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Fest and Politics: Where Should DU Draw the Line?

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As Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), and Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) set the line of protest and pave the way to resistance and agitation, how morally appropriate is it to attend fests and celebrate?

University of Delhi (DU) has been synonymous with its celebrity-laden, pompous, over the top exuberant range of cultural fests. Freshers eagerly await for the fest season like the rest of us wait for the waiter to bring food to our table. Come even semester, all Students’ Unions gear up to seek sponsorships, chase celebrities, and promote, promote, promote! The hype, experiences, and enthusiasm surely shape a DU student’s course of study and social relationships.

However, the country has been in a problematic and controversial state since the past few months. Amidst members of our own student fraternity as AMU, JNU, and JMI set the line of protest and pave the way to resistance and agitation, how morally appropriate is it to attend fests and celebrate? DU has been at the forefront of political mobilisation, dissent and protest since time immemorial. Taunts of “degree protest mein kar rahe ho kya” (Are you pursuing your degree in protests?) remains a constant as we take to the streets.

Keeping in mind DU’s legacy and staying in solidarity with India’s depreciating democracy, several colleges have voiced their concerns over not organising a fest. Tarang, annual cultural fest of Lady Shri Ram College (LSR) remained at the centre of a controversy as several General Body Meetings later, Tarang remains “deferred until further notice.” Prashansa, a member of the Students’ Union of LSR told DU Beat earlier that LSR must look beyond the factor of enjoyment and overlook their apathy, indifference and insensitivity. The Students’ Union of LSR released an official statement expressing “that they do not feel appropriate to have Tarang at this point given that it
revolves around a sense of enjoyment by having pro nights and food fests.”

Ullas, annual cultural fest of Kamala Nehru College too met with contention, voices clashed for and against the
celebrations, however, preparations for the same are in full flow. As proponents of those favouring the celebrations, the fests elevate to a platform to dissent. A platform to voice their opinions and criticise through the medium of art, culture, and music.

Gargi College’s Reverie 2020, witnessed a political art mural which was later asked to be removed by the principal claiming it to be “too political.” The mural which expressed solidarity with activists like Akhil Gogoi, and Chandrashekhar Azad, voiced the students’ stance on CAA. When authorities shun and open platforms curb the freedom of speech and expression, how morally correct is it to swing to the tunes, swipe at the tips and splurge on tastes?

However, keeping DU’s diversity and heterogeneity in mind, not all of them think alike. Avni Dhawan, a
student of Kamala Nehru College is of the opinion that there is no point in cancelling college fests. “There are
always going to be issues with the government and the country. There’s a reason for annual fests and it’s to give
students a break and make memories in college. There are a lot of ways to express your dissent and solidarity with those suffered, which involves actual help and involvement. Fests took place last year when we lost 40 soldiers in Pulwama attack, where did the “solidarity” go then? If you really want to do something good, don’t just cancel fests and sit with a pout face to show your “anger”, donate your fest funding to those in need and those who suffered from
political turmoils, otherwise, don’t come up with these publicity stunts.”
As colleges celebrated while the country was protesting, Nandini Sukhija, a student of Mumbai University encourages a small act of acknowledgement to be enough to show solidarity with a nationwide movement. “I personally do not mind the idea of fests going on at a time of political turmoil because it is almost impossible to choose a time when some form of injustice is not happening somewhere.”

The next time you lose yourself in the crowd at a fest, stop. Ponder. Introspect. Question. Where should DU draw a
line between festivities and politics?

Featured Image Credits: Vaibhav Tekchandani for DU Beat

Anandi Sen
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Campus Central

LSR Indefinitely Defers Tarang, Cites Security Issues

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Lady Shri Ram College (LSR), has indefinitely deferred their annual cultural fest, Tarang, citing safety and security of the students as the main reason behind its cancellation.

On 5th February 2020, a statement released by the organisers of Tarang, states “keeping in mind the present environment and concerns regarding the safety and security of students. Tarang has been deferred until further notice. We apologise for the inconvenience caused.”

Dissenting Voices of LSR, a collective started by students within the college, released a statement which states, that “Tarang, which was supposed to take place after a poll by the students. The poll decided it would take place, and, was not cancelled by the students who spoke out against it”

They point out the ironic nature of how “a huge majority of students in a liberal arts college believe they can curtail an individual’s fundamental right to protest.” they also allege that the Student Union, which has initially brought up the idea of cancelling Tarang is deliberately shifting the “blame for the fest being cancelled by the repressive admin to the marginalised students.”

The cancellation of Tarang also affects the societies within LSR. As Disha Rawal, one of the coordinators for Projekt, LSR’s Film and Photography society said, “ I think as a society we really looked forward to Tarang, and we planned a lot for it. We had an exhibition, film events, and photography events. As a society, we really looked forward to Tarang as the one place where we will get to showcase your work and interact with the circuit, which is very important. The effects it has had along with morale going down is that to establish yourself in the circuit, you need to have events and Tarang was our main event now we will have to look for other things which will be smaller in scale and size, secondly, this will lead to a trust deficit with the sponsors. On the other hand, I do understand where the admin has come from, there is a security concern, so we are assured now that no threat will play out.”

DU Beat has reached out to the administration and members of the Students’ Union and received no comment as of yet. This report will be updated on receiving further information from them.

Feature Image Credits: DU Beat

Prabhanu Kumar Das

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Campus Central

Tarang’20: LSR’s Dramsoc Cancels their Theatre Events

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Keeping the recent atrocity in mind , the Dramatics Society of Lady Shri Ram College cancelled their theatre events Yavnika and Nukkad that are a part of the College’s Annual Cultural Fest, Tarang to extend solidarity to the students of Jawaharlal Nehru University, Jamia Millia Islamia and Aligarh Muslim University, Shaheen Bagh, Kashmir, Assam, and all those who choose to break the normalcy and raise their voices against this fascist regime.

With the issue of a Press Release, the Dramatics Society of Lady Shri Ram College cancelled their theatre events, Yavnika and Nukkad that are a part of the College’s Annual Cultural Fest, Tarang. This was a conscious choice made by the entire society, given the current state, the nation is in and the discomfort with putting up a celebration amidst all that is going around.

Further, it is an action taken to break the normalcy of the situation and create a fissure in the daily lives of everyone involved in this process.

The Press Release issued by the Dramatics Society stated, “We as citizens and more importantly as students in these times, cannot choose to ignore the socio-political situation of this country, and the very fact that the democracy we so proudly uphold is in danger.”

Many societies in the Delhi Collegiate Theatre Circuit (DCTC) have issued solidarity statements against the state-sponsored brutality against students and for the protests against Citizenship (Amendment) Act.

Tushar Bahirwani, a member of Rangayan, Dramatics Society of ARSD, said, “It should also be noted that more than ever, it truly matters what we choose as topics of our plays. Street Theatre is a form of protest, with intense research and interpretation, it can definitely cause a change among the circuit as well. I might not cancel my own theatre fest, but, I definitely believe the content and topic of play should be widely considered as a parameter for judgement.”

Following this, The Dramatics society has chosen this as their way of showcasing solidarity with Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI), Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Shaheen Bagh, Kashmir, Assam, and all those who choose to break this normalcy and raise their voices against this fascist regime.

In context of the theatre events, and what motivated them to take this step, Simran, Secretary, The Dramatics Society, said, “Motivation for this action would definitely be that, how uncomfortable we were with whatever was happening around us. Just at the time we were starting to prepare for our fest, and sponsorship and publication, that’s exactly when the JNU violence happened. And this cannot be the way we go forward a celebration, its not the times to celebrate. To all those students protesting and the ones sitting outside Jamia Millia Islamia, giving up on their education. It’s the least we can do to be part of this revolution.”

Saman Waheed, Subhead, FoodFest Team, Organising Committee, on the repercussions of their actions on the entire fest, said, “It affects the college in the sense that since this statement has reached mainstream media (a news piece was published in The Hindu, I don’t know about other papers), the sponsors and the vendors we have been in contact with would probably back out, because the footfall would decrease considerably in such a case. We only got to know their decision after their press release.”

With respect to this, a General Body Meeting (GBM) was conducted in the College premises to discuss this issue and it’s likely that the fest would be postponed.

Many also questioned the intent of the Dramatics Society to truly contribute to the protest, as they have cancelled their event, however, might compete in fests of other colleges.

In response to this, Simran, replied, “We have not decided our stance yet. We will let all know soon.”

A proper statement regarding the future of Tarang and the stance of the society is awaited.

The Press Release also stated, “This is also a call to the other teams and theatre societies across Delhi NCR to join in this attempt to echo the voices of this wide struggle.” 

The cancellation will also be followed by small events and actions that mark their dissent, which they urge all to join in.

Feature Image Credits: DU Beat 

Chhavi Bahmba 

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Cultural Festivals

Annual Cultural Fest of LSR: Tarang ’17

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lsr annual fest 2017

The last day of the annual cultural fest of Lady Shri Ram College for Women, Tarang, created mass hysteria with the exciting events going on simultaneously in different parts of the college premises. ‘The Battle of Bands’ began with rock bands from different colleges where the Hindu College Collective from Hindu College, University of Delhi emerged as the winners. They were followed by the Asteroids and the Loose Puppets in second and third place respectively. In the event ‘Sangam’, the Indian choir competition, Swaranjali of Hans Raj College bagged the first position, followed by Alankar of Hindu College and Samranjini of Gargi College. The nukkadnatak or streetplay event was attended by the dramatics societies of various colleges from all over DU with fascinating scripts. Issues such as casteism and child abuse were discussed. It was a non-competitive event, but the amphitheatre remained crowded with the frenzied audience. Baila, the western dance competition mesmerised the crowd with amazing performance, such as those by Maitreyi College who were declared the winners. Participants of Jesus and Mary College and Sri Guru Gobind Singh College of Commerce bagged the second and the third positions respectively. Saaz, the Indian duet competition entertained participants for where Daulat Ram College emerged victors, followed by Kirori Mal College and Hans Raj College.

In addition, there were other events such as ‘Story Telling Competition’ by Elocution, Still Life Painting, and ‘Down the Rabbit Hole’, of which the latter was inspired by the classic novel Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll and was presented by Hive, the fine arts society of LSR. Workshops like those of beat-boxing and modern calligraphy, as well as mystery rooms were also conducted. Students of colleges from all over both DU and other universities participated in these events.

The scrumptious food stalls, footwear stalls, jewellery stalls, and candy stalls drew the crowd but the most attractive events of the last day were the performances of stand-up comedian Kenny Sebastian and indie-pop singer Lucky Ali. Kenny’s jokes hit the audience’s funny bones and the crowd exhorted throughout. Kenny took over the guitar, presenting his funny lyrics along with melodious tunes and tickled everyone till they let out boisterous laughs. Lucky Ali with his evergreen voice and his classic hits of the last two decades made sure that his fans were satisfied with his style of performance and the songs. He sprinkled the show with his major hits such as those from Kaho Na Pyaar Hai as well as some non-commercial indie songs.The festive merry feeling in Tarang 2017 throughout all three days was the best way to begin with the season of fests in DU with massive participation of students from colleges all over India.

 

Image Caption:Tarang 2017 comes to a close after three days of immense extravagance

Image Credits: VibhanaKanwar for DU Beat

 

Radhika Boruah

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DU Annual Fest Season

Day 2 at Tarang’17 : Thriving on thrills

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A confluence of talent, enigma, and exuberance, the second day at Tarang gleamed with enthralling events and exhibitions to be lavished upon!

As the extravagance spilt over the second day of Lady Shri Ram College’s fest, Tarang, a vast spectrum of talent exhibitions was gloriously presented by teams from a multitude of colleges. With colours of vibrancy and exhilaration floating around the rooms and corridors of LSR, the penultimate day of the fest let spirits soar high and eyes feast upon all the magnificence as a day of exhilaration unfolded!

The day witnessed events of a broad range – from the photography competition, the treasure hunt, and the script writing competition to workshops scaling around sculpting and jewellery-making. Vaktritva, the public speaking society, organised Tarkvyuh, the parliamentary debate competition. Gaurav and Pratyush from the Delhi School of Economics cross team won the Hindi parliamentary debate.

An a cappella competition titled A Cappella – Pitch Please organised by the western music society of Lady Shri Ram College saw the final participation of the nine best western music societies. The melodies of Coldplay, Twenty One Pilots, and other contemporary artists were performed on the stage. The competition was judged by Miss Sherry Mathew and Miss Kamakshi Khanna. At the end of all the performances, Kamakshi Khanna, singer/composer of “The Stage” fame, took the stage and performed three songs from her latest album Cakewalk. “It’s so great to be back here, back to my favourite auditorium”, said Kamakshi, who is also the ex-President of the western music society of Lady Shri Ram College. The results of the completion were as follows: first position grabbed by Euphony of Gargi College, the second position was secured by Echo of Jesus and Mary College, and Swaranjali of Hansraj College seized the third position.

The competitive pulses escalating with every question, the quiz society unrolled the pop culture and India quizzes. The former, open to all participants, witnessed cross-college teams. In the pop culture quiz, Abhishek Kapoor, Akul Gurtu, and M Vishnu Vardhan bagged the first prize, with Varun Rastogi, Rabin Jacob, and Puranjay winning the second prize. The third prize was awarded to Raktim Nag, Raman U, and Gokul S. In the India quiz, Soumya Sagar, Kartik Puri, and Ankush Bhardwaj secured the first prize. Apratim Chandra Singh, Jayant Verma, and Bishal Kumar took the second prize and Ankur Agraj, Abhishek Mishra, and Priyam Sneha bagged the third prize.

The Indian musical society of LSR organised Bandish, the solo instrumental competition, with participants displaying their prowess on the equipment of their choice. The room was filled with melodies of beats circling the atmosphere with each participant.

The aesthetic creations were also presented by Hive, which organised the musical interpretation painting competition. The first prize was won by Narendra of College of Arts, with Anishka from Kamala Nehru College and Sushmita from Deshbandhu College bagging the second and third prizes respectively. A Special Mention prize was also awarded to Avani from Hans Raj College.

 

As the chords crawled in the depths of the heart, the dance society presented Mudra, the classical solo and duet competition. A myriad of riveting performances clad in artistic precision and cultural aura paved the way for applauses and appreciation. In the solo category, Aishwarya from Sri Venkateswara College, Nimisha from Janaki Devi Memorial College bagged the first and second prizes respectively. Chhavi from Gargi College and Unni Vishwanath from Hans Raj College won the Special Mention prize. In the duet category, Tejaswani and Nandita from Hans Raj College were awarded the first prize.

 

 

To set in motion the rhythmic wave for the evening, the Indian musical society organised Amalgam, the fusion band competition which witnessed the participation of six teams after the screening of 17-18 teams online. As the bands performed compelling compositions from the realms of the industry and that of the soul, the crowd collectively cheered for the beautiful ambience. With Hans Raj College seizing the third prize and Shiv Nadar University bagging the second, the team from Shaheed Bhagat Singh College was awarded the winning prize in this enthralling event.

 

A glimpse of the fusion band competition

 

Drawing the eventful day to a close, Tarang’s pro night on the second day witnessed the enigmatic presence of the EDM artist Anish Sood. An Indian musician leading the path to Electronic Dance Music within the periphery of the country, the DJ played the likes of The Chainsmokers’ Closer and Don’t Let Me Down, amongst other songs and compositions. The tunes sent the audience into a daze, who swayed rhythmically to the edgy music and went gaga over the artist. With the lights shining at their brightest and the waves of energy palpable, the evening ended on high notes and the crowd yearning for more!

Anish Sood live at #LSRTarang17 

Feature image credits: DU Beat 

Saumya Kalia

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Niharika Dabral

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Vineeta Rana 

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DU Annual Fest Season

Day 1 at LSR’s Tarang’17: ‘Redefining Rhapsody’ kicks off with a bang

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Lady Shri Ram College’s much-awaited annual fest, Tarang, is finally here. Tarang 2017, with its theme of “redefining rhapsody” is a three-day long spectacle taking place from the 3rd to the 5th of February 2017. With starry pro nights, exhibitions, games, competitions, workshops and great food, the first day of Tarang was definitely a hit.

 

Take a look at the Day 1 happenings at Tarang captured by us in time-lapse. 

 

 

The western music society of LSR organised events for both solo participants, as well as teams of three. In the solo category, Zacharyah Matthew Abraham of Ansal University,  Kishore Ningthoujam of Amity University and Gurpreet Kaur of Jesus and Mary College won first, second and third place respectively. In the trio category, Kishore Ningthoujam, Lishma Manandhar and Rhea Toor, accompanied by Saarim Khan from Amity University won the first prize, Shikha Agnihotri, G.S Kasturi and Manikaant Suryan, accompanied by Ujjwal Sharma and Ashanka Saha from NSIT won the second prize and Riddhi Sharma, Rigzin Angmo and Klirka Engtipi from Shri Ram College of Commerce won the third prize.

The dramatics society of the college held its stage play event “Yavnika”, and presented five of the best productions of this year. Among the participants were – Yakshagana, the theatre society of Northern India Engineering College, who performed “Shunya Battey Sannata”; Sri Venkateswara College’s Verbum, with “Learning to Drive”, a nonchalant yet hard-hitting play that revolved around child sexual abuse; Natuve, the theatre society of Shaheed Bhagat Singh College with their hilarious production “PA…BHA…KA…”; Shunya, the theatre society of Ramjas College with “Evam Indrajit”. The last performance of the day was “The Play That Goes Wrong” by Dramanomics, the theatre society of the College of Vocational Studies. The non-competitive event allowed the different societies to showcase their performances without any rivalry.

 

SlamNation, a slam poetry completion organised by the Elocution Society saw powerful recitals of spoken word performances. 

The umbrella painting competition conducted under Hive, the Fine Arts society, brightened up the amphitheatre with vibrant and colourful creations.

Check out a sneak peek from the competition

The latter half of Day 1 at Tarang saw a steady rise in footfall, perhaps in anticipation of the star performances scheduled for later in the evening.

The Indian music society organised ‘Malhar’, the Indian solo classical competition. Bhargavi from Kirori Mal College claimed the first position, while second position was shared by Shreya from Shri Ram College of Commerce and Gurditt from Guru Tegh Bahadur Institute of Technology. Rajagopal from Shiv Nadar University took the third place.

“Izzaz”, the choreo group dance competition was organised by LSR’s dance society. The first position was jointly shared by Hans Raj College and Gargi College, while the second position was won by Kirori Mal College.

 

Towards the end of the night, Kanika Kapoor made a short appearance to endorse fashion brand Lulu and Sky. She gave away vouchers of the brand to winners from a previously organised competition and sung a few of her songs like ‘Chittiyan Kalaiyan’ and ‘Da Da Dasse’ on popular audience demand.  The highlight of the day was Prateek Kuhad’s soulful concert. He had the crowd completely captivated with his honey-like voice and lilting music.

 

Missed Prateek Kuhad’s performance? We’ve got you covered! Catch a glimpse of his performance below

 

 

 

The first day of Tarang also offered a range of workshops on pottery, jewellery making and modern calligraphy. With such an energetic start, the next two days of the fest are surely something to look forward to.

Feature image credits: Harshit Thukral

Niharika Dabral

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Kriti Sharma
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Vineeta Rana

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DU Annual Fest Season

LSR’s Annual Fest Tarang 2016 culminates with a performance by Agnee

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The final day of Lady Shri Ram College for Women’s Tarang 2016 had multiple events lined up all day. While most events culminated before dusk, the Western Dance Competition, Baila continued till early evening. This was one of the most awaited events of the entire fest, a fact which was evident by the long queues that waited for entrance into the auditorium.

Daila was judged by Mr. Rohit Raj of the Brooklyn Academy and Ms. Blossom D’Souza who trained at Dance Works Performing Arts Academy. A total number of 9 teams participated. The audience was enthralled with the multiple energy-fused performances that took over the stage. Every performance enraptured the judges and spectators alike.

Harshita, of Misba, the Western Dance Society of Guru Gobind Singh College of Commerce said, “Our practices were really hectic and we had a very long day today. Despite all odds, our performance went great. We love to perform in LSR and the energy of the audience inspires us to perform well.”

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It was vivid that the judges agreed with them since Misba bagged the first position in the event followed by Sri Aurobindo  College and Sri Venkateswara College in the second and third position.

Following the western dance event was the Star Night where the band Agnee performed. The popularity of Agnee and the exhilaration of their fans was evident from the fact that the audience for the Star Night was the highest of all three days. And the band did not disappoint their fans and sang all of their favourite numbers including Yaariyan, Aahatein and Saaware.

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A performance that was equally mesmerizing and enthralling, the three day extravaganza Tarang 2016 ended on a musical note and with zeal and happiness dripping from the faces of union members and faculty of the college!

 

For details of the entire fest, refer to:

Day 1: https://dubeat.com/2016/02/day-1-of-tarang-16-ends-with-east-india-comedy/Day 2, Morning: https://dubeat.com/2016/02/day-2-at-lsr-tarang-2016/
Day 2, Evening: https://dubeat.com/2016/02/day-2-at-tarang-16-winds-up-with-edm-night/
Day 3, Morning: https://dubeat.com/2016/02/kmc-and-hrc-start-day-3-of-tarang-2016-with-a-win/

 

Team Tarang: Day 3
Arushi Pathak
Sudisha Misra
Kartikeya Bhatotia
Tarushi Verma
Mridul Kumar
Alex Arthur

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