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Ramjas alumnus becomes the youngest Indian to feature at Cannes

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As admissions session draws close and students ready their certificates, letters and documents related to their achievements in ECA to try their luck for getting into the colleges which they couldn’t due to their cut offs, we present a story of a student who was in the same shoes at one time.

Years before, Varun Chopra was also one of them who got into Ramjas College through ECA. He is currently pursuing his masters in Film and Television at the School of Film and Television, Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. He is the youngest Indian whose film was screened at the highly popular and prestigious Cannes International Film Festival. He talks about his experience of theatre in Delhi University and his film “God on a Leash” which is woven around the story of being held on a leash to the hands of faith, heritage and poverty that explores the concept of humanism and divinity.

Q. You were a student of Mathematics at Ramjas. When did you decide for going for a masters in Films?

I was studying Mathematics (Hons.) at Ramjas College. I got my admission by the ECA quota in theatre which was a great ordeal in itself. Consequently, theatre turned into an indomitable element of my college life. Being in Shunya, one of the premier theatre societies of the University was the most fruitful experience in itself. There was a massive spirit of creativity and collaboration, it just propels one forward in terms of innovation and exposure. It was here that I directed my first play Saints and Sinners and later got involved with some exceptionally talented people who refused to sit idle. Most of us are now theatre artists and filmmakers trying to make our way up.

Q. You have been a student of DU and an active member the Delhi Theatre circuit. What is the scene of film making in DU?


As I mentioned before, the theatre scene in DU is blooming. It is very demanding but the kind of creative satiation people achieve here is unparalleled. Filmmaking however is still practiced in closed quarters and I fail to understand why DU still does not have a filmmaking course. It shows that the University has lost touch with the demands of the youth today. Students are trying to get out and organize festivals for films there, but they remain amateur since one does not have the apparatus to create something which is at par with what the 18-21 year olds in universities outside India do.

Q. What can DU do to promote these fields within its campus??

DU can organize more and more festivals which would push the status quo of the University. You should not have to spend a fortune to learn something. Get your college to get a course. Even if it is a workshop as a starter, the initiative must start.


Q. Do you think the young film makers in India have any good platform? What advice would you like to give to the Aspiring film makers of India.

The fact that we have one of the biggest film industries in the world and only a handful of institutes for film making is appalling. Those that exist aren’t even comparable to the universities abroad. What you end up doing is going to Mumbai and leading the quintessential “struggler” life, at least that is my understanding of it. All in all, one must be forced to do that. It is obvious that we are going tangential to the needs.
There is some brilliant talent but a dearth of opportunities too.
I don’t think I am qualified enough to give anyone advice, but to a hopeful person who is reading this and thinking if they stand any chance. I would like to say take the leap of faith, you’ll be surprised to see how many people would support you. If you want to be a painter, just paint. Likewise, if you want to be a filmmaker, make films.

Q. How do you feel to be the youngest Indian in Cannes International Film Festival? What would you like to say about your film which got screened at Cannes?

I am very fortunate to be able to experience Cannes at a young age. It is more of an opportunity to engage with interesting people than anything. The film is special as it took me back to the University. Parts of the film were shot in North Campus itself. With all honesty, I feel a sense of gratitude towards Shunya and the people I met there. I would want to give a big shout out to the folks there today, they are churning out some amazing stuff every year.

Through this documentary, I was able to unravel the intricacies of this culture. We followed a Madari, who sat with his macaques and their offspring near a Hanuman temple at North Campus. It seemed the baby’s future in chains was indomitable, much like the off springs of the ancestral impressionists’ community. It created a cruel euphemism about our ignorance, the way we choose to live our lives, follow our traditions and practice our faith. The film is a window to a highly embellished niche world with a contrastingly unembellished human experience.

Here is the link of the film: https://m.facebook.com/godonaleash/

Interviewed by Srivedant Kar for DU Beat

[email protected]

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DUB Speak

When opening a present feels like ripping off a Band- Aid: Vani Vivek, Editor 2015-16

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Farewells are usually like impending exams – you know they’re inevitable and yet they manage to sneak up on you out of nowhere. At DU Beat, farewells are like bittersweet presents – bursting at the seams with memories, experiences, and lessons. For two years, I had helped gift this present to seniors; to be at the receiving end this time feels… weird.

DU Beat has grown exponentially since I joined as a starry-eyed fresher, and I have very proudly grown with it. From about 10,000 likes on Facebook in the summer of 2013, we are at over 2,15,000 today. By covering events live, reporting on relevant issues, and presenting opinions on matters pertinent to the youth, DU Beat has continued to be a source of dependable news for students and faculty alike.

This year, we aimed at letting more voices from the University emerge through polls on DUSU elections, and providing more coverage to off- campus colleges by signing up as media partners for more than 300 events across Delhi University. The organisation itself has grown to a team of 70 students making up the editorial, design, marketing, and human resource departments.

It has been a privilege to have learned from seniors who laid the foundation for DU Beat’s growth and to have led a team of enthusiastic students who will undoubtedly do wonders with this space. Working with a group ready to slog under the June sun to distribute admission- special issues and sacrifice sleep to meet deadlines, my years at DUB have ingrained in me the worth of having a committed team by one’s side.

To be a part of this team that has come to define college life for many of us, send your CVs to [email protected].

 

Vani Vivek, Editor (2015-2016)

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Innovation Projects

Innovation Projects 2015-16: Kalindi College takes up issues faced by the elderly

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One of the 300 Innovation Projects for the session of 2015-2016 approved by the University of Delhi is ‘A Socio-Economic Study of the Condition of the Elderly In the Old-Age Homes of Delhi’. The study aims to undertake an examination of the facilities provided to the elderly residing in old age homes and seeks to conduct an assessment of their well-being.

Principal investigator: Dr. Ruchi Tyagi, Ms. Indu Choudhry

Co-investigator: Ms.Kanika Gaur

Student Members: Priyanka Tiwari, Ayushi Jain, Chanchal Aggarwal, Harshika Sondhi, Banni Chug, Chhaya Gandhi, Cheshta Wadhwa, Anshul Jain, Avisha Alawadhi and Jaidita Seth.

With its findings, the study will contribute towards sensitization of people towards this much neglected and discarded section of the society. This research will be relevant at all times as one cannot eliminate old age from a person’s life; one needs to understand and appreciate all phases of human life.

According to Priyanka Tiwari, a student involved in the project, “Our innovative project will help sensitize people to the issue and bring about new alternatives to the problem.” Therefore, the project aims at revisiting, researching and re-creating aspects of traditional Indian society.

The age-old joint family system has been instrumental in safeguarding the social and economic security of elderly people in the country. With rapid changes in the social scenario, India currently sees an increase in nuclear family set-ups. The elderly are likely to be exposed to emotional, physical and financial insecurity in the years to come.

Keeping in mind the growing numbers of the elderly and the increasing levels of urbanization and modernization, it is imperative to understand the needs of the elderly and to assess if institutionalization of care services for the aged may act as a reasonable substitute for the support to be provided to them in future. Moreover, research on this subject is likely to suggest a way forward for the government to plan and implement policies regarding the elderly and to sensitize the youth (through visits, documentaries and seminars) about the condition of the elderly in old age homes.

Featured image credits: www.dnaindia.com

Shreya Srivastava

[email protected]

 

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Campus Central

Gandhi and food: Round table conference explores the connection

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Indraprastha College for Women organized the third Round Table Conference on Gandhi on the theme ‘Gandhi and Food’ on 8th April, 2016.
The session began with a welcome note by the Principal, Dr. Babli Moitra Saraf, who acquainted the audience with the idea of the Round Table Conference and the theme of the third edition. She mentioned that the incidents involving beef ban and the contentious issue of cow slaughter that gave rise to religious tensions recently, were, what triggered discussion on this topic. As per the Concept Note of the Conference, in the Gandhian discourse, food is not just what one eats, but is visualized as a paradigm that exhibits a range of issues. The whole exercise of the conference was perceived to be useful to engage and confront many key quandaries of our times, and answer many conundrums ranging from diet control for personal reasons, being vegetarian on moral grounds, fasting for religious or political expediency, to debate contestations between right to culture and food choices.

Shri Anil Nauriya, Advocate and Member, National Gandhi Museum, New Delhi, delivered the introductory remarks, and quoted instances and anecdotes of Gandhi’s meetings with different people, Sam Higginbottom and Richard Gregg to name a few. This was followed by 12 well-fleshed out paper presentations. Dr. Madhulika Banerjee, Professor, Department of Political Science, University of Delhi and Dr. Babli Moitra Saraf, Principal, Indraprastha College for Women judged these paper presentations.

The students presented a variety of riveting and thought-provoking presentations, ranging from a critique of Gandhi’s moral basis of vegetarianism to food in the context of Brahmacharaya as perceived by Gandhi in his times, with peppy titles like “You are not what you eat”. A plethora of viewpoints were discussed: how food is a cult in itself, and how unless there’s moral disgust in animal slaughter, there’s no moral superiority associated with vegetarianism.

The first prize was awarded to Asmita Jagwani, who presented the paper on “Food Asceticism: The Gandhian Grammar of Diet” where she explored the idea of gastro politics, explaining that for Gandhi, vegetarianism was a way of life that  was rooted in his moral convictions and not just an adherence to a filial vow. She was praised by the judges who mentioned that “such sophistication of rhetoric as a means of persuasion leaves you stupefied.” The second position was bagged by a team comprising of Anamika Dass and Ateka Hasan who explored food from the perspective of untouchability. Prerna Mishra, who explored “Salt and Satyagraha” in her paper, was adjudged as the winner of the third position. A judges’ special mention was awarded to Nihita Kumari who spoke on how food was a weapon for Gandhi. All winners were given cash prizes.

Dr. Jyoti Trehan Sharma, the Conference Convener, explained the philosophy behind the theme, and also drew the attention of the audience to the significance of the date when the conference was being held, as the date coincided when Gandhi got arrested at Palwal in 1919, just a few days before the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Punjab. This was also the date when in 1929, Bhagat Singh, alongwith Sukhdev and Rajguru, made his motherland echo with the slogan “Inquilab Zindabad”.

The Judges congratulated the participants on building such relevant arguments that led to a very pertinent discourse. They also provided constructive feedback and inputs on the same.

The round table conference at IPCW

Image Credits: Kritika Narula

Kritika Narula

[email protected]

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Uncategorized

Major creative writing platforms started by DU students

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Thinkopolitan

Over the years varsity students have come together to celebrate free writing on the internet for the space it offers. Living the tradition, many platforms have sprung up in various colleges in the recent past. These platforms are essentially transforming the way in which writing as an art form operates. Here are some of the creative writing platforms that started at Delhi University and are now running successfully at a national level:

1.) An Inception

An Inception
An Inception

This platform is a brainchild of a bunch of students from Motilal Nehru College and aims at covering all the creative writing forms at one platform. It has sections on health, poetry, short stories, campus news and lifestyle with the poetry and short stories sections being the most consistent ones. The facebook page of the website has regular updates and anecdotes too.

2.) Thinkopolitan

This platform was started together by some students of Hindu College and IP University. It celebrates free writing and responsible expression. Major sections on the website include literature, poetry, short stories, politics, photography and cartoons. The website is also associated with Youth ki Awaaz, a major online platform in the country. What’s distinctive about this platform is its ability to include photography among other creative fields. The authors at this platform hail from across the country.

3.) Born of a Million thoughts

Born of a Million Thoughts
Born of a Million Thoughts

Started by a student of Lady Shri Ram College for Women, BOMT is the newest of all the platforms at the varsity but is growing at a fast pace. This platform is fairly diverse and has content ranging from interviews of eminent personalities to personal accounts of students. It also has sections on poetry, fashion, entertainment and food. Moreover, you are most likely to find a BOMT correspondent at every major festival in the city.

Image Credits: Facebook pages of BOMT, An Inception and Thinkopolitan

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Innovation Projects

Innovation projects 2015-16: Assessing stress in young adults by Bharati College

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The innovation projects were conceptualised by the Delhi University Vice Chancellor against the background of opportunities and limitations reported in colleges of the University. Over 300 projects submitted by students and faculty of colleges around the University made it to the final list. A project submitted by the faculty members and students of Bharati College has made the cut.

 

Project title: Assessing Stressors Among Young Adults: A contribution towards building a stress-free and youthful India

 

Principal investigator: Dr. Anupama Mahajan

 

Co-investigators: Dr. Rekha Sapra, Ms. Deepika Dewan

 

Students’ team: Amprapali Aggarwal, Anjali Kalra, Garima Choudhary, Pragya Malhotra, Priya Jain, Sukriti Jain, Sanjukta Chauhan, Tanisha Malik, Vanshikha Khandelwal, Yukti Sinha.

The project aims to comprehend levels of stress among young adults between the ages of 18-35. Through the medium of specially created questionnaires, a pilot study was conducted. The team worked on samples of young adults and found that innovative and creative minds can show maximum efficiency only when they are free of stress. The project which commenced in September last year is still underway.

 

According to the team, the reason behind selecting a sample of young adults is that people aged 18-33 are the most stressed individuals in the world, and that after the age of 33 stress levels tend to reduce. Statistics show that in India about 46,000 suicides occurred each in the age groups 15-29 and 30-44 in 2012 (about 34% of total suicides).

Initially, the team considered issues related to personal relationships, sexual life, peer pressure, parental pressure, etc. while studying the factors responsible for stress among the population, but gradually other reasons surfaced like medical problems, gender bias etc. Stress-busters were also identified.


“Considering the fact that persons in 15-29 age group are most stressed, we visited both South and North campuses of DU. For the assessment of stress factors among working classes, we conducted surveys in various areas across Delhi, like Gurgaon, Noida, Connaught Place, etc.” said Garima Choudhary, one of the students involved in the project. “It is obvious that the problem can’t be completely controlled, but at least some of it can be,” she added.

Workshops, interactive sessions, seminars, and open house discussions were conducted by the team during the course of their study. The team hopes to make innovative brains stress-free through their project.

 

Image credits: bharaticollege.com

Mir Uzair Farooq
[email protected]

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Enactus

Enactus Maitreyi’s Project Unnayan leads to economically empowered women

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Leading by Bushnell’s quote, “The true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer.” the Enactus Society of Delhi University’s Maitreyi College has grown, within only two years of its inception, into a well established platform of social transformation that aims to achieve a holistic development of all the weaker sections of the society and help them attain a sustainable livelihood through various development programs and social entrepreneurial projects.

Founded by Sanchila Arora in 2014, the society consists of some forty members who together took on their very first entrepreneurial initiative – Project Unnayan. Adhering to the purpose of the word ‘Unnayan’ which means ‘Upliftment’, the project works towards the process of improving the living conditions of all women residing in the socially and economically backward sections of the society by training them in making and selling liquid dishwashing products, Clean Ninja.

Clean Ninja
Clean Ninja

 

There are many areas in Delhi where economic trends are extremely weak which not only lessens economic opportunities for all but also leads to low incomes, poor living conditions and health of families and low levels of sustainability due to unemployment. There have also been several instances, as confessed by women to the members of Enactus Maitreyi, in which their husbands have spent all their income in consumption of alcohol and even became violent when tried to be stopped, further leading to the deliberate wastage of all their money on unruly wants instead of being used for basic requirements of care for their families.

The members of Enactus Maitreyi therefore, get together with the targeted set of women in a safe and hygienic working environment on a regular basis, and train them in the basic techniques of producing the liquid dishwasher, Clean Ninja. They do so by teaching them the methods of measuring and mixing all the ingredients correctly with the help of different apparatus and neatly packaging the products simultaneously once they are created. Once they are familiar with this art of producing the dishwashing liquid, they are guided to the process of marketing and selling the products as well. Apart from the production, the women employed under Enactus Maitreyi are also taught about the basic necessities of wearing gloves and masks during the whole process and the uniqueness of these products which lies in their quality and uniformity along with the environment-friendly aspect adjoined with it. In short, the team members do everything they can to help them gain proficiency in all the essential skills and knowledge required for becoming strong, self sufficient and economically independent women in the society.

Enactus maitreyi

 

Rashmi Verma, President, Enactus Society of Maitreyi, strongly believes that “There aren’t any people, who wouldn’t want to make a change in the society, but there are indeed, very few who successfully create a difference. More than dreamers, we are the ‘do-ers’. Being an all girls team, we have learnt the strength and courage each one holds within us. There is nothing in the world which can deter our unity now and stop us from turning any idea into a reality once we put our mind to it. Through Project Unnayan, we provide women a platform where they can explore new arenas of life and start living a life they never believed they could experience. All women employed under our initiative are thus, working voluntarily and are extremely happy with this effort crossing their lives.”

The Enactus Society of Maitreyi College has also recently won the KPMG Grant Competition 2015, where they have been awarded with a grant of Rs. 50,000.

Due to the consistent positive response gained for their results of Clean Ninja, once their current project becomes stable and the women of the community gain complete self reliance over their work, the Enactus Society of Maitreyi College has decided to come up with the production of many more variants of the same product with a new set of workforce, and would also be seen creating many more successful projects in the near future.

Picture Credits: Shagun Marwah for DU Beat

Shagun Marwah

[email protected]

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St. Stephen's

St. Stephen’s College’s BA Programme Society organises the first edition of its annual fest, Confluence 2016

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After some period of inactivation in the previous year, the BA Programme society of St. Stephen’s College, Delhi organised a number of events this year ranging from talks to trips to seminars. On Monday, the society organised the first edition of its annual fest, Confluence 2016. The fest was spread across five events. There were two talks, a story-writing competition, a fun event where students were required to caption pictures, and a Dastangoi performance – an Urdu storytelling art form.

The fest kicked off with an informal event, ‘Caption That’ in which students were to caption the pictures and paintings handed out to them by the organisers. Prizes were distributed among the winners.
‘Caption That’ was followed by a talk on the Monumentalisation of Buildings by Dr. Hilal Ahmed who is an assistant professor at the Centre for Study of Developing Societies, Delhi and also a Rajya Sabha fellow. He talked about the concept of monumentalisation of buildings in general and about the religious contextualisation that buildings find themselves today in.

Another talk was organised after the lunch. The speaker was Dr.Pulapre Balakrishnan who teaches Economics at the Ashoka University. He spoke on Inclusive Growth in India focussing on inclusive growth, political economy and economic equality. The talk was followed by a vibrant discussion between the speaker and the studentswho were enthusiastic enough to keep the speaker indulged during the time refreshments were being served.

There was also a story-telling competition held in which the participants had to select random genres and end their stories with random plot twists. The students were seen writing very passionately and all appeared captivated by dramatic twists of plots.

The fest ended with the major highlight of the day – Dastangoi. Dastangoi is an Urdu oral storytelling art form that originated in the 16th century. The artists who performed were Nadeem Shah, Shankar Musafir and Manu Sikander Dhingra. Nadeem Shah has been doing Dastangoi since 2010 and teaches history at the University of Delhi while Shankar Musafir is an educationalist with an avid interest in the art of storytelling and Manu Sikander Dhingra is an entrepreneur, an eminent theatre personality and a veteran storyteller having done show across India, Afghanistan and Pakistan. The artists delighted the audience through their art.

They started with Husn-e-Faiz covering the legendary revolutionary poet, Faiz Ahmad Faiz’s life and ended with an adaptation of one of the folktales of Vijaydan Detha, ‘Kahani Pandit Ki’. The event was concluded with a vote of thanks and some interactions with the performers in the lawn while the refreshments were being served.

 

Mir Uzair Farooq
[email protected]

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