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<keyword id="6356755" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="IIT-Madras">IIT Madras</keyword>' annual cultural fest '<keyword id="542908" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Saarang">Saarang</keyword>' themed 'enchanted forest' is back this year in a new avatar. In a bid to raise awareness about the government's drive to go digital, it has gone completely cashless in the fest season. 
 
That means, from food stalls to ticket sales, visitors are swiping their debit cards or using online wallets and other digital modes to make payments. Bank representatives on the campus are guiding visitors. 
 
In line with the fresh theme of the event, the organising team has focused on ambience so a walk through the campus can give visitors a feel of walking in the woods. 
 
To make up for the loss of green cover that took a hit during the December cyclone, the Saarang team will also be planting 100 saplings on the campus. 
 The fest will see 90 large scale competitive events, 200 informal shows, 14 lecture demonstrations, 6 professional shows and 7 world culture show acts, including graffiti, sand art and street dancing. Other than classical, choreo, EDM and rock shows, a feature is the spotlight lectures which in cludes a line-up of doyens like T M Krishna, Prachi Tehlan, Anirudh Ravichander, Shekhar Gupta, Siddharth and <keyword id="121606" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gautam-Menon">Gautam Menon</keyword>, among others. New additions this time include a comedy show by Biswa Kalyan Rath, a gaming zone and a food fest. 
 IIT-M director <keyword id="797116" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bhaskar-Ramamurthi">Bhaskar Ramamurthi</keyword> said the aim of the fest from the institute's perspective is two-fold wherein students learn skills outside the classroom through the process of conceiving and executing the fest along with being exposed to a wide variety of talent. "IITs can also become self-contained and having students from outside is an opportunity for them to learn," he said.

IIT Madras Cultural Fest: Here's what sets 'Saarang' apart from the rest

When two countries are at war, it's not the state that suffers as much as the people residing in it. This stands true for four aggrieved <keyword id="3001" type="COUNTRY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pakistan">Pakistan</keyword> students, who now may not get a chance to be a part of <keyword id="61708" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="IIT-Bombay">IIT Bombay</keyword>'s biggest annual fest, due to the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan. 
 All four students are from Karachi, and had registered for <keyword id="397491" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Techfest">Techfest</keyword> slated to be held in December this year. Just when they were excited and busy preparing for the competition, it has come to their knowledge that the organisers of the event are giving another thought to the invitation sent to the <keyword id="63890" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pakistani-Students">Pakistani students</keyword> owing to security reasons. 
 
Meanwhile, the students have conveyed they have no problem visiting India. They have even applied for visas much before time fearing it might get delayed due to cross-border tensions, however, they claim there havebeen delays in accpeting the formalities. 
 
Notably, IIT techfest - IIT Bombay's science and technology festival - usually gets about 1.65 lakh footfalls in three days, and security is a prime concern. Similar controversies during fest season have taken place before as well. Students at IIT Bombay claim that a band from Pakistan was invited for the festival two years ago, but it was not able to perform due to fear of the crowds. 
 
Going by the past, the organizers are unsure of whether the Pakistani participants will be welcomed by the crowds at the fest this time around, and if not, whether they will be able to handle security all by themselves. Also, with MNS threatening Pakistani actors to go back to their country, the college fears getting caught in political controversy around the issue, due to which techfest's image could take a beating. 
 
It's being said that only after having discussions with the institute and, if required, at the government level, will the committee take a final call on the Pakistani students.

IIT-B skeptical about having Pakistani teams in their biggest fest of the year as Indo-Pak tensions escalate

You have heard of lot of times how college fests went wrong. There would be singers not showing up, several hours of delay and singers refusing to perform because of payment being not done – these are the common stories you have heard of fests. However a singer being refused on the grounds of a sexist reason is a story never heard before. 
 Bollywood’s leading playback singer <keyword id="36091" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Sona-Mohapatra">Sona Mohapatra</keyword> known for his hits Ambarsariya, Dil aaj kal and <keyword id="2513" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Naina">Naina</keyword> has recently accused IIT- Mumbai of being too sexist. In a <keyword id="6354576" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Facebook">Facebook</keyword> post on her profile, <keyword id="21604" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="mohapatra">Mohapatra</keyword> has written an open letter detailing the facts. IIT-B’s fest ‘Mood Indigo’ had asked her to perform with another male singer. While she insisted o performing solo, the managing committee refused to allow her to sing solo. What raises a major question is she victim of major conspiracy? 
 
In the open letter, she has also alleged that women performers across the country are victimized. “Go through your festival line-ups year after year, decade after decade &amp; you will see this clear as day. You are people with a scientific temper who understands statistics &amp; the like? You'll see the SAD truth slap you on the face. It's boys, boys &amp; only more boys.” (SIC) 
 
While Mood Indigo team has denied such allegations, the explanation reiterates the points raised by Mohapatra. 
 
Here’s the open letter of Mohapatra:

Here's Sona Mohapatra's open letter to IIT Bombay who didn't
allow her to sing

What’s a <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/The-50-best-colleges-in-America/articleshow/48517078.cms">campus life that’s devoid of adventures, excitements and lots of fun</a>. Every one of us has some amazing memories to cherish about college life. College cultural fests are one of them. They bring the best in each student as they bang their heads over preparing the guest list, designing the posters and pamphlets, finding the sponsors, making the arrangements, booking the celebrities. 
 
Still the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/The-30-most-fun-colleges-in-America/articleshow/51070583.cms">restless job</a> bring a lot of happiness and unforgettable moments for a lifetime. 
 
On that note, we get you a peek inside some amazing college fest in our country. And these nine stand out:

9 Ultimate College Fests in India You Just Can't Miss

When we were busy burning firecrackers little realizing we had to wake up the next morning to inhale all the smoke in the air we had contributed to, <keyword id="6364832" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="IIT-Kharagpur">IIT Kharagpur</keyword> students were being more responsible than most of us with their <keyword id="188" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="Diwali">Diwali</keyword> celebrations. 
 
Their Diwali was both eco-friendly and noiseless, and it was probably most beautiful than you'd ever have seen. 
 
Like every year, it was time for 'Illumination' - IIT Kharagpur's famous cultural festival. As it kickstarted, students join forces to light up the entire campus. Illumination has been celebrated for decades now and every year the students build panels and make rangolis and light them up with thousands of diyas. What's fascinationg is during Illumination, lights are put off for 2 to 3 hours and only diyas light up the campus. 
 <keyword id="3798716" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="chandan-karwat">Chandan Karwat</keyword>, whose captured the event, told media earlier - "IIT Kharagpur is spread over some 2200 acres and has around 10,000 students. All these students reside in our residence halls. And every year students of these 21 halls compete to decorate the campus. The preparations start a month before Diwali. Everything is done by students, no labour or no help is involved." 
 
Here's what the beautiful campus looked like: 
 
(Image credits: Chandan Karwat)

Lights go off in IIT Kharagpur every Diwali, and what this campus transforms into is breathtakingly beautiful

Three class X students <keyword id="4291390" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="chetanya-golechha">Chetanya Golechha</keyword>, <keyword id="4298220" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mrigank-Gujjar">Mrigank Gujjar</keyword> and <keyword id="1667730" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Utsav-Jain">Utsav Jain</keyword> hailing from Rajasthan, have recently received Rs 3 crore funding for their start-up called '<keyword id="4292770" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Infusion-Beverages">Infusion Beverages</keyword>'. 
 
At an age when they should be reading school textbooks, the trio is busy reading UG and PG books on management to learn the nuances of market. Their startup makes preservative-less flavoured water without sugar and soda. 
 All three founders hail from <keyword id="196211" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Neerja-Modi-School">Neerja Modi School</keyword> in Jaipur. They participated in an entrepreneurship fest of their school in April last year. "Our presentation of the product failed to impress the judges in the fest. We were kicked out in the first round. Though we were out of the competition in the first hour, but got the order of delivering 150 flavoured water bottles," said Golechha. 
 The students had done most of their research on <keyword id="6355629" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Google">Google</keyword> before seeking their parents' permission to go ahead with the plan. 
 
"We carried out intense research on Google to prepare a healthy drink without sugar and soda. But soon we realized that turning an idea into reality is not easy when you are a minor," Gujjar. 
 
The students also faced legal hurdles as documents are needed to begin a start up and as kids they did not have any. 
 
"Procuring the licence, necessary permissions from the food department and approval from FSSAI, are a herculean task. As we were minors our parents sought the permission on our behalf," Gujjar said. 
 
In a bid to refine their idea, they took part in the entrepreneurship competitions at IIT-Kanpur and IIM-Indore, only to garner wide appreciation. Soon, Malviya National Institute of Technology decided to incubate their idea. They also helped the students in applying for patent, which is in advanced stage. 
 
By January, the trio had sold 8,000 bottles of flavoured water-kewra, rose and bel flavours through business to business mode. 
 
It's also no surprise that an investor from Indore asked them for a meeting, and the result was the trio was able to raise Rs 3 crore funding.

Meet three class 10 students who just raised 3 crore for their beverage startup

The three-day annual management-cultural fest, IRIS 2016, kicked off with students of <keyword id="150302" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="IIM-Indore">IIM Indore</keyword> attempting to make world's largest <keyword id="3869751" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="condom-mosaic">condom mosaic</keyword>. 
 Using 4964 packets of condoms, 21 students from IIM Indore created a mosaic symbol in an area of 22 square feet. All of them were eyeing the <keyword id="6605593" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Guiness-Book-of-World-Records">Guiness Book of World Records</keyword>. 
 
 
However, it seems they were unable to beat the previous record because <a href="http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/largest-condom-mosaic">Guiness</a><a href="http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/largest-condom-mosaic"> Website still quotes IIM Lucknow as the record holder</a> - "The largest condom mosaic measures 18.51 m² (199.24ft²) and was created by UPSACS, INDEX IIM lucknow and HLFPPT (all India), in Lucknow, India, on 16 November 2014." 
 Nevertheless, IRIS has become synonymous with <keyword id="129119" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Guinness-World-Records">Guinness World Records</keyword>, where every year the IRIS team tries to create a world record which gives a social message and is in line with the sponsor's activities. The event sees participation from students from premier B-schools across the country. 
 
So far, IIM Indore has created the world record of largest pencil mosaic and largest greeting card mosaic. The students have also attempted to break the World Record for the largest glass bottle mosaic. 
 
"This year the team attempted for the largest condom mosaic record, to create awareness about the issues which go unaddressed and people are afraid of talking about," said IIM Indore officials. 
 
"The three-day fest aims to bring together around 7000 participants for more than 24 competitions, creating an amalgamation of talent and action and developing a platform for the youth to explore their talents. The fest would witness participants from the top institutes of India, presenting their skills in cultural, management and literary events," they added. 
 
Interestingly, for the previous record for condom mosaic, IIM-Lucknow students used 1000 packets to create a huge sign of AIDS awareness in 18.5 square feet area. This is what their symbol looked like: 
 
They had beaten the record by AIDS Control Society of Hong Kong, which used 685 condoms packets to create the largest condom mosaic back then.

IIM students try their luck at creating World's Largest Condom Mosaic using 4,964 packets; Here's the outcome

A bitter experience on a train in 1974 in Nis, a border town between what is now Serbia and Bulgaria, turned N R Narayana Murthy into a "compassionate capitalist", leading him to create Infosys, the country's IT bellwether.
 Recalling the incident, Murthy said he was engaged in a conversation with a girl, who could only understand French, but it landed him in trouble.
 "We were talking about life in Bulgaria. I think the boy, who was accompanying the girl, got upset with us for some reason. So, he went and brought the police," Murthy said on Sunday while addressing the audience at a tech fest organized by IIT, Bombay, through a video link.
 The Bulgarian guards took Murthy's passport, luggage and dragged him on the platform. He was kept in an 8X8 room, with primitive toilet facilities, for a few days.
 "I thought they would open the door in the morning and get me some breakfast since I was the state guest, but nothing happened. I lost all hope of eating anything," he said.
 The next morning, police took Murthy to the platform and pushed him into the guard's compartment of a departing freight train. At this point, Murthy had not had anything to eat or drink for five days in a row.
 The guards said, "Look, you are from a friendly country called India, so we are letting you go but we will give you your passport when you reach Istanbul."
 If a country treats friends like this, Murthy thought to himself, he would not want to be part of a communist country ever.
 "That cued me from being a confused leftist to a determined compassionate capitalist," he said.
 That incident pushed Murthy towards taking the plunge into entrepreneurship.
 He said his first attempt at entrepreneurship was a company called Softronics focused on providing IT services to the domestic market, in Pune, which he closed as he could not see any future prospects. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/thelife/personalities/news/top-10-tech-billionaires-on-the-forbes-list-of-100-richest-indians/articleshow/71539382.cms">Top 10 tech billionaires on the Forbes list of 100 richest Indians</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/thelife/personalities/news/salil-parekh-infosys-ceo-profile/articleshow/71699382.cms">The Infosys clean-up under Salil Parekh seems to have come a full circle within 2 years</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/here-are-all-things-indian-about-boris-johnsons-new-cabinet/articleshow/70381071.cms">Here are all things Indian about Boris Johnson’s new Cabinet</a>

You Searched For "IIT fests" and got 8 results

IIT Madras Cultural Fest: Here's what sets 'Saarang' apart from the rest

Anushree Singh

IIT-B skeptical about having Pakistani teams in their biggest fest of the year as Indo-Pak tensions escalate

Anushree Singh

Here's Sona Mohapatra's open letter to IIT Bombay who didn't allow her to sing

Suchayan Mandal

9 Ultimate College Fests in India You Just Can't Miss

Anushree Singh

Lights go off in IIT Kharagpur every Diwali, and what this campus transforms into is breathtakingly beautiful

Anushree Singh

Meet three class 10 students who just raised 3 crore for their beverage startup

Anushree Singh

IIM students try their luck at creating World's Largest Condom Mosaic using 4,964 packets; Here's the outcome

Anushree Singh

Infosys founder Narayana Murthy shares experience that turned him into 'compassionate capitalist'

PTI

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