Festember
Encyclopedia
Festember is the national-level cultural festival
of the National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli. It is held annually in the third week of September when college students from all over India participate in various cultural, literary and artistic events to compete for the coveted "Festember Rolling Trophy".
. Festember 2005 was named as the best cultural event of the year by the State Government of Tamilnadu. The 2008 festival was sponsored by Airtel while Festember 2009 was sponsored by Vodafone
. More than 7000 students from all over the country participated in Festember 2008.
The Rolling trophy was originally named the Ilayaraja Trophy after the famous maestro who performed at Festember at some point during the 1980s. The Festember X Rolling Trophy was won by Vellore Institute of Technology.
in this popular event.
The final rounds of all the musical events are held on the evening of the second day of Festember, in the presence of a huge crowd of students from various colleges, under the name of Semi-Pro Nite. A host act is generally performed by the NITT Music Troupe. A recent addition is "Giga Hertz", a competition for semi-pro death metal
bands from various colleges
and English
, and are popularly referred to as "Lits" by students. They range from a number of popular games to creative events invented by the students themselves.
. The events are introduced by the English literary and debating society of NIT, Tiruchirappalli, "Balls By Picasso".
within this area. At the end of the competition, no domino is allowed to overlap outside the perimeter and the best arrangement wins the prize.
, light painting
and similar subjects. The 2009 festival included workshops on archery
, movie-making
, hypnotism and cartoon making
.
alive with their foot tapping and soul swaying music. They are generally held after the valediction of the fest and make for an exciting closing ceremony. Pro-Nite has seen performances by the likes of popular playback singers KK, Karthik
and Srinivas
and percussionist Sivamani
.
Popular playback singer Benny Dayal
and Bandish
were roped in to lighten up the 2009 edition of the Pro-Nite.
Culfest
A culfest or cultfest is an annual event organized by colleges in India.-General format:Most college culfests last from two to five days...
of the National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli. It is held annually in the third week of September when college students from all over India participate in various cultural, literary and artistic events to compete for the coveted "Festember Rolling Trophy".
History
Festember was first held in the year 1975 and has seen increasing participation over the years. Today, it is one of the biggest cultural festivals in South IndiaSouth India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
. Festember 2005 was named as the best cultural event of the year by the State Government of Tamilnadu. The 2008 festival was sponsored by Airtel while Festember 2009 was sponsored by Vodafone
Vodafone
Vodafone Group Plc is a global telecommunications company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest mobile telecommunications company measured by revenues and the world's second-largest measured by subscribers , with around 341 million proportionate subscribers as of...
. More than 7000 students from all over the country participated in Festember 2008.
The Rolling trophy was originally named the Ilayaraja Trophy after the famous maestro who performed at Festember at some point during the 1980s. The Festember X Rolling Trophy was won by Vellore Institute of Technology.
Dance
The dance competitions are generally held in two sub-categories, Eastern dance and Western dance. However, in Festember 2009, all the genres were integrated into one big dance ensemble, termed the Choreo Nite. Dance of any genre is performed by college troupes and the finals are held at the Barn. The NITT Dance Troupe performs the host performance act every year. Their attractive dance sequences with scintillating backdrops generally evoke a huge response from the audience.Shruthilaya
A classical-music competition for vocals and instrumentals.Tarangini
The Eastern and light music competition for college bands. Each participating band is allowed to have up tyo 15 members.Semi Pro Rock
Bands clash with their rock musicRock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
in this popular event.
The final rounds of all the musical events are held on the evening of the second day of Festember, in the presence of a huge crowd of students from various colleges, under the name of Semi-Pro Nite. A host act is generally performed by the NITT Music Troupe. A recent addition is "Giga Hertz", a competition for semi-pro death metal
Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
bands from various colleges
Movie making
"Take One" is the name of the short-movie making competition of Festember. Movies with any theme or genre are permitted with a duration of up to ten minutes.Dramatics
A 45-minute dramatics competition entitled "Theatrix" is held every year. Original scripts, pre-written scripts and adaptations are permitted, however the play should not have been staged at any earlier Festember festival.Literary events
The literary events in the college are held in Hindi, TamilTamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, and are popularly referred to as "Lits" by students. They range from a number of popular games to creative events invented by the students themselves.
English events
These consist of an array of events such as "Pot pourri", "Pixie" (a picture quiz), "Dumb charades", "What's the good word?", "Crossword", "Scrabble", "Cluedo", "Jam" and "Debate". There are also quiz competitions such as a "Lone wolf quiz", "Sports and entertainment quiz" and an "India quiz". These events generally receive widespread participation from guest students and visitors and are seen as amusing pastimes and pieces of infotainmentInfotainment
Infotainment is "information-based media content or programming that also includes entertainment content in an effort to enhance popularity with audiences and consumers." It is a neologistic portmanteau of information and entertainment, referring to a type of media which provides a combination of...
. The events are introduced by the English literary and debating society of NIT, Tiruchirappalli, "Balls By Picasso".
Hindi events
The events in Hindi cater to the interests of students of North India, and also serve as a medium for non-native Hindi speakers who want to gauge their linguistic skills. A wide variety of events are held:- Halka fulka - literature, mythology
- Sur sangam - Hindi antakshari
- Twarit srajnatmak lekhan - creative writing
- Shabd jaal - Hindi crossword
- Bas ek pal - jam
- Doobti naiya - shipwreck
- Vaad vivaad - Hindi debate
- Ishaaron, ishaaron mein - dumb charades
- Mahan bharath - India quiz
- Hum sath sath hain - mix dhamaka
- Saanp seedhi - snakes and ladders
- Ashu bhasan - Hindi extempore
- Rochak mantrana - humorous wit competition
Dominoes
A one metre square area is marked on the floor. Teams have to arrange their dominoesDominoes
Dominoes generally refers to the collective gaming pieces making up a domino set or to the subcategory of tile games played with domino pieces. In the area of mathematical tilings and polyominoes, the word domino often refers to any rectangle formed from joining two congruent squares edge to edge...
within this area. At the end of the competition, no domino is allowed to overlap outside the perimeter and the best arrangement wins the prize.
How close can you get
A 100-word detailed description of a black and white photographis given to each team. Based on this description, the participants need to sketch the photograph. Judging is based on how similar their sketch turns out to be as compared to the original photograph and also on their artistic skill.Graffiti
Graffiti painting competition, where the topic will be given on the spot and all the necessary materials will be provided. Judging is based on adherence to the theme, creativity, style, usage of the space provided and artistic quality.Workshops
The workshops held during Festember are popular with the students. In the past, workshops have been held on potteryPottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
, light painting
Light Painting
Light painting, also known as light drawing or light graffiti is a photographic technique in which exposures are made usually at night or in a darkened room by moving a hand-held light source or by moving the camera. In many cases the light source itself does not have to appear in the image...
and similar subjects. The 2009 festival included workshops on archery
Archery
Archery is the art, practice, or skill of propelling arrows with the use of a bow, from Latin arcus. Archery has historically been used for hunting and combat; in modern times, however, its main use is that of a recreational activity...
, movie-making
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, hypnotism and cartoon making
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
.
Pro-Nite
One of the major highlights of Festember is the Pro-Nite which has seen film music icons and celebrity bands bring the campusCampus
A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls and park-like settings...
alive with their foot tapping and soul swaying music. They are generally held after the valediction of the fest and make for an exciting closing ceremony. Pro-Nite has seen performances by the likes of popular playback singers KK, Karthik
Karthik (singer)
Karthik is an Indian playback singer.Karthik started his professional singing career as a backing vocalist and has since been a playback singer in Tamil cinema while also single in other Indian languages for various composers...
and Srinivas
Srinivas (singer)
Srinivas 'Srini' is an award winning playback singer who has sung over 2000 songs in Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, Kannada and Hindi. He is also a music composer.-Early life:...
and percussionist Sivamani
Sivamani
Anandan Sivamani , popularly known as Sivamani, is a percussionist based in India. He plays many instruments including drums, Octoban, Darbuka, Udukai, and Kanjira, as well as many more. He performed drumming during the IPL Championships in 2008 & 2010. He is affiliated to the Chennai Super Kings...
.
Popular playback singer Benny Dayal
Benny Dayal
Benny Dayal is an Indian singer. He is a member of the band S5 launched by the channel SS Music. Originally from Kerala, he has worked as a playback singer with many noted composers to produce successful soundtracks.-Biography:Benny Dayal's parents hail from Kollam district, Kerala...
and Bandish
Bandish
Bandish, Cheez or Gat is a fixed, melodic composition in Hindustani vocal or instrumental music. It is set in a specific raga, performed with rhythmic accompaniment by a tabla or pakhavaj, a steady drone, and melodic accompaniment by a sarangi, violin or harmonium. There are different ways of...
were roped in to lighten up the 2009 edition of the Pro-Nite.
See also
- National Institute of Technology TiruchirappalliNational Institute of Technology TiruchirappalliThe National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli , formerly the Regional Engineering College , Tiruchirappalli, is a public engineering and technology university located 20 km near the city of Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu, India. The institute was founded in 1964 to cater to the country's...
- List of culfests in India