Latest
DU Beat – Delhi University's Independent Student Newspaper
Tag

Miranda House

Browsing
Miranda House

Imtiaz Ali and Alia Bhatt visit Miranda House to promote ‘Highway’

By

Director Imtiaz Ali and actress Alia Bhatt visited Miranda House College on 19th February for the promotion of their upcoming film ‘Highway’ which is slated for release on 21st February.

The programme started with the official trailer of the movie, popular songs like Pataka Guddi and Maahi Ve and a behind the scenes video of the movie being played. After that, Pratibha Jolly, the college principal officially welcomed them on stage where both of the stars talked about the movie and their experience while shooting the film. “I totally believe in girl power,” said Alia Bhatt while addressing the all girls’ crowd, “and Highway is true dedication to girl power.”

hw3a

Open only to students of Miranda House, the event was followed by an interactive session with the students. The students asked Imtiaz about his life as a student of Delhi University, his journey as a filmmaker and his inspiration behind his films. Alia was asked about her debut film, her character in Highway and how much she relates to the character she plays in the film. She also sang a few lines of Ishq Wala Love from Student of the Year on popular demand by the crowd.

After the interactive session, Imtiaz and Alia gave away free music CDs of Highway to the students who asked the best questions. As a memoir, the college principle presented hand-dyed scarves to the guests.

With the end of the interactive session, a small competition among the cultural societies of the college was held, which was judged by Imiiaz and Alia. Anukriti, the Hindi dramatic society of the college won the first prize and was really appreciated for their expressive performance. The second prize was won by Ariels, the English dramatic society.

“The experience was extremely exciting and equally tiring for the film club. From controlling the crowd that went berserk, to running around trying to get small details like Alia’s green tea right, all of it was worth it for we had an amazing time doing it” said Namita Aggarwal, the Film Club president of the college. “The event went successfully and that gives me immense satisfaction” she added.

Image Credit: Greta Khawbung for DU Beat

Post by DU Beat.
Keep Reading
By
Miranda House

Deconstructing Disability: Miranda House Organises Event for the Differently Abled

By

On the 16th and 17th of this month, Miranda House witnessed an event for differently abled students called “Deconstructing disability” organized by Lakshita, the enabling society devoted to creating awareness about disabilities. This society which was started in July 2012 has since then organized seminars on RTI acts and plans to host many such events and inter-college competition in Delhi University to highlight the importance of inclusion of handicapped people in economic, social and political arenas.

The first day of the event started around noon and comprised a small speech by Supriya, the President of Lakshita and movie screening of three episodes of the TV series “Nazar ya Nazariya”, which is an initiative of George Abraham, CEO of Score Foundation. The three episodes were based on “Gender, Women and Employment”. The seminar hall of the college was full with more than 100 students of different colleges witnessing the event. “I personally believe that for a country like India, it’s important to start investing in disabled people as a resource, instead of considering them as a community that has to be looked after”, said Mr. George Abraham, while addressing the audience.

Day 2 witnessed three panel discussions, with four speakers in each session. Dr. Pratibha Jolly, Principal of Miranda House, welcomed the listeners after which the first panel discussion which talked about “Understanding Disability” began. The panel included Komal Kamra, Associate Professor of Khalsa college as the mediator, George Abraham, Poonam Natrajan, Chairperson of the National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disability, Arun C Rao, Executive Director, the DeafWay foundation and Sonal Sena, Director of Shruti Information. “Gender, Accessibility and Employment” was the topic of second panel discussion with Renu Addlakha, Professor and Deputy Director, CWDS, Anjlee Agarwal, Executive Director of the National Centre for Accessible Environment, Dipendra Manocha, Coordinator for Developing Countries Program, DAISY consortium and Niranjan Khatri general manager of ITC hotel, as speakers.

The third panel discussion revolved around “Law and Human rights”. Radhika Alkazi, Founder Director of Aarth-Astha, Merry Barua, Founder Director for Autism and Subhash C. Vashishth, Program Coordinator of Svayam-National Center for Inclusive Environment were the three panelists for this round.
The session ended with a performance by Anukriti, a member of Hindi Dramatic Society.

“I feel that there is an urgent need to help handicapped students make an identity of their own. They need to be understood. We see people with disabilities and maybe even sympathize with them, but we do not understand them. We need to provide them the freedom and space with which they can come out of their shell. The purpose of this event was to inspire them and I feel extremely satisfied with the response”, said Dr Reema Bhatia, Convener of the society. “We worked really hard for this event and now that it’s finally done, I feel happy that our efforts paid off”, says Raavi Aggarwal, a volunteer of Lakshita.

Keep Reading
By
Miranda House

King’s and I: Studying International Relations

By

kings miranda
With the onset of the summer vacations, probable activities that are worthwhile start lurking in one’s head. It was then that I came across a flier which read “King’s comes to you! King’s College London and Miranda House welcome you! Apply now!” And it certainly was one of those moments when I realized the perks of studying in a prestigious college like Miranda House and in the University of Delhi.

The King’s College London Summer School at Delhi was organized in collaboration with Miranda House, University of Delhi and Think Education, an educational organization which works to create opportunities for promising students worldwide. It was a high quality and intensive academic programme open to students from around the country. The session 1 was held from 4th June-14th June 2013, and the session 2 from 17th June – 28th June 2013. It was in the first session that I studied the spectacularly interesting subject of International Relations. The concept of a ‘summer school’ being a new one to the students of  the University of Delhi was met with looks of apprehension; yet the KCL session saw around 80 students from various universities in attendance. Our tutor for this course was Dr. Diana Bozhilova, a Visiting Research Fellow at the Centre for Hellenic Studies at KCL, and also a dynamic lady with amazing knowledge in a subject which takes one years to study.

Being an absolute newcomer to the varying subjects of Political Science, Economics, Philosophy, Law and Sociology; most of us had trouble adjusting to the hefty curriculum, but the interactive approach and the alternating group activity plus lecture schedule made it all easily understandable and also enjoyable. We all breezed through heavy duty subjects like ‘global governance, international relations theory, the workings of the United Nations, historical origins of the European Union etc’. One afternoon we would make strategies to overcome problems in the European Parliament, whereas on another, build a clean city from scratch. We saw documentaries and videos ranging from sea piracy to that of a gender bias, which was definitely a wonderful break from the monotonous classroom sessions we all usually have to endure. The experience was one both mentally and emotionally enriching, as I made friends from places I never thought I would, with many of them here to stay. The summer school gave us an excuse to eat out, have fun, discuss theories over coffee and laugh over anecdotes recited by many of us.

The summer school not only taught me what the study of International Relations means, but also helped me decide what I would want to pursue later on in life. It helped me experience what it means to study in a foreign classroom, in a completely different setting and with a vast curriculum. It really helped broaden my horizons; while having fun. This summer school is one experience which I would never forget. Given a chance, I would definitely attend it again. I can proudly say that I returned with a greater sense of self after attending The King’s College London Summer School at Delhi.

Keep Reading
By
Campus Central

Rangotsav 2013

By

Anukriti – The Hindi Dramatics Society of Miranda House, organised their Annual Theatre Fest – Rangotsav on the 19th and 20th of March. A joint collaboration with the National School of Drama, this two-day fest was a great success. Day – 1 involved the staging of Anukriti’s annual full length production, a tradition since 1957.  The play was called ‘Seedhiyaan’, which was directed by Shri Ramji Bali, an alumnus of the National School of Drama. It was performed twice in one-day and saw an attendance of over 500 people with members of other DU dramatics societies in attendance. Set in the Mughal Era, the play was a successful satire on the existing norms of society, then and now. Day – 2 saw the staging of the play, ‘Tamasha na Hua’. Written and directed by Bhanu Bharti, an eminent Indian theatre director and playwright, the play was enjoyed by all. There were other notable personalities present, like Vishva Mohan (Secretary, Delhi Government, Department of Arts and Language), Harisuman Bisht (Secretary, Hindi Academy), Daya Prakash Sinha (Playwright, ‘Seedhiyan’),and  Akshat Verma (Scriptwriter, Delhi Belly). A result of the hard work and dedication of the Anukritians, the fest was spectacular and one which definitely satiated everyone’s hunger for thespian pursuits! Akriti Gupta [email protected]]]>

Keep Reading
By
Campus Central

TERI-POSOCO Initiative at Miranda House

By

The Enegry and Resources Institute (TERI) and Power System Operation Corporation (POSOCO) initiated ‘Rhythms from the Riverbanks’-an educational programme for college students on understanding the culture and ecology of two of the greatest river cities of India-Delhi and Kolkata. Launched in December 2012, the programme, which is currently in its pilot phase, aims to make young people understand the history, culture, economy and sustainability of these river cities with the intention of inspiring them to work towards and the appreciation, recognition and conservation of the rich cultural heritage of these cities. In order to deliberate more on the core issues and themes of the project, TERI and POSOCO are proud to present ‘Call of the River-Rhythms Village’ – a 2 day conference in association with one of the oldest and most prestigious academic institutions of India, Miranda House, from 18-19 March 2013. Some of the themes of the conference are as follows:

  • Urbanization and city space
  • Culture and heritage and its relevance and today’s postmodern, globalized world
  • River-centric city planning
  • ‘Cultural leadership’ amongst the youth – what would it take?
  • Focused sessions on Yamuna and Hooghly
  • Social and ecological issues related to the river
Renowned historians, sociologists, artists, musicians have been invited for the conference. The conference would act as a platform to bring all the stakeholders related to the rivers, most importantly the youth, on one platform. For more information, visit the page on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rhythmsfromtheriverbanks?fref=ts Given underneath is a table of the events taking place at Miranda House, on 18th and 19th March.
 Day 1: 18 March 2013  
 
0930 hrs – 1030 hrs   Session I:  Inaugural Session    
0930 hrs – 0945 hrs    0945 hrs – 1000 hrs     1000 hrs- 1015 hrs         1015 hrs – 1025 hrs Welcome Address         Dr. Pratibha Jolly, Principal, Miranda House, Delhi University   Special Address V.V. Sharma, General Manager, POSOCO- NRLDC   Rhythms Supriya Singh, Associate Fellow, Educating Youth for Sustainable Development, TERI   Screening of the Students’ Film made as part of Rhythms Shweta Arora, MSc Environmental Studies & Resource Management, TERI University   Vote of Thanks Livleen Kahlon, Fellow, Educating Youth for Sustainable Development, TERI
1030 hrs – 1130 hrs  Session I: Miles on YamunaDU innovation Project Teams
 
1145 hrs – 1215 hrs Session II: A Life Called Yamuna: Understanding Delhi and its Relationship with the RiverGovind Singh, Research Scholar, Department of Environmental Studies, Delhi University & Co-founder Delhi Greens
1215 hrs – 1300 hrs  Film Screening & Discussion: Delhi-Work in Progress A documentary film by Krishnendu Bose
   
1400 hrs – 1515 hrs    Session IIIPanel Discussion: Rethinking Urbanization, Redefining Development and Rediscovering City Space   Moderator: Dr. Suneel Pandey, Senior Fellow, Centre for Environmental Studies, TERI   Speakers: Ms. Neelima Soni, Dy. Director, Landscape & Environmental Planning Unit, DDA Dr. Jayanta Basu, Correspondent –The Telegraph & Faculty, Department of Environmental Science, Kolkata University Dr. B.C.Sabata, Senior Scientific Officer, Department of Environment, Delhi Government Prof. Hariharan  Ramachandran, Department of Geography, Delhi School of Economics
   
1530 hrs – 1700 hrs Competition – Rhythm Projects TERI 
1730-2000 hrs  ‘Nitya’ in ConcertShuheb Hasan (Vocalist), Anil Chawla (Keyboard), Aveleon Giles Vaz (Drums), Rajat Verma (Bass), Rajib Das (Percussion), Qazi Waseem Ahmed (Guitar)  
 Day 2: 19 March 2013Venue: Miranda House, Delhi University  
 
0930 hrs – 1100 hrs   Session IVTale of Two Rivers – Myths, Legends and Realities of Yamuna and Hooghly   Moderator: Dr Srimanjari, Specialist in Modern Indian History, Miranda House, Delhi University    Speakers: Smita Vats, ITIHAAS Dr. Minoti Chakravarty Kaul, Associate Professor Of Economics (Retired), LSR                                                                   Current Senior RA at Dept of History (University of Sussex)       
   
1130 hrs – 1300 hrs   Session V: ‘Call to Action: Educating, Engaging and Empowering Youth through different mediums and doorways   Moderator: Rishu Nigam, Area Manager-Visual Media, Film and Television Unit, TERI   Speakers: Ankit Pogula, Independent Film Maker, Tuning Fork Films Radhika Mathur, Coordinator, Right to Information Programme, The YP Foundation Arvind Gaur, Asmita Theatre Group
   
1400 hrs – 1530 hrs A Dastangoi presentation of the great Rajasthani folk story CHOUBOLIBased on the version created by Vijaydan Detha
   
1545 hrs – 1630 hrs Closing Remarks Dr. Pratibha Jolly, Principal, Miranda House, Delhi University  Prize Distribution
]]>

Keep Reading
By
Campus Central

Tempest 2013

By

The second day of the annual fest of Miranda House, tempest saw several competitions. The street play competition called ‘halla bol’ was the first one. Only 8 teams from Delhi University were short listed by Miranda House got to participated in this. The top 8 included Daulat Ram college, Shivaji, Hansraj, Jesus and Mary college, College of business studies, PGDAV, IP college, Kamla Nehru college, Mahraja Agrasen, and Shree Ram college of Commerce. The winners were CBS, the second position was tied between Hansraj and PGDAV, the third position was bagged by Maharaja Agrasen College. The Indian choir Competition was won by Venkateshvara College, Lady Shri Ram came second and the third position went to Faculty of music, defeating colleges like Hansraj, Kirori Mal and Kamla Nehru. The group song event was also won by Venkatashvera College, the second position was bagged by Lady Shree Ram and the third position went to Faculty of music. A unique feature of tempest was the set up of zorbing, flying fox and rappling by the Adventure Society of the college to entertain its students. The last day of Tempest saw a performance by Shilpa Rao. However, it was a short performance and left the audience wanting more.  ]]>

Keep Reading
By
Campus Central

Shabana Azmi in Miranda House

By

On 21st March, Shabana Azmi, the acclaimed Bollywood actress and famous activist visited Miranda House and held a discussion with young boys and girls about pressing issues like gender sensitization and women empowerment. The event was organized by the joint efforts of the Women Development Cell of Miranda House, Parivartan Gender forum of Kirori Mal College and NSS of Hindu College. As was expected, quite a large crowd turned up for the event.Although the boys were fewer in number, they participated in the talk and asked insightful questions.

The actress was late, as is usually the case with celebrities and the program which was scheduled to begin at 2, began at 3:20. The crowd cheered and clapped as Shabana Azmi made her way to the stage, clad in a white Anarkali suit and looking magnetic as she always does. She began by apologizing for making the crowd wait, defending herself by stating that she has come directly from the airport, without having even a sip of water and so she was hungry-to hear young minds speak. Her views about the recent rape case and equality of women impressed us all. She made it clear that ‘equal’ doesn’t mean ‘same’, equal means equality of opportunities, which is clearly lacking in Indian society and the change has to begin at home.

She also related many of her experiences that she had had in other countries as well as in India. She stresses on improving the attitude of the police and providing security to the victims so that they are spared the embarrassment and also to ensure that women can travel whenever they want, wearing whatever they want. Her comment on ‘item numbers’, that a song’s lyrics are no invitation to rape was another which received a loud applause. I was particularly affected by her observation about a course book of third graders, which says “where is the father? In the office. Where is the mother? In the kitchen.” She concluded that our society is taught this way, and change cannot be brought about in this generation, but that means that we have to keep working for it and raise our voice without giving up.

This was Delhi University’s efforts to fight violence against women. And I must say, Miranda house with all other organizers did a brilliant job in making it a successful one.

 

Aishwarya Chaurasia
[email protected]

Picture credits- Swadha Singh

Keep Reading
By
Campus Central

One billion rising movement at Miranda House

By

There couldn’t have been a better time to talk about feminism. The entire country is angry towards the brutal gang rape incident, and for a change, women issues are being looked at without the prism of patriarchy. There has been a conscious effort on the part of the youth to change the misogynist setup that we have been living in since ages.

Today, Miranda House was host to one such event that was organized under the banner of ‘One Billion rising-South Asia’. The One billion rising movement aims to empower women across the nation to stand up against the world’s complete indifference towards the other half of the population of the world. This event attracted eminent panelists like Eve Ensler (The creator of “The Vagina monologue”), Kamala Bhasin (From the NGO Jago ri) , Mallika Sarabhai (The noted bharatnatyam and kuchipudi dancer and social activist) and Abhijit Das (noted actor). Eve Ensler performed two of her monologues that she had recently written, one titled “Rising” and the other titled “I am an emotional creature”. Kamala Bhasin highlighted issues pertaining to woman by the medium of slogans. Mallika Sarabhai gave a dance recital revolving around Vishnu and Indra that left everyone mesmerized. The venue was reverberating with the positive energy that the guests had brought along with them.

Amidst the huge crowd that had gathered, only 5-6 odd men could be spotted, one of whom spoke up in a discussion, claiming that alcoholism is the main cause of rape. Needless to say, the crowd booed him out. At the end of the event, everyone agreed that it was high time we stop tolerating violence and discrimination against women and give a serious thought to the power relations in the society.

Keep Reading
By
Campus Central

Freshers’ Parties In Town

By

[/caption] It’s that time of the year again when freshers’ parties are the topic of discussion amongst every group of students across Delhi University. Many colleges have had their unofficial freshers’, but their official party is still on the waiting list. SRCC, Hansraj, Khalsa, Miranda House, St Stephens, Lady Shri Ram, Laxmi Bai etc are done with their departmental and unofficial freshers’ while Daulat Ram and Kirori Mal are going to have the same in the coming week. Shri Ram College had its unofficial freshers’ party on 29th of this month at Urban Pind, GK-2. The freshers had to pay Rs 300 each and the party continued from 3 to 7pm. Although very few students turned up, the party was quite a fun. “We sang and danced with our friends, and the food was good too!” says Mansi, a fresher. [caption id="attachment_7548" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Unofficial freshers' at SRCC"][/caption]

Miranda house had its departmental fresher with the theme of “ticket to Bollywood” last week in the college campus itself. Girls dressed up as actresses, danced to the tune of Bollywood music. “Food was good, they had it ordered from McDonald’s but the faulty music system spoiled the fun”, says Vanshika, a fresher from Miranda house. Lady Shri Ram and Laxmi Bai College too had its freshers’ last week with the theme of Angels and Demons at LSR. The girls of Laxmi Bai thoroughly enjoyed the “Miss Laxmi Bai” and solo group dance contest. “We also had rain dance which was terrific, I enjoyed a lot!” says Ridhima, a fresher.

Hansraj had its unofficial departmental freshers’ in Saket last week with each fresher contributing Rs 650. “They were serving alcohol and such stuffs, we don’t drink so it was just so-so”, says Vidushi.  Hansraj’s official freshers’ is meant to be held on 6th or 7th of next month with theme of Chronicles of Harry-oween and Shaheed Bhagat Singh’s unofficial freshers’ is at ice lounge next week.

On the other hand, some colleges are yet to have their freshers’ parties and students are looking forward to it with huge expectations. “I have already decided what to wear on the day, and I am very excited about it. I hope it stands up to my expectations, fingers crossed!” says Shiksha, SRCC.    Aishwarya Chaurasia [email protected] ]]>

Keep Reading
By
Events

Tempest – Highlights of the fest

By

The students union of Miranda House proved its mettle by putting up a good show at Tempest, the annual cultural fest of the college. The three day affair drew crowd in thousands every day.The swarm of people seen outside the college gate trying to pour into the college through the thin entrance only proved it better.

The day one of the fest, tagged as ‘Qayamat’ kicked off with the stage play competition, which saw the audience asking for more. The plays went house full, while one could always spot a crowd of atleast 20 people waiting outside the auditorium waiting to get inside. A few students misunderstood the entrepreneurship cell event, ‘the End of Times Sale’ as some sale which the society had put up and went back disappointed as the event was about making a product out of waste material provided. The talent show organized by the NSS unit of the college for the differently talented people received a very good response. Supriya from Miranda House won the first prize in dance category while Shipra won the second prize. DJ Sumit Sethi who came dressed in red, coupled with a sparkling red hat, played out some groovy numbers for the crowd while rapper Aman had the audience cheering for him for his Punjabi rap.

Resurrection, the day 2 of the fest saw the two most crowd pulling events being held. The bare spring sun didn’t stop the audience from cheering, singing and clapping during ‘Dhol Pitara’, the street play competition. Shivaji College bagged the first prize in ‘Dhol Pitara’, while Kamla Nehru College and Ramjas College shared the second prize. The third prize went to Ramanujam College.All the three prizes in the Poster Making competition, organized by the Fine Arts society of the college were bagged by the students of the Fine Arts and Photography society of Kirori Mal College. ‘Rear Gear’, the cycle stunts show organized by the Adventure Club of the college was a big hit amongst students.

The folk dance group of the host college won bagged the first prize in Sira, the Indian Dance competition. The day ended with ‘The Last Step’ the western group dance competition. Teams from 17 colleges across the city participated in the competition. The girls from Maitreyi College won the hearts of the crowd and the first prize with their scintillating performance on numbers like the ‘Naadaan Parinde’.

On Nirvana, the last day of the fest, a number of informal events like Holocaust-the ad-mad, Ancient Sleeves- the t-shirt painting competition, The Signs- the Tattoo making competition, a treasure hunt, et al were held. The Nishad-the Indian and the ‘Ending on a good note II’, the Western Music events went on for the whole day.                                                                                                                                                 

                                                                            
The highlight of the day was a performance each by the Hindi metal band Nigambodh and Parikrama. Nigambodh played some original compositions, accompanied by some growls by the vocalists and killer music by the guitarists. Parikrama along with its original compositions played a number of popular numbers of other bands like the Coldplay. People in the crowd were seen banging their heads off to the music of the both the metal bands. Free artist Jasleen Royal sang a number of popular songs and gave away free autographed CDs after the show. Parikrama ended its show and also the fest by calling upon the stage the core organizing committee of the fest and bowing in front of the audience along with them.

 

Photo Credits: Parthiv Goel, Saurabh Jain and Shweta Arora

Keep Reading
By