English Jam

 Reported by Shashank Singh

You think you know your grammar rules inside-out? BANG! You lose! An event to test spontaneity, fluency, and command over the language, the speaker who speaks for the longest time wins.

2 March 2014
Sunday, 10:00 A.M

It was a bright Sunday morning with the students full of enthusiasm as it was the final day of The Kaalrav 2K14. Sunday is termed as the laziest day of the week but in contrary it was the most active day of all.

The day started with a very interesting and productive event termed English Jam (JAM stands for Just a Minute). It is a competition held between 6-10 participants who sit together in front of judges and have to speak on an assigned topic. The topic is usually allocated to the participants by picking up a chit. Then they have to speak for a minute on the selected topic. If they are not fluent, or commit some grammatical mistakes, give unnecessary pauses, use the same word more than five times, deviate from the same topic, then the participant who points out the mistake speaks for the remaining time.

Emcees for this hilarious and interesting event were Manav Bhalla and Paulomi Bhowmick. The event was judged by Mr. Ajay Jha, Mrs. Dey and Mrs. Suryanarayan. The talented and competent participants of this splendid event were Aditya Chandra, Ashutosh Katoch, Deepshika Chhetri, Harsha. Pushpak Chakrobarty, Vinayak and Manish Chhetri. They started the event with first topic “Kaalrav” given to Aditya, who was very calm and confident. The next contestant was Ashutosh Katoch who got the topic “Favourite Bollywood Actress”. His distinguishing and mind-blowing words impressed the audience and judges. Next on stage was Deepshika Chhetri from SMIMS, her topic being “Your choice for the next prime minister of India”. Her words were practical and thoughts logical, reflecting the present scenario of India. Harsha was given a very up-to-the-minute topic “Boots”, as her topic suited herself and gave an encyclopaedic knowledge about it, held on to the podium for a long time. Next was Pushpak with the topic “Satya Nadela”. The topic could move forward only for the first 20 seconds and was interjected 7 times on the error of proper pronunciation of his name. It was the latest affair and was carefully dealt by him. The second last topic was “Kapil Sharma” given to Vinayak. The last topic of the event was “Vegetarianism” by Manish Chhetri. His discourse on the topic was smashing with accurate pronunciation and very good use of words.

The event ended on a high note with a lot of cheering and applause by the audience. This event attracted many of them to participate as it was the combination of fun and knowledge.
The winner of this event was the well deserving Manish Chhetri.

SMIT in 'VOGUE'

One of the main most awaited events of “Kaalrav 2K14” was the fashion show. This year’s fashion show was sponsored by MAX. The theme of the fashion show was a fusion between ‘Around The World’ resonating with the theme of the fest and pollution.

The first round of the show was a glimpse into the collection of offered by Max. In all there were 10 models showcasing the collection of Max. The judges for the event were, Sonam Lama Bhutia, Col A.K Dutta, and Sanjay Jha from SMIT and Manoj Rai from Max.

The second round of the show focused on the reduction of pollution, as the dresses designed, depicted the disturbing picture of pollution. The designs included the unique usage of broken paper plates, cups, CDs, old newspapers and storage foil. The models of the Fashion show walked the ramp to the tunes of Skrillex and Metallica.

The fashion show ended with all the models assembling with the coordinators of the event, i.e Kshitij Panghal, Aditya Verma and Reeha Colaco. The title for the Best Model (Male) was given to Bodhaditya Ganguly and Best Model (Female) to Varsha Narayan. The best designer award went to Aishwarya. The best models (male and female) judged by the title sponsor Max were Dwaipayan Talapatra and Khurmishtha Bharali.

- Reported by Konark Bhutani (2nd Year, ME)

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Director's Address

Kaalrav 2014 kicked off on the 28^th of February.  After a few events like the  welcome dance, the Director of S.M.I.T. was asked to address the crowd. This was the first event he addressed after joining as the Director a few weeks back.

The Director began the speech by welcoming everyone to the three day long cultural festival, Kaalrav. He then went on to acknowledge the presence of Air Marshall (Dr.) G.S. Janeja, the officiating Vice chancellor of SMU and dean of SMIMS who was the chief guest for the night, students of other colleges and other dignitaries present. The director continued his speech by explaining the importance of cultural festivals in an educational institution. To quote him, “Art is the medium in which culture can be refined....art has an inherent capability to purify the mind and the thoughts”. “Only after purification can the mind do noble things and take on noble responsibilities”, he added. Tolerance, benevolence, cohesiveness and forgiveness were the four main points he focused on during the course of his speech. He explained all the points in detail and pointed out their importance in a student’s life. Advice and words of wisdom made up a large portion of his speech. He ended his speech by saying, “If we are willing to help, respect, forgive and if we practice this, the positive energy created is so strong that it will echo from the hills and reverberate in the buildings and the rooms of our college”.

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Chief Guest's Address

Air Marshall (Dr.) G. S. Janeja was the chief guest for the fest. He is currently the Dean of Sikkim Manipal Institute of Medical Sciences and the acting Vice-Chancellor of S.M.U.

After the Director officially inaugurated the fest, the Chief Guest came up on stage to deliver his address. It was a fairly short speech with him thanking everyone for the warm reception, saying that he felt honoured and expressed his joy at being invited. He underlined the points that our director mentioned in his speech and advised the students to follow them. “Fests are important and they will do good to the institution”, he remarked. He further shared his experience of being in the northeast and pointed out that cultural activities were in the blood of the people here and that the performances he had seen were outstanding. His speech ended with him complimenting the students and staff of our college for the hard work put in by them in this fest. Also, he stressed on the fact that it is participation that matters and winning or losing comes secondary to participation.

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A brief chat with Air Marshal (Dr.) G.S. Janeja

We got a few minutes alone with Air Marshal (Dr.) Janeja and he was open to the idea of being interviewed so we asked him a few questions.

Q) Sir, in your speech you mentioned that  you had heard about Kaalrav before and that you always wanted to come. What were your expectations from it?

A) When I joined college, I heard from my faculty members that everyone looked forward to it but I couldn’t attend it last time as I joined later so I took this as a good opportunity to come here. When I was at AFMC, 96000 appeared for the entrance exams, out of them, 1000 were short listed and from those 1000, 100 boys and 25 girls were selected on the basis of co-curricular activities but when I saw the students at SMIMS, it was mind boggling. They were so good on the stage and off it. So I wanted to see what SMIT had to offer.

Q) When we first joined college, we thought that SMIMS was our sister college and that there would be plenty of interaction amongst us but the truth is, we never have any interaction. We hardly know what’s happening there. Why is it so?

A) The problem is with the academic sessions. When we have fests, you have semester exams so your college is unable to join. Even this time I had only one batch of students to bring here, the others are either on vacation or having their exams. This is the problem. We will try to prepone the next fest if possible in order to invite SMIT and the other colleges. I do believe that we should have more programmes together. Also, the invitation letter we got should have been more informational. We did not know many details like how many members could participate in the group dance.

Q) What is your take on our campus?

A) It is a lovely place. Situated right on the banks of river Teesta and I saw many people from all over the country here. The Vice Chancellor of SMU speaks highly of the quality of education in your college. I think that the college has a very bright future. The only problem I see is that it is far away from the city. There should be more entertainment facilities for the students.

Q) Sir, is there anything you would like to share about your college life?

A) When I got admission into AFMC, I had never ventured away from Delhi. These days, the father, mother, grandfather and grandmother all come along for admission of their ward. I had to go to Pune alone for my college. I got into a train and was charged 80 rupees by the T.T. for extra luggage. It was my first time. AFMC has made a man out of me. In those days, we had a lot of freedom. Almost too much freedom. We were either in college or in Goa. These days, the administration has too much accountability so we cannot give you as much freedom as we want. 

Q) If you could choose any college, what would your dream college be?

A) It would be AFMC itself. I appeared in the exams there and went there. It is the 2^nd best college and definitely deserves the rating. The students enjoy themselves and study as well. The alumni there is very strong. The alumni meet is held every year on the 4^th of August. We all have a sense of belonging. It’s the spirit of AFMC. I do not know about SMIT but SMIMS doesn’t boast of an alumni as strong as it should be. I am currently trying to set up an official alumni for SMIMS. The alumni should be strong and should interact. I think it’s important that students should want to come back to the college after passing out. There should also be more interaction between different batches.

Q) Last but not the least, what is your message to the youth of SMIT?

A) Enjoy your college life. It is the best life and will never come back. Enjoy to the best of your ability. Be a good person, study and develop your personality.

RANGMANCH ! ! !

Rangmanch was a drama event showcased by some of the best dramatics from SMIT and other colleges on Day 1. Three different teams, "HALLA BOL" and "PRALAY NAATAK SANGATHAN" from SMIT and "DEKATRIANS" from SMIMS portrayed their talent.

KATHPUTLI by Halla Bol, started with a Kathputli dance where Birju, a poor man whose daughter Gudiya was paralyzed, loved to watch Kathputli dance but unfortunately can't. Birju seeked help for his daughter's operation from Ramadhir, a wealthy man in village, who refused to help the poor family. That may be called, a blessing in disguise as seeing this the Sarpanch and other people supported Birju for the operation. She finally got fine and eventually enjoyed watching and making the puppets dance. This way Ramadhir realized how low he was in his mind and heart.

The second drama was a skit on "Gay Rights" by DEKATRIANS from SMIMS where a gay couple wanted to adopt a baby child and take care of it, but the forum was against the couple which puts them in court. The couple was questioned about their relationship by the court. Both of them tried hard to convince the court to agree but their efforts were futile. The court's verdict went against them. Even the Priest called their relationship a black spot on the society.

Last but not the least was Pralay Natak Sangathan which showcased a comedy drama. The dramatists used "shayeris" to make people laugh, making the numbers swell up in the audience. Everyone had a hearty laugh. This was followed by a climax where it turned out that there was a Murder Haweli where all of them get killed by a character "Mamaji". The total scene was in the breaking news on Aaj Tak News Channel which asked the audience to decide, whether it was a 'SHAYARI HAWELI' or a 'MURDER HAWELI'.

Winners for the event was PRALAY NAATAK SANGATHAN and the runner-up being HALLA BOL. The event being the second one of the day, failed to attract audience in vast numbers but was thoroughly enjoyed by those who were present.

           
       - Reported by Anant Mehrotra (2^nd year, ME)

KAALRAV 2K14 IS ON ! ! !

The Night had come when the students finally got the opportunity to showcase their exquisite talents. Kaalrav had begun! The excitement was reflected in the smiles of the students at the football field.
The Inauguration was welcomed euphemistically by a persistent shower which made the surrounding quite chilly and windy. None of this could dampen the flaming spirits of the SMITians.

Despite the warm welcome, the guests seemed a little displeased with the approximately 45 minutes’ delay.

1. INAUGURATION

Introduction to Kaalrav was nothing but an amazing piece of public speaking talent showcased by seven students who, most appreciatively spoke about the wonders of the world justifying the theme of Kaalrav- Around the World in Three Days.

2. DIYA LIGHTING

Inauguration was followed by Diya Lighting by the dignitaries present, which could be interpreted as the light of hope and wisdom in our lives. The guests were escorted to the Diya by students of the very efficient reception and hospitality committee.

3. KHADAS
Khadas were offered to the dignitaries by the Vice President and the General Secretary of the Student Council of the college as a token of respect and gratitude right after the Diya Lighting event.

4. WELCOME SONG

The welcome song was a wonderful piece of classical melisma. The vocalists were assisted by scintillating rhythms from the Harmonium and the Tabla.
Boys wore Traditional Kurta-Pajama and Girls wore traditional silk sarees.
The clothing wore the feelings of Peace, Harmony, prosperity, divinity which is abundantly present in the culture of India.

5. WELCOME DANCE
Welcome Song was followed by the Welcome Dance. It was grace personified. Using diyas as props, they danced eloquently and marvelously on the beats of a beautiful traditional song.

-Reported by Satyaki