we did, without us all giving in our blood(sometimes literally) and sweat, our days and our nights to the society. Hansraj will always only grow with such passionate and fanatical members at the helm of it! Go Hansraj!”

Performing Members

Siddhartha Bedi (Street Director)
Karan Maru (Street Director)

Ankur Rawat (Music Director)
Siddharth Vasu (Music Director)
Shivee Dabas (Street Coordinator)

Shohit Rohilla (Street  Coordinator)

Actors:

Shubham Pal
Drishti Singh
Hritik Kapoor
Lokesh Saini
Shikhar Chand
Riyaz Khan
Deepanshu Baghel
Animesh Pandey
Nipun Khatri
Ayush Kumar

Garima Sethi

Gaurav Panjwan
Karan Bali
Mamta Kujur
Manoj Lakhera
Mehul Sihmar
Niket K. Khadgawat
Ragini Sarmah
Sampriti Dutta
Sahej Sahni
Siddharth Kanojiya
Shipra
Smruthi Krishnan
Vani Duggal

Sanjana Choudhary
Yeshaswini Venkatesan
Sharon Verma
Amarjeet Kumar
Aditya Jha
Pratyaksh Tuteja

 

Winners Tally

Out of the colleges included in the tally, Hansraj College secured victorious positions at the following college fests:

1st: College of Vocational Studies, Delhi College of Arts and Commerce, Moti Lal Nehru College (Morning), Satyawati College, Shyama Prasad Mukherji College, Zakir Hussain Delhi College (Evening)

2nd: Ram Lal Anand College, Shri Ram College of Commerce, SGND Khalsa Collee, Shaheed Bhagat Singh College, Maitreyi College

3rd: Sri Venkateswara College

Data Analysis and Compilation by:

Shivani Dadhwal

[email protected]

Anushree Joshi

[email protected]

Feature Image Designed by:

Palak Mittal for DU Beat

[email protected]

 

St. Stephen’s College will soon begin the admission process, reportedly from 6th May. Unlike other colleges in the University of Delhi (DU), it has a long process for selection along with high cut offs.

The admission process in the University of Delhi (DU) for the cycle of 2019-2020 will begin with St. Stephen’s College releasing its prospectus, admission application, and residence forms on 6th May.

The college has a different admission procedure from other DU colleges. After clearing the cut-offs, students write an exam and then have an interview for their selection. In this, class 12 marks carry a weightage of 85%, the aptitude test carries 5% and the interview carries 10%. The college has 410 seats and offers 10 courses, including English, Computer Science, Urdu, and Persian, among others. It also has 40% seats reserved for Christians.

In the 2019 college rankings by the National Institute of Ranking Framework (NRIF), St. Stephen’s stood as the fourth best college on the list and third best college in Delhi. Given its prestigious name, the competition to get into one of the best colleges is also equally high, where the cut offs last year soared to a 98.5% for Economics and 98% for English for General category aspirants.

The college also releases separate cut-off lists for courses in Humanities, Commerce, and Science. As seen in last year’s cut offs, Commerce students have a relatively higher cut-off, sometimes by a margin of 2.5%.

In order to apply to DU, the students need to first register in the university admissions portal to generate a form number and ID, which they then use to apply to the different colleges. For the application to be valid, students also need to pay the admission fee. Jesus and Mary College also follows the same procedure for admissions.

Feature Image Credits: Adithya Khanna for DU Beat

Shivani Dadhwal

[email protected]

With mental health related concerns at an all time high, those suffering from them often find themselves surrounded by the fear of being stigmatised which restricts them from seeking professional help.

Despite all the progress we make, mental health still remains as the most ignored and misunderstood aspect of one’s health. Due to a lack of any physical symptoms most of the times, there is little awareness of what a person suffering from any form of mental illness goes through daily, battling his/her own mind. Not being acknowledged and understood further aggravate their situations.

It may still have been bearable for them, had there only been ignorance surrounding it. But unfortunately, this ignorance and unawareness has led to the development of a stigma around mental illness. Those suffering from any of its form are looked down upon and not treated as any other ‘normal’ human being.

This deplorable condition of mental health restricts its treatment the most. Those suffering, fear getting professional help. The constantly hanging sword of public stigma often slowslows down their steps towards seeking help. “What if I get termed as ‘mad’ or ‘mental’?” said Kratika of Kamala Nehru College (KNC) when apprising about the reasons why she didn’t visit a professional during her days filled with acute anxiety.

Those having even history of ever undergoing psychological or psychiatric treatment are more often than not being judged as mentally and emotionally unstable or unfit for any leadership positions.

This public stigma is, thus, further hampering the awareness and betterment of the mental health scenario. The stigma is unfortunately not just public, but also self-inflicted wherein one labels himself/herself as unacceptable for having the need of seeking help to cure one’s mental health concerns. They find themselves struggling with low self-esteem and confidence for having developed a strong need of professional help. Sakshi from KNC says that the only reason she still hasn’t approached a psychologist is because she thinks it would be really helpless and weak of her to visit one. The already disturbing illness doubled with the lack of self-worth is one dangerous combination and becomes a never-ending dungeon, from which escape becomes even more difficult.

These two stigmas aren’t mutually exclusive all the time, for quite often it is the constant public stigma that gives birth to self stigma.

The lack of intervention of professional help can have dire consequences for those having a mental ailment. These stigmas denigrate the situation further. Thus, it becomes acutely pertinent to not just create awareness of mental health but also to normalise seeking help for those suffering.

Image Credits: Adam Easo

Shreya Agrawal

s[email protected]

The modes and media of conversations are evolving over time. It has become a broad spectrum that involves textual, verbal, and non-verbal components. Emoticons is a new addition; let’s take a look at what it brings to the table.

Emoticons, or popularly called ‘emojis’ are certainly a new trend; they make conversations on texts easier, funnier, more meaningful and enjoyable. Their usage has become a norm and a significant one at that. Anyone barely completes a conversation without using emojis.  Students from the University of Delhi (DU) also shared their feelings about them.

Shubhi Gupta, a student of Lady Sri Ram College, commented, “I have had conversations with my friends solely based on emojis, it helps convey a message properly, my message might sound rude, but adding a smiley face in the end makes all the difference in the world.” Similarly, Himanika Agarwal, another student of Gargi College, believes that using emojis has changed the way she texted; she said, “It takes less time and efforts and makes the conversation more interesting.”

Image Credits: Pinterest
Image Credits: Pinterest

Maumil Mehraj, a student of Maitreyi College, shared that emoticons honestly captured one’s emotions and many a times one emoji became just a symbol of politeness for them. She stated, “For me, the butterfly emoji is a favourite. I would use that when I don’t have anything else to say and by using it the conversation ends on a very polite note. And I have noticed it for many people, some use a flower, a rainbow or a branch. Every person has their own favourite.”

However, everyone is not in sync with this trend and many a times it leads to disastrous results. Using inappropriate emojis makes you seem arrogant or insensitive. One of my friends kept on using the yin-yang emoji that showcases depression and deep dissatisfaction for every instance. In another example, Gaurvi Rustogi from Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies shared that, by mistake, during a serious conversation she sent a ‘laughing out loud’ emoji which made things inappropriate and awkward.

Image Credits: Pinterest
Image Credits: Pinterest

The nature of conversation and chatting is ever-evolving, people have now moved onto using popular GIFs and animated pictures to convey their feelings, be it sad or funny. Using these visual forms is making conversations healthier and refreshing. Maybe in a few years, just like the legendary words of Gina Linneti, “the English Language won’t be able to fully capture the depth and complexity of our thoughts and we will incorporate emojis to better express ourselves.” (Winky Face)

Feature Image Credits: Odyssey

Sakshi Arora

[email protected]m

 

Read our Print Editor’s words of gratitude to the friends who anchored her and made her grow up at the same time. Share them with yours, because letters never go out of style.

Dear College Best Friends,

I would ideally start this letter by recalling a fond childhood memory, or saying how the last fifteen years of my life would not have been the same without you. However, as shocking as it seems, we technically did not grow up together, but we did, in so many more ways than age could ever define the terms “growing up.” When I entered the dynamic world of being a university student, I had this preconceived notion about not finding anyone better than my school mates. I am glad you proved me wrong (for once).

To my college best friend whom I met in the first week of classes in the first year, thank you for being scared with me. First year was a rollercoaster ride in terms of emotions and to have someone to share the fear and nerves, was comforting. Thank you for being my cheerleader during my society auditions, for being as shocked to hear how much the academic structure was so different and advanced from CBSE (which seemed like the toughest thing we would ever tackle in life during twelfth grade), and for pretending to be grown up mature adults, when we were so naïve and foolish.

To my college best friend whom I met in the second year college, thank you for being reckless with me. Second year in college is the year for all the mistakes and you stood by me through all my phases. Thank you for being a shoulder to cry on when I went through that one (or multiple) breakup(s), for being my partner in crime (sometimes, literally), for being the person who discovered how much capacity I had in terms of intoxicating substances (you know what I mean), for being my cover in front of my parents (who love you more than they love me) when I needed to get out of the house, for standing up to the professor who hated me for no reason, and for never judging me or abandoning me through all the mishaps and my embarrassing moments.

To my college best friend from third year, thank you for being my support system. Third year, although it has not fully culminated yet, has been the scariest year thus far, in which, we have done the most “growing up.” Thank you for always taking my late night calls, listening and relating to my rants. You could not always give me the best advice, but the fact that you were there to listen to help me think out loud, meant so much to me that I could not possibly address it adequately in words. You helped me through countless points of existential crises, comforted me through multiple breakdowns, and held my hand through job / grad – school rejection letters.

Some of you, I have known for all three years of my college, and some I got the pleasure of meeting through my journey as a college student. But each one of my “best” friends has contributed substantially to the person I am today. From deciding our outfit for our freshers’ party to going shopping for our farewell saree, it has been a wild ride and I am glad I had you as my companion. Thank you for being the Siddharth and Sameer to my Akshay, the Avi and Aditi to my Bunny. This may be a farewell from the classrooms we have spent three years sleeping in, but this certainly isn’t a goodbye. I look forward to hearing your rants about your future colleagues / Master’s professors. I look forward to growing up some more, with you.

Dear college best friends, for you, I am eternally grateful.

Yours truly,

Bhavya Banerjee

[email protected]

Image Credits: Deepesh Varshney for DU Beat

Image Caption: Graduating Seniors of DUB (from left to right; Saubhagya Saxena, Sharvi Maheshwari, Vijeata Balani, Bhavya Banerjee, Akarsh Mathur, Kinjal Pandey, Niharika Dabral, Adithya Khanna).

With the first three months of the year gone, let us look back at how these months went ahead for us and what will the rest of the year have in store for us.

In the blink of an eye, I remember dosing off to sleep at 4 A.M. on the first of January, after all the New Year wishes were attended to, and now as the fourth month of this year has started, I simply wonder how and where did these three months go.

The first trimester of the year, for any University of Delhi (DU) student is absorbed in the fest season, either in attending it or, as a participant, running every other day for competitions in some or the other host college. The intensity of the course takes a back-seat with the incessant strikes, which we callously enjoy, without truly acknowledging their purpose.

I would like to ask a simple question- all of us make New Year’s resolutions, but, do we even stick to them? While I genuinely don’t believe in the concept of making resolutions particularly when the calendar flips the date to 01/01, I believe any time can be the perfect time to turn over a new leaf. Without digressing further, let me get back to my question. What is the strategic realism to these resolutions, as hardly a few make it past the first week of their marked promises, before narrowing back to their old lifestyle. Annie Rana, a literature student of Maitreyi College, feels, “The fact that every week, month, or situation asks out of us different ways to react or behave, so keeping resolution as a sole means to discipline (yourself), won’t really help.”

As every year has something or the other in it to look forward to, 2019 too has witnessed a lot so far in these three months. Talking about the personal, national, and the international front, we have faced a tough three months to begin with, and while the next trimester has already started, the election fury will reign over as the midtown madness this summer. The next trimester will look forward to ‘voting for the first time’ for a majority of us, or having to make career-related choices, or entering a new path of life; every demarcation of the calendar has been split with a beautiful finesse.

“Every month, I track my growth. Some acts are bound to be childish, but I tend to see a progression in the maturity,” says Heena, a student of Maitreyi College as she looks at her journey in 2019 so far. To map out your journey is a really important thing and when most of us miss out on this, a sense of existential crisis hits us. To look back when I started college, the change from 2017 to 2019, not just as a big bracket of 730 days, but as the mental growth which chartered into me is also something which can be represented as a progressing draft, in the fourth quadrant.

The sentiment that each year holds is also important. As I look at the batch which will graduate this year, 2019 marks as this primal year which will witness a major change in them, and while three months have buzzed past us, the sinking of them in the memory and action won’t. It was a series of lasts. Talking to my seniors, I could figure out how every competition, every fest, every department activity associated with the college, would be their last. With that emotion flaring in, the efforts, the smile, and the hidden tears were a mixed bag of emotions through the entire three months. As this month will go ahead as the ‘vidaai’ or the farewell time for them, the bucketful of memories they take on with them is sublime.

To 2019 so far, you haven’t been particularly kind, and I don’t expect you to get sweet and mellow, anytime soon. Conclusions are sweeter, cathartic. I have been exhausted and drained completely, and in these three months, the motivation has been sucked out of me (too bad the exams are right around the corner). As the summer will settle in with the hope of getting off a daily routine, i.e. college, I will find a relief (I suppose so), from the experience which was- the daily running to Sadar Bazaar, as the department and college fests lined up, being on the phone 24*7 for sponsorships, scripting my real conversations as well! From not being able to take time out with the friends and sit in the comfort or solace each other like we do as a routine to finding the infinitesimal balance between studies, societies, interning, and working in a media house, from forming mental ticks in my mind as the work load started gliding away, one after the other, swiftly, to sitting back and sipping tea in nostalgia and having the worst phase of constant bouts of low self-esteem and worth, and finding the phase of confidence back; I can say these three months took a lot from me and gave me back a bitter-sweet collection of everything.

To 2019, I promised myself this year will be a sole devotion to travel and exploration- the physical and the mental aspect of this duality. And as every month, a new travel destination finds its spot in my heart and I set forth to plan it out, every place I visit, makes a spiritual connection within me and with this hope, the year will progress with its own set of ups and downs which I will look forward to with an open heart.

Feature Image Credits: Eastside Projects

Avnika Chhikara

[email protected]

The coming of Indian Web Series in the market has sure created a buzz by talking about things never discussed before. This comes with both positive as well as negative effects.

The ever-growing popularity of internet has led to the increase in the viewership of visual content. Several applications have been created in the recent times to cater to the market of visual media. The emergence of web series, in this respect, is perhaps the most prominent effect time has had on visual media. Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar, etc, have also stepped into the field of creating content rather than just distributing; several Indian channels have also taken the form of applications or apps as we know them.

Since the internet offers a greater audience than any other mode of communication in today’s time, makers have also stepped into the field of creating content for the internet (various apps included). Indian web series have stemmed out, as a result; as a river for the sea of already existing content online. Interestingly, they are stepping away from the standards set by the daily soap opera culture. Western values hav a lot to do with this, of course, but the consequences are both positive and negative.

A second year student from SGTB Khalsa College says, “Nudity in Indian web series has been made possible, courtesy western drama. With them being open about these things, they are not a taboo completely by themselves. Same goes with the use of profanity.” It is true that the way sex is shown in the web series being made in India is a lot different than the way it is hushed about in the soap operas and that it is an effect of the western shows that are relatively open about such things. The release of Sacred Games (on Netflix) took the audience by surprise initially by its presentation of profanity and promiscuity. With the typical Anurag Kashyap lingo, Sacred Games created a huge buzz among the viewers. Shows like Criminal Justice (on Hotstar) or Delhi Crime (on Netflix) have resorted to showing the dark side of law and justice.

Series like Made in Heaven and Four More Shots Please (on Amazon Prime) have even taken up the issues of the LGBTQ community. But where these web shows have taken a positive turn into the tricky road of revolutionising the industry and creating a market of their own through presenting things that were not previously even considered to be presentable, they are also, in some ways, misrepresenting or wrongly showing the actuality of things. A third year student from Jesus and Mary College says, “I think Indian shows generally confuse ‘progressive thinking’ with sexual promiscuity and functional alcoholism which appears to be just the case nowadays.”

Where it should be duly acknowledged that we, as a society, lack even minimal formal sex education, it should also be realised that the accessibility of sexual content by young people may have more harmful consequences than one might expect. The way an immature mind perceives such sensitive issues can be easily measured by the number of minors participating in the act of raping girls and women on a daily basis. Therefore, though it is important to talk and represent the concerns regarding issues of sex, sexuality, alcohol, etc, it is also equally important to focus on the how(s), when(s) and why(s).  

Feature Image Credits : NDTV

Akshada Shrotriya

[email protected]

The Indian Annual Symposium, saw an amalgamation of academicians, the Government, and industry leaders to illustrate the possibilities of scientific advancement.

On Thursday, 4th February 2019 at Vigyan Bhawan, the Indian Annual Symposium – ‘Science and Society’- was organised by the Lakshmi Mittal South Asia Institute (LMSAI) Harvard University, in collaboration with NITI Aayog and Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India. The opening ceremony was graced by Mr. Tarun Khanna, Director of LMSAI. Mr. Khanna talked about bridging the gap between scientists and the society.

Following the ceremony, the first session was titled ‘Setting the Context for Science and Society’ and it was moderated by Mr. Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog. The first speaker of this session, Dr. V.K. Saraswat, Member (S&T), NITI Aayog and Chancellor, Jawaharlal Nehru University spoke of science as an important tool for the sustainable society. He further said that science, technology, and society are a three-way road which must go together as they have the power to transform civilisation. He ended his note by urging social scientists and society leaders to take lead for converting problem areas to workable strategies and decisions, especially in the fields of agriculture and healthcare.

The next speaker of the session was Ms. Kiran Mazumdar, Chairperson and Managing Director, Biocon, who talked about the areas and the ways in which India needs to improve in science and technology. She said that science should be celebrated and well-connected with the society.

Dr. K. Vijay Raghavan, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, took the session forward by highlighting the biggest challenge faced the nation, which is the lack in inclusiveness of the three pillars of the country – government, industry, and civil society. He stated that science and technology, which is the fourth pillar of the nation, can help overcome this challenge. For that, he added, the country needs to embark upon large scale educational programmes so that the “language of science” is accessible to all. Countering Ms. Mazumdar’s example of Bangalore as a success model, Dr. Raghavan called the success essentially “an accident.” Thus, according to him, there’s a need to be little more active if we were to replicate the same success in multiple places.

Mr. Amitabh Kant ended the session by voicing the need of massive investments in science and technology for the development of India.

The second session of the Symposium was to highlight the ‘Technological Advancements in Agriculture,’ moderated by Mr. Manoj Kumar, Senior Advisor and Head – Innovation, Tata Trusts.

Dr. Shannon Olsson, Associate Professor, Naturalist-Inspired Chemical Ecology, National Centre for Biological Sciences, talked about the challenges faced by agriculture in India. She highlighted the need for India to have a better handle of its diversity and to focus on adapting sustainable technology. According to her, the ecological regions in the country need to be identified and awareness must be increased among the people.

Mr. Amitabh Mohanty then elaborated how we need to have “competency development” as well as “capacity development.” In his speech, he focused on the challenge# faced by the farmers – such as land, input quality, weather, nutrition security, and how it’s pertinent to have a look at farming needs and using technology to fulfill it.

Dr. Suresh Subramani, Professor of Molecular Biology at the University of California, San Diego said that extensive export of crude and food by India has precipitated a national crisis in food security. He introduced to the audience CRISPR-cas technology and explained how it can be beneficial for the farmers. According to him, India has immense potential to leverage this technology. He also made everyone of its challenges since it’s a new technology.

At the end of the session, Dr. Olsson strongly condemned the need for any more new policy. She added that the country already has a lot many of them and it’s time that people work on the existing policies.

Dr. Venkatesh Murthy, Professor and Chair of Molecular and Cellualar Biology, Harvard University, moderated the third session of the event titled ‘Why study Life Sciences?’ He initiated the discussion by highlighting how Life Sciences is intrinsic to the daily life of the people.

The first speaker of this session, Mr. Sanjeev Galande, Professor and Chair of Biology, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research said that Life Sciences provides us with a platform to find the common thread of life. In his well elaborated presentation, he explained various technologies like single cell biology, and next generation sequencer, among others.  

Dr. Yamuna Krishnan, Professor, Department of Chemistry, University of Chicago, began her address with a powerful statement – “We are all born basic scientists.” She demanded innovations in labs and universities to have supportive mechanisms to bring them out and make them reach people.  

The session continued with Mr. J. Satyanarayana, Chairman of Unique Identification Authority of India, addressing important concerns regarding designing a system for health care which utilises data securely and creates a system that is “secure by design, private by design” in his National Digital Health Mission report.

Mr. Rahul Matthan, Lawyer, Head of Technical Division, raised ethical and legal questions regarding privacy and security. This was followed by a panel discussion and a short Q/A session.

The next session was led by Mr. Tarun Khanna, and focused on ‘Method and Tools to Enhance STEM Education in India.’ Mr. Dmitry Popov, Technology Development fellow in the Wyss Institute at Harvard, gave a detailed account of Soft Robotic Toolkit which can be used by high school and university students alike to explore the world of robotics.

The concluding session included Dr. Rajiv Kumar, Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog, talking about an effective system of government and industry working together to achieve development in the society with the help  of science and technology.

Image Credits: Surbhit Rastogi for DU Beat

Maumil Mehraj

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Shreya Agrawal

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Antriksha Pathania

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