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Pretentious DU Review

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Delhi University (DU) seems to be the dream of almost every kid, cramming up all possible books to fetch a seat, performing all sorts of rituals for the sake of one’s dream college. The competition goes on and on. But is the DU craze justified?

 

  • North Campus Elitism

The ‘colony’ of colleges is a peculiar attribute of DU, thanks to Rang-De-Basanti, maybe that is why the north campus hype prances in its (hyped) glory? The overemphasis of the north campus, somewhere down the line, suggests the underlying elitism. While if one cares to hover their eyes over the map of Delhi, other colleges like Lady Shri Ram, Sri Venkateshwara College, Gargi College, etc. also exist. And do we even need to acquaint you with the ‘North Campus vs. South Campus’ tussle? You know the story from numerous YouTube videos. We get it North Campus, you have Virgin Tree in Hindu College and Kamla Nagar’s momos but that’s all there is.

  •  Study Culture

The infamous study culture of DU is not a secret. Many condemn that DU has only been successful in imparting degrees, but has failed when it comes to imparting knowledge. “A student from Calcutta University will take tuitions, will study for umpteen number of hours, while a DU student will pick up their books a week before the examinations. And at the end of the day, score more than us.” says, a pass out from Calcutta University who wished to be anonymous. The prominent DU degree is just a facade, while colleges like NLU and IITs provide high placements to their toppers, DU provides just boasting rights as placements at DU does not exist, well except for SRCC.

  • Infrastructure

Panting fans, ceilings which give a ‘near-to-death’ experience (we’re pointing at you Daulat Ram College), roads which remain under construction even after you clear all your backs and a master’s degree, washrooms (we’ll leave it to your imagination), aren’t these a class apart? (Note the heavy sarcasm). The infrastructure of DU is a different story altogether, a story which is poles apart from the preconceived image of DU. A DU aspirant with ambition in eyes is often met with broken benches, more broken than their hopes.

  •  Classes and Timetables

The classes have a scenario worth noticing! Classes are packed with over 100 students, which look more like a poultry farm than a classroom. Maybe it is our time to shout – “DU, is this a fish market?” The given timetable and the actual timetable never lie parallel, the once jam-packed timetable, at the end of the day, is nothing but a series of lectures which were cancelled because Monica ma’am went for vacation and college forgot to hire a guest teacher. You can also witness the deadly shift of classes, the 11:30 a.m. class can become a 3:15 p.m. class keeping you in college that longer.

  •  Societies (oh, the drama!)

The society hype stands above all other self-acclaimed accolades of DU. The incessant number of forms filled, rounds of interviews and the introductory workshops. Maybe getting into an MNC is easier! Questions like, “Will you be able to sacrifice food, classes, attendance, relationships?” give you a major existential crisis. Sadly sometimes, students dedicate their entire college life for getting into a society, not because they actually want to be in it, but because they want to be a part of the hype. I guess you know which societies we’re thinking about!

 

  • The Election Season

If you felt that Delhi has an aggressive winter season, you never visited DU in the election season. Elections lean more towards littering, unnecessary Bharat Mata Ki Jai chants, brochure distribution and more cancelled classes than the actual purpose of elections, voting and student empowerment. Remember the “koi bhi dikkat ho toh bhai ko batana” (if you face any problem, let your brother know about it) you got from some seniors? It was for this day!

It’s time that DU pulls up its socks. The actual-DU and the glorified-DU are two different worlds! As different as the world we live in and Neverland. Like the cut-offs, even the DU standards should have inflated.

 

Feature Image Credits: Niharika Dabral for DU Beat

 

Priyanshi Banerjee

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 Chhavi Bahmba

[email protected]

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DUB Speak

On the Cliff: Empathy and Kindness for Post-Millennials

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The life at the University of Delhi (DU) teaches us to internalise pressure and believe that everyone is capable of handling their pressure the way we have been doing so far. Caught up in this web, we millennials tend to let go of empathy and kindness.

Last week, as the World Suicide Prevention Week was coming to an end on 14th September, in a casual conversation with a friend – who thinks Jake Peralta is the best thing that happened to planet Earth – she said to me when a movie she loved ended, “Oh God, I want to die it was that good!” Neither did it make me uncomfortable, nor did it make me question her if “wanting to die” was the phrase she actually wanted to use, but it made me laugh and move on. Only when the very next day, I found myself in my bed, wanted to vanish into a world only Jaadu could know of, did I come to think of how trivially she, and most of us, use death terminology in our daily lives. I was not suicidal – I want to make that very clear (and not only because my parents read this) – but I was triggered into a state of unbearable sadness, and numbing anxiety, due to something relatively insignificant in retrospect.

DU is a space that swings between two extremes: one, of lethargy and passivity to a point that you feel your potential decrease, or two, of activity and competition to an extent that you feel you are always short of your own best version. If you are somebody who is driven by the second extreme of DU, then the pressure of balancing academics (the neverending assignments and internal tests), internships, co-curricular, and social life, gets to you. This is not an advisory on how you need to prioritise and compartmentalise to maintain your mental health and sanity, because I know we all try to do that. Nobody likes always being on the verge of a breakdown, overworked and, in proper millennial slang, “dead inside”. But we often forget that the world around us has an integral role to play in how stressful our lives are.

For students who find themselves in the same classroom, society, or college, it is tough to develop understanding and familiarity. At our age, we are used to a certain lifestyle, a certain mindset, and a certain kind of friend circle. However, empathy is a concept we often forgo in this literal and mental journey. We are all so infused in our adjustments and issues that we trivialise the value of someone else’s issues. We are quick to pass judgments and form lasting opinions based on Instagram stories that fade away after twenty-four hours. Caught up in our 8:45 a.m. lectures, Friday deadlines, and weekend trips to Majnu ka Tilla, we generalise that everyone is capable of handling their pressure the way we have been doing so far.

When my friend suggested “death” in that moment of thoughtlessness, I paid no heed. But data suggests that there is approximately one suicide happening across the world every 40 seconds. The statistic is a frightening reminder that self-harm and death are not punchlines for over eight lakh people who die in just a year.

It is insensitive to categorise every stressed or sad youth as depressed, but it is important to understand that so much of what we do, say, or give out to the people around us – especially our peers – has the power of being a trigger. We, in our bubbles of tremendous pressure, have come to a point where we are empathetic to causes in Hong Kong and China because of accessibility, but we are mindless to the well-being of our peers, despite accessibility.

While it is not possible to save everyone around us since our well-being is compromised every day in the challenge that young adult life is, the least we can do as learners of empathy and kindness, is not pushing or even nudging, somebody off the cliff.

 

Anushree Joshi

[email protected]

 

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Campus Central

Shattering Stereotypes About Girls’ Colleges

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Women’s colleges are almost always associated with many stereotypes. This article talks about some of the most persistent ones.

The University of Delhi (DU) has around 20 women’s colleges affiliated to it. There are many stereotypes that most of the girls from an all-girl’s college get to hear on an everyday basis. While co-ed colleges are associated with fun and partying, girls’ colleges are called boring. Many of these stereotypes have been known for ages, seemingly. But they are clearly not applicable in the 21st century. Here is a list of some of the common stereotypes.

  • “Oh girls do nothing but back-bitching!”

Girls do not back-bitch but they hold each other’s back. Girls know girls, and this brings them closer. We do not spend hours bitching about others, but we talk about life, philosophy, and politics. College life is known for lifelong bonds and the bond that a group of girls’ share is priceless.

  • Girls’ colleges are boring

The most common stereotype that a lot of us hear is that girls’ colleges are boring because no boys, mean no fun. They are seen as gloomy places where the greatest concern of the students is the lack of men. Nevertheless, whatever your definition of fun may be, the definition of fun for a girl from an all girls’ institution is very different, and they do not need guys to have fun. They eat, dance and party without being dependent on guys. A group of girls is enough for themselves.

  • There’s a long queue of guys outside every girls’ college

‘Girls college hai toh kya, bahar to ladke khade hi rehte hai’. This stereotype leads us to another stereotype that boys do not have any other work and they can stand outside colleges just for stealing glances at girls. The only guys we spot outside the college are ‘rickshaw vale bhaiya’.

  • Girls and gossip are inseparable

We get to hear most of the times that girls live for gossip. They know who’s doing what, who’s seeing who, and everything else. But oh, is it so? As an answer to this, let me say, no, not all girls gossip. We have a lot of other things to do than talking about someone else’s life. Not everyone sitting in the canteen is gossiping about random things. They have a lot more things to do.

  • All girls are interested in girls

A very common and very lame perception is that girls who go to girls’ college are sexually inclined towards other girls or they tend to change their sexual orientation by the end of college. Why can’t people believe that having girls around does not mean that they will be attracted to each other? Girls who are attracted to girls are found everywhere and not just in an all-girls’ college.

  • Are you one of those feminist types?

One question that most people ask girls from a women’s college is if they are a feminist. The answer to this question can be yes or no. But this does not depend on the institution that they go to. The fact that a person is a feminist or not completely depends on their own opinions. Neither are all girls feminists, nor are those from a girls’ college Femi-nazis.

  • Girls are jealous of each other

Having girls all around doesn’t mean that they will just be envious of each other. If a girl checks out clothes, shoes, and bags of others, it does not mean that she is jealous. She might go up to her and tell her that she looks pretty. Neither all girls judge other nor are they involved in catfights.

  • They do not know politics

Girls are apolitical is what a lot of people say. But just the fact that most of the women’s colleges in DU are not affiliated to Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) does not mean that the girls are alien to DU politics. They might be away from the common election atmosphere, but this does not mean that they do not know what is going on outside their colleges. Girls do have their own political opinions and they understand the right and wrong politics.

Stereotyping is so common in our society that at times, we forget to look beyond those stereotypes. All the girls’ colleges affiliated to the University of Delhi are a symbol of strength. They are like safe havens for women. One thing that people do not commonly talk about is that women’s colleges are phenomenal institutions which create fearless and independent women.

Feature Image Credits: DUB Archives

Priya Chauhan

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Arts & Culture

Hysterical Society Auditions: #JustDUThings

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The University of Delhi (DU) owes its fames to the college societies, in part. Touted as the best platforms to skyrocket your explorations into your skills and art, every society maintains a paradigm to approve their novel associations. More often than not, these auditions turn out to be hysterical memories. Here we discover some of them. 

Art is defined varyingly. Art is all about subjectivity and your ability to unravel exclusivity in monotony. Oscar Wilde captured it in his famous quote : “Life imitates art, or art imitates life.”

Our present discussion shall disgress from such ambiguity however, because our idea today is to revel in hilarity (as it should always be, in my not-so-humble opinion).

Now as we all know, life is as hilarious as hilarious gets (as mine is, always). Life is absolute conjecture in motion, a breathing being of uncertainty. And life is never a bed of roses (I wonder what that must feel like). Some people would tell you that art requires your life, in all its entirety. These people, you will find in large numbers in most of the Drama Societies around the varsity. 

Drama Society auditions are usually borderline crazy, most us will agree. From being a chair or a generator to shouting your lungs out from the farthest corner of this world (the venue for auditions of course), DramaSoc auditions have no reigns. More often than not, these tasks prey on taboos. They require you to push yourself, to be as raw, as unabashed, as uncivilized as you can dare to be. 

Having sex with a chair, sex in all its entirety – moaning and changing of positions expected; enacting masturbation in public or performing your best impression of any other carnal activity, these are just the first few tasks you are required to do. 

As unexpected is the emotional and physical turbulence that you go through. 10 rounds of the college ground, 50 push-ups, planks for 5 minutes; the slouch in me shudders to hear these tales. Hysteria? Maybe. 

Interestingly, the new recruits are forbidden to narrate their hysterical stories verging on humiliation to anyone. They are required to take them to the deathbed, but then, rants bring out the best in us. 

But if you thought that only Drama Societies qualify for this contest of hysteria, you could not be more wrong! 

As it is, the society auditions really vary according to the person who conducts them. When the interviewer is a skeptic, as was the one in a Literary Society, you can expect a question like – “Are you stoned?”- for just being your usual hip self. Hysteria travels from the candidate to the post holders too. One of the candidates in the same Literary Society heatedly claimed that being in the society was his lifetime fantasy, and that he do anything to get in. Another candidate heatedly entered into an argument with the President and discredited her merit by claiming her to be insufficient to judge his rightful claim (not worth) to be the only sensical member of the society. 

Literature and Drama might well be deemed expected candidates in our hysterical readings, but wait for the next stories still. 

In an audition for the Finance and Investment Cell in a college, a candidate having failed almost all the questions, was asked to teach any topic of his choice from Class 12 Accountancy Book. He did, and was surprisingly selected! 

Most society members agree that the key to sure selection is your dynamic spontaneity. In this vein, the Debating Society of a college conducts its audition. 30+ existing members of the society question one candidate at a time. As questions fly in all directions, your only defense is your spontaneity. In another Debating Society, they called Mr. Ashok Srivastava, editor-in-chief, DD News, to their auditions, for no reason at all. 

To conclude, probably a winner among disastrous auditions would be this one : 

In a fashion society, a fresher auditioning for a model, dressed himself as Salman Bhai and danced to Main Aisa Kyun Hoon. It is easier to say that he had the last laugh, because the entire hall was hushed and traumatized by the end of it. He also challenged the unanimous decision to reject him. 

And so they are, hysterical society auditions. And so they will be. Surely, these become stories we narrate to please ourselves, some years into a droll life. What is college if not hysteria, after all? 

Feature Image Credits : DU Beat Archives

Kartik Chauhan 

[email protected] 

 

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DUB Speak

Veer or V.D. Savarkar: An Ideological Warfare

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The University of Delhi (DU) saw controversy
unfold over Savarkar, from demands to
rename the Delhi University Students’ Union
(DUSU) Office after V.D. Savarkar, to the
installation of a pillar with his bust, along
with those of Subhas Chandra Bose and
Bhagat Singh in the campus. The ideological
warfare about his thoughts continues to be
controversial.

As the DUSU elections approach, the
University is grappling with the Savarkar
Statue Controversy. The illegal installation
of the bust, followed by its removal,
reveals the ideological tussle between the
different schools of thought.
An extremist in his thoughts, Savarkar
was an Indian Independence activist who
rebelled against the British rule through
revolutionary means, and was imprisoned
due to his anti-coloniser activities.
Following a failed attempt to escape
while being transported from Marseilles
in France, he was sentenced to two life
terms of imprisonment, and eventually
landed in the cellular jail or Kala Pani.
Savarkar has been always been at the
eye of the storm, for being viewed as a
“coward” since he wrote letters to the
British, pleading to be released from the
torture of the cellular jail.
Being an atheist, he believed that
Hinduism was a political identity having
a powerful moral force. While in prison,
Savarkar wrote the work describing
Hindutva in which he defined that all
people descended from Hindu culture
as being a part of Hindutva, including
Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs. The noted
journalist, Manu Joseph, recently opined,
“The erasure of Savarkar by intellectuals
1.0 was so complete that at the end of it
all, he was not even a villain. He was not
mentioned in textbooks even as one of the
accused in the assassination of Mahatma
Gandhi. Savarkar’s insight was that
Hinduism was a powerful political identity
that does not require gods, or even the
cow actually, whom he did not love very
much, and that Hinduism is a fundamental
genetic force in all Indians. In this way, he
invented Hindutva.”
The very fact that the revolutionary
ideas of Savarkar remain to be missing
from our mainstream reading and
textbooks, does not allow the discussion
on his extreme views in the freedom
struggle movement through Hindutva.
Vaibhav Purandare, in his book The True
Story of the Father of Hindutva reveals
Savarkar’s professed hatred for Muslims.
In his early years as a revolutionary,
Savarkar asked Hindus and Muslims to
get along, but eventually, he wished to
subdue Muslims.
Earlier this month, on 12th August, the
Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP)
demanded the DUSU Office be named
after Veer Savarkar. Following this, the
ABVP and DUSU installed the busts of
V.D. Savarkar, Subhas Chandra Bose,
and Bhagat Singh outside the Faculty
of Arts in the North Campus and faced
criticism, followed by the attack on the
statue and smearing black colour on
the bust by the National Students’
Union of India.
Shakti Singh, the outgoing President
of DUSU, said, “Since the beginning
of my term, I was requesting the DU
administration for establishing the statues
but never got a reply from them. The
left-wing forces and the Congress party
have always defamed Veer Savarkar.
So, I wanted that this issue should be
debated so that the youth can know about
his contribution to the freedom struggle
of the country.”
Madhu Prasad, former Professor of
Philosophy, Zakir Hussain College said,
“Bhagat Singh believed that the country
won’t get freedom unless there is equality.
However, the current scenario in this
country does not allow debate, discussion,
and dissent, and idolising Savarkar is
against the essence of freedom.”
While he worked upon reforming
and revolting the colonial rule, his
extreme positions on Gandhi, Hindu
Rashtra, and Muslims bestows him with
political exclusion.

Feature Image Credits: Prateek Pankaj for DU Beat

Sriya Rane

[email protected]

 

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Campus Central

NSUI Invites Shashi Tharoor for an Interactive Session with the Students

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Dr. Shashi Tharoor addressed the students of the University of Delhi (DU) in an event organised by the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) and Kerala Students’ Union. He had a candid conversation with the students from topics ranging from communication blockade in Kashmir to the political rights of youth in India. He urged students to support NSUI in the upcoming elections in light of their campaign motto #AwaazUthaoSeetiBajao

The NSUI along with Kerala Students Union organised a student interaction session with Dr. Shashi Tharoor on 4th September. Being hosted at the Amitabh guest house in North Campus, the session saw huge participation from DU students. The Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) elections are scheduled for 12th September. Candidates filed their nomination on Wednesday and the final list of names was released on Thursday. Talking about Indian National Congress (INC) affiliated NSUI’s campaign ‘Awaaz Uthao, Seeti Bajao (Blow the whistle against injustice),’ Tharoor said, “The campaign is relevant since this is a government that suppresses whistleblowers. Somebody needs to raise their voice against inequality.”

During this interaction, Dr. Tharoor laid emphasis particularly on the youth political rights and spoke about bringing the age of candidacy to run elections down to 18 years. He said, “I believe that even 18-year-olds should be allowed to contest for different offices. In fact, I would even recommend a reservation for elected officials under 30. This is a young country and more young people should be in power,” He went on to say, “This government only specializes in sloganeering. There are no jobs and students who will soon be graduating from their colleges and looking for the jobs will be impacted most by it.”

Several questions were asked to Dr. Tharoor and he dealt with every question patiently. On being asked upon the communication blockade in Kashmir, he said, “What is happening in Kashmir is a travesty of democracy by completely subverting spirits of the constitution,” adding that he was “curious to see how the Supreme Court reacts to the petitions being filed on the matter.”

He further commented on the National Registrar of Citizens (NRC) Bill saying, “People who have been living here since 1971 have been called foreigners. They talk about Vivekananda and forget that it was Vivekananda who said that India was a place which offered place to persecuted people.” Tharoor also added that the Congress party is “doing everything it can” on the matter but “they have divided opinions on northeast.”

On being questioned about the current state of the Indian economy, Tharoor said that we should all be worried about it and that he couldn’t sugarcoat the truth. He said that the government has built its reputation on image making and that in reality; it is lying to the Indian public by manipulating the calculation of the GDP. He talked about how the agricultural sector is suffering; farmers are committing suicides, and the industrial sector’s output going down. He also talked about how demonetization was the worst thing that could have happened to our economy and how the government is campaigning their tax terrorism, making the common man suffer.

He then talked about how today mainstream media cannot be trusted because the businessmen that own them also have interests in other businesses that the government can influence. He told the students about the reality behind media suppression and said that journalists and editors are too scared today to pursue actual journalism since their job and life are on the line. He ended the discussion on media suppression in today’s political scenario, by talking about how today independent media with an online presence like The Wire, Scroll, and The Quint are more truthful and trustworthy than mainstream media.

Dr.Shashi Tharoor concluded the session by giving some advice to the students. He told them to not compete with others but with themselves; and that failure was a part of life, that without it there was no success.

Feature Image Credits: Rishabh Gogoi for DU Beat

SriyaRane

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Juhi Bhargava

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Arts & Culture

A Post-377 World: Is this really Freedom?

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On the first anniversary of the scrapping of parts of Section 377, let’s take a look at the life of the members of the LGBTQ+ community post the revolutionary judgement. Have things really changed?

Today marks one year of the 377 judgement, where the supreme court unanimously ruled that consensual same-sex relations were no longer considered ‘against the order of nature’ as the law dictated earlier. The five-judge Constitution bench brought a landmark decision in the history of LGBTQIA+ rights in India. This decision was celebrated by many. Rainbow merchandise and profile pictures flooded the internet. Solidarity came in the form of hushed whispers in the University campus and low squeals of ‘Congratulations’ in-between friends. Solidarity came in the form of comfort that we’re not criminals anymore. The famous slogan used at pride parades and protests, “kaunsa kanoon sabse battar? AFSPA, sedition, teen-sau sathatarr (Which law is the worst? AFSPA, sedition, 377)” was now lost in the pages of history.

A reality check followed immediately after the judgement, it was a small step in a big direction, one that could change the face of queer rights in India, but did it make a difference to the everyday lives of queer-identifying folks?

The lives of people from the community are still subject to scrutiny, harassment, and threats. It is not uncommon to hear about young people from the community being disowned from their families because of their identity. It is not uncommon to hear about employees being fired because of their identity. Queerness comes with an eternal bond to humiliation and loneliness, even national champion Dutee Chand was degraded and shamed after she came out.

The 377 judgement creates the disbelief that people can finally come out of the closet, but in truth, coming out is like stepping out in a minefield.

Queerness comes with tied misogyny and sexism. Queer communities are far from getting away with hierarchies and casual sexism. The 377 judgement tackled consensual same-sex relations but it fails to address the homophobia in the everyday life of the society. From Bollywood tropes and songs to ‘woke liberal spaces’, homophobia still thrives proudly and shows very little signs of fading away. The abolition of section 377 also gave rise to rainbow capitalism. Corporate marketed rainbow-themed merchandise, from t-shirts to underwear, rainbow capitalism gave more leverage to the so-called liberal class for spurring out casual homophobia and queerphobia while masquerading around in rainbow merchandise.

“There is no difference; we now see rainbow merchandise being openly available by big corporate brands. That’s all.” says a student from Ramjas College.

Queer identities are yet to be accepted fully in the public space. In the case of the University of Delhi (DU), National Students’ Union of India’s (NSUI) election manifesto promises reservation in hostels for the LGBTQIA+ community and sessions to sensitise the students and faculty about them. However, the increase of harassment during the DUSU elections makes the University campus another minefield for visibly queer folks.

“My professors are more likely to act like discrimination based on my queerness no longer occurs because the judgement happened. Like section 377 was the only problem we faced and after the judgement, we were alright again.” says a student from National Law University, Delhi. “No, I don’t feel safe in public spaces. I think there’s more backlash because of the 377 judgement.” adds a student from DU. All of this makes one wonder, has the country really progressed since 377 was taken down?

“Not in the slightest, one cannot be persecuted by law but will be persecuted by the public.” says a graduate from Bangalore University. “The only difference I see is that people now know what Section 377 was.” says a student from the Ambedkar University.

India has a long way to go in terms of queer rights and making public spaces queer-friendly. The change does not begin from courtrooms but from small acts of acceptance and inclusivity.

Feature Image Credits: Namrata Randhawa for DU Beat

Jaishree Kumar

[email protected]

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Campus Central

Veer or V.D. Savarkar: An Ideological Warfare

By

The University of Delhi (DU) saw controversy unfold over Savarkar, from demands to rename the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) Office after V.D. Savarkar, to the installation of a pillar with his bust, along with those of Subhas Chandra Bose and Bhagat Singh in the campus. The ideological warfare about his thoughts continues to be controversial.

As the DUSU elections approach, the University is grappling with the Savarkar Statue Controversy. The illegal installation of the bust, followed by its removal, reveals the ideological tussle between the different schools of thought.

An extremist in his thoughts, Savarkar was an Indian Independence activist who rebelled against the British rule through revolutionary means, and was imprisoned due to his anti-coloniser activities. Following a failed attempt to escape while being transported from Marseilles in France, he was sentenced to two life terms of imprisonment, and eventually landed in the cellular jail or Kala Pani. Savarkar has been always been at the eye of the storm, for being viewed as a “coward” since he wrote letters to the British, pleading to be released from the torture of the cellular jail.

Being an atheist, he believed that Hinduism was a political identity having a powerful moral force. While in prison, Savarkar wrote the work describing Hindutva in which he defined that all people descended from Hindu culture as being a part of Hindutva, including Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs. The noted journalist, Manu Joseph, recently opined, “The erasure of Savarkar by intellectuals 1.0 was so complete that at the end of it all, he was not even a villain. He was not mentioned in textbooks even as one of the accused in the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. Savarkar’s insight was that Hinduism was a powerful political identity that does not require gods, or even the cow actually, whom he did not love very much, and that Hinduism is a fundamental genetic force in all Indians. In this way, he invented Hindutva.”

The very fact that the revolutionary ideas of Savarkar remain to be missing from our mainstream reading and textbooks, does not allow the discussion on his extreme views in the freedom struggle movement through Hindutva. Vaibhav Purandare, in his book The True Story of the Father of Hindutva reveals Savarkar’s professed hatred for Muslims. In his early years as a revolutionary, Savarkar asked Hindus and Muslims to get along, but eventually, he wished to subdue Muslims.

Earlier this month, on 12th August, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) demanded the DUSU Office be named after Veer Savarkar. Following this, the ABVP and DUSU installed the busts of
V.D. Savarkar, Subhas Chandra Bose, and Bhagat Singh outside the Faculty of Arts in the North Campus and faced criticism, followed by the attack on the statue and smearing black colour on the bust by the National Students’ Union of India.

Shakti Singh, the outgoing President of DUSU, said, “Since the beginning of my term, I was requesting the DU administration for establishing the statues but never got a reply from them. The left-wing forces and the Congress party have always defamed Veer Savarkar. So, I wanted that this issue should be debated so that the youth can know about his contribution to the freedom struggle of the country.”

Madhu Prasad, former Professor of Philosophy, Zakir Hussain College said, “Bhagat Singh believed that the country won’t get freedom unless there is equality. However, the current scenario in this country does not allow debate, discussion, and dissent, and idolising Savarkar is against the essence of freedom.”
While he worked upon reforming and revolting the colonial rule, his extreme positions on Gandhi, Hindu Rashtra, and Muslims bestows him with political exclusion.

Feature Image Credits: Prateek Pankaj for DU Beat

Sriya Rane

[email protected]

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Events

India Youth Conclave 2019 – An Amalgamation of the Creative and the Technical

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The two-day long India Youth Conclave 2019, consisting of workshops, interesting panel discussions, and internship fairs, ended on a high note today. 

On 31st August 2019, My Captain organised its 10th India Youth Conclave at Dilli Haat, Janakpuri. Many young people, including aspiring entrepreneurs and budding content creators, attended this conclave, which began with a workshop on entrepreneurship and digital marketing by Ruhan Naqash, the Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer of My Captain.

The workshop began with Naqash asking the audience about how many of them planed on becoming entrepreneurs and he was amazed by the number of raised hands. He told them that as entrepreneurs more lessons come from failures than from successes. He also provided the audience with facts like how nearly 90% of startups fail, something that left the audience in dismay. He focused on the ideology of “customer being the King” and said that in entrepreneurship, it’s all about the idea and listening to the target market. He also focused on how one doesn’t really need investments in start-ups if that holds back some young minds and said a good idea requires zero investment, something which the audience fairly agreed upon. He shared his own journey as an entrepreneur, the story of how he got an idea of online workshops and educational seminars in his first year of college and how he went door-to-door in his college hostel gathering his friends to assemble with him on the idea and not keep it a secret confined to him. The room full of young entrepreneurs seemed highly satisfied and inspired after the workshop, which was very interactive. Many present even shared their ideas of start-ups with Naqash.

A Photography Workshop conducted by Rahul Singh Manral took place at the same time. The session took off from his experience as an engineering dropout, and covered his journey till here. He believes that his trip to Egypt in 2013 was a revolution in his career. His session was filled with motivational quotes and the audience could really connect with his light sense of humour.  When asked about the importance of rules, Manral said, “The Importance of any rule is to know it, but it is your responsibility to break it.” In his technical session about photography, he explored the development of light in photography and also shared some modern wildlife and action photography. Lastly, he ended his session by focusing on the fact that modern photography is not only restricted to Social Media, rather, his end goal is to make people want to do something when they look at his photographs.  You can check out more of his work on his Instagram here. 

The conclave also featured a great line-up of comedians. The show took-off with comedian Manekas Singh Mehta delivering some self-depreciation jokes. His set also talked about Punjabi and Delhite norms and was worth a watch. Next, Onkar Yadav talked about a lot of things ranging from childhood memories to the dating problems one faces in their college period, in his well-known dry sense of humour. Kushagra Shrivastava also delighted the stage with his presence. He talked about religion, tinder, and sports and even interacted with the production team and photographers. It was a show filled with laughter and even some very mature and well thought out jokes, which left the audience wanting for more.

A Creative Writing workshop with Dhruv Sehgal was organized after this where aspiring writers in the audience were familiarised with key concepts on how to write better. The audience was initially star-struck, and was keen to listen to the speaker’s journey and learn from the same. Sehgal said that one of the most important aspects of writing is observation. He said that observing content is free and that good writers can find content in the weirdest places. He stressed how “everyone has a story” and that a blank page is the most important instrument of a writer. He talked about the competition in writing, that being a writer for web series, your competition is not just Bollywood or Hollywood but other content providers like Facebook and Instagram as well, so to overcome that, one should be relatable to the viewers and focus on their unique style by being truthful. Dhruv insisted that rules are very important, contrary to the “rule-breaking” millennial generation as the real challenge lies in showing one’s creativity while following the rules and not while breaking them.

The Rap Battle followed next, which saw many young and enthusiastic students taking to the stage to beatbox and rap their original creations. From solo performances to duets, the performers were full of energy. This open platform gave many students a stage to showcase their talent which they don’t really get to otherwise since rapping is still an upcoming art form in India, and many people are yet to get acquainted with it.

The Psychology workshop with psychologist Prerna saw many students of Psychology in the audience. Prerna talked about how empathy and compassion are important when dealing with patients with mental disorders. She also narrated many incidents from her personal life where she emotionally went through a hard time when dealing with patients of sexual abuse and patients who had violent tendencies. She told the audience that if they wanted to pursue a career in Psychology, then they must follow their seniors and be strong when dealing with their patients.

During the YouTubing workshop, fans went crazy for famous YouTubers Sana, Shraddha Gurang, Kanishk Priyadarshini, Gaurav Taneja, and Himadri Patel. They inspired the audience with their personal stories of the rise to stardom and talked about how to make it big on YouTube. They talked about how YouTube, unlike Facebook and Instagram, provides them with a platform where they can post descriptive videos and how it is possible to build a huge community on it considering that the audiences know what they are looking for. On being questioned by an audience member on how to cope with negative public ideas of making a career out of YouTubing, the panel encouraged him and told hopeful YouTube stars that it is initially difficult to make a career on social media but that hard work and passion pay off in the end. This workshop concluded the first day of the conclave.

Day two of the India Youth Conclave organised by My Captain began with Naqash speaking to the audience about the story of My Captain.
He launched the My Captain app and discussed ideas about revolutionising online education. “To make online education sexy is my aim,” he said. He spoke about how the app works by removing barriers, making learning fun, and explaining concepts using practical examples.
The next speaker was the founder of Pet Street Cafe, Sonali Wadhwa who is an animal activist. Her team is her family. She spoke about her love for dogs and how dogs were her mental cushions, she narrated her story of Pet Street Cafe that went from two pet shops to a pet resort. “Being lost is part of the process,” she said.
“If you are not fearless enough to explore. You will not find what’s right for you,” she added. Wadhwa, ho is also a feminist, had this to say to the feminist hater: “If anyone hates the word feminist, I am sorry about you.”
 
With a six-year experience in Psychological counselling, Manvi Khurana, the founder of Karama Centre for Counseling & Well Being, explores the horizons of sexuality and the taboos that revolve around it in her enthralling session at the IYC’19 Delhi. Tracing sexuality back to the primary school Biology classes when a diagram of phallus served as the erotic recreation, how the myths and conjectures pertaining to masturbation make a crucial topic as sexuality turned into a giggle shot and Karma as somewhat of queer affirmative form.
Manvi further stresses on a sex-positive outlook and asks the youth to perceive it from a perception that carries the responsibility of being one, while claiming of being hopeful and optimistic of the future, she ends with a positive note in her valedictory words for the young audience”The future is bright cause the future is you.”
In the next session, popular author, celebrity journalist, live show host & motivational speaker, Surabhi Verma retrospected on her varied professional career as she talks about her 2018 release ‘And She Quit Her Job’. An alumna of Dayawati Modi Academy, Meerut and Kalindi  College, University of Delhi, Surabhi emphasises on the essence of being a good writer. he recalls about the 2012 Delhi gang rape which generated huge national outrage and how the incident propelled her to pursue journalism. Working rigorously to get a diploma in Media & Journalism from Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan, after cracking the entry to The Hindustan Times, she quits her first job owing to a certain introspection and then goes onto OYO Hotels as a content writer lasting there for 3 hours. While her third job at a media house provided Surabhi with opportunity to meet her childhood icon Kareena Kapoor Khan, after interviewing a series of celebs and working as a TV presenter at the Doordarshan she leaves this job as well and starts working on her  book ‘And She Quit Her Job’, Surabhi has worked with esteem organisations like India Today, ECI, ACMA & FSAI and has a reputed social media presence to her credit. She suggests the youth to be evolutionary & experimentative with their choices and asks them to give time to themselves, being grateful for what they have. She further quotes:
“Overnight Success is nothing and never let your circumstances take hold of your life, you are the master of your own life, do what you want to make of it.”
She ends her address with Maya Angelou’s lines:
“You may shoot me with your words, You may cut me with your eyes, You may kill me with your hatefulness, But still, like air, I’ll rise.”

The event later witnesses a very fruitful discussion between prominent writers like Dhruv Sehgal, writer, Little Things, Raunak Ramteke, senior writer, Filter Copy, and Anuj Gosalia, CEO and Founder, Terribly Tiny Tales.

The panel discussion predominantly focused upon essentials of writing as a process, choosing a target audience and making the content relatable. Structure of videos is talked about and its relevance. How a writer should never forget what essentially the story is and it will only work if it surprises itself and the audience. Anuj Gosalia and Dhruv Sehgal said, “Writing should not be result-driven, but process-driven, and it’s the process that can make or break you as a writer.”

They recount the incidents that made them writers and they share their words of wisdom with the audience comprising of writers on how to enter the industry. The 25-30 minute long panel discussion gave key insights on how important it is to not be a yes man in the industry and how much quality feedback is valued. Dhruv Sehgal said, “I just emailed Varun Grover, writer of Sacred Games, a few days back regarding what could have been done differently in the season two and he literally replied saying that he was the first one to give a feedback which astonished him.”

The discussion also shed light on the lack of vernacular languages in the mainstream content. They say that adding regional and local languages makes the content very relatable, very easily. However; they as position holders in media company are still finding ways to integrate regional beliefs with content made for masses.

Gurmehar Kaur, writer and a Literature graduate from Lady Shri Ram College, enlightened the audience filled with young adults about her journey with politics, war, and writing. She spoke about how student unions and writing paved the way for her to have a political opinion. Being just an 18-year-old from Jalandhar, when she first entered the University, she recounted the events that led to her being who she is now.

She started with shifting the attention from content creation on the internet to the violation of human rights, internet and cellular blackout being faced by the people of Kashmir, and how dire their problem is. She spoke of how important student politics has been in her life and how it was such a powerful tool specially in such a politically-aware city. On being asked, how dirty student politics has become by an audience member, Gurmehar answered: “Student politics is very imperative for each student. It gives you an opportunity specially after 2014, to have a different opposition and perspective which national politics might not provide you.”

She told DU Beat, “I believe even if you’re not contesting or part of a political party. You’re still a voter and have an essential role. Students must vote and ask the right questions to their leaders.”

She even shared her experience while writing her two books, The Small Acts of Freedom and The Young and Restless. She adviced all the budding writers to know that their first draft will not be great and that is acceptable. She encouraged all to tell their truth and how you’re only a writer when you write and not when you get published.

 

 

Feature Image Credits: Hitesh Kalra for DU Beat

 

Akshat Arora

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Avni Dhawan 

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Juhi Bhargava

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Stephen Mathew
 
Md. Faizan Salik 

Chhavi Bahmba

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Arts & Culture

‘Cata Doxa’: in Appreciation of the Cats and Dogs of DU

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From the poised, purring cats of Miranda House to the tail-wagging, sunny dogs of Jesus and Mary College, the collective adoption of campus cats and dogs by college students evokes pawfuls of pure joy.

Canteen specialties, daunting cut-offs, the area undergoing eternal construction and the inconspicuous niches (that allegedly only you and your clique know about) are some things that lend to the identity of a college. But, perhaps, the most aw-inducing of these peculiarities that characterize the day-to-day life in a college is the stray animals that are no longer stray and have found a dwelling in the campuses of different University of Delhi (DU) Colleges.

Along with the haggling auto-vala bhaiyas, hassling security-vala bhaiya, the forgiving canteen staff, and the red-bricked buildings, these animals become a permanent fixture for our colleges. The poised and dignified cats of Miranda House have been chronicled generously over the years and have been immortalized as an essential part of the institution.

The dogs who roll over for impromptu coddling and banish the woes of a morning lecture, and the cats who’s snarky yet validating meow adds a spring to your step, are appreciated by all. Across colleges, students adopt the initiative to care for these beings and instate them as campus pets.

Take the instance of Harman Mangat, a second-year B.A (Honours) English student from Jesus and Mary College (JMC), who started the Instagram page, ‘dogsofjmc’. The page conceived at the beginning of the year hosts about a hundred posts featuring the campus dogs; Draupadi, Leo, Shakuntala and her newly-born pups, accompanied by quirky captions and meme layouts. The account has amassed over two hundred followers with its wholesome content.

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Image Credits- Harman Mangat, Jesus and Mary College (dogsofjmc on Instagram) Image Caption- The campus dogs of Jesus and Mary College in their natural element

The campus dogs of Jesus and Mary College in their natural element  Image Credits- Harman Mangat, Jesus and Mary College (dogsofjmc on Instagram)

She also took up the billet, along with a couple of her friends, to look after the dogs. “When I first met the campus dogs, I was taken by their cuteness and wanted everybody to adore them. I also felt the fervent need to protect them, come hell or high water,” said Harman. The dogs are quite independent and are provided with water in terracotta pots and boiled food by the college students. The earthen dishes are regularly washed to avoid the growth of algae or bacteria. A house was made out of a cardboard carton but was demolished immediately, upon completion by the canines, an enamored Harman added.

To provide regularity and structure to the fostering of JMC dogs as well as to pacify the college administration, Vanee Singh, a third-year B.A. Programme student, came up with the noble idea of ‘JMCanines’. The initiative, still in its nascence, possesses long term objectives that include getting the puppies vaccinated, the female dogs neutered and establishing a fixed feeding schedule. Vanee hopes on the solidarity and compassion of the students to further this endeavor.

Feature Image Credits– Harman Mangat, Jesus and Mary College (dogsofjmc on Instagram)

Prisha Saxena

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