Saarang
Encyclopedia
Saarang is the annual social and cultural festival
of IIT Madras. It is a five-day long event held towards the end of January every year and is attended by around 50,000 students. Called Mardi Gras when it was started more than thirty years ago, the fest has gone on to become an integral part of the city culture of Chennai. It was renamed Saarang in 1996.
for the past thirty years. Saarang also has its roots in the ‘cultural week’ of the early 1970s. "Classes would happen as usual during the day, but students from city colleges would come and take part in different competitions every evening for a week. We’d have our dinner and then come and spend the whole evening in the OAT (Open Air Theatre). There was no prize money at all, but just winning something at IIT’s cultural week was a coveted honour.” says V.G. Idichandy, then a student and former Dean of Students at IITM.
The fest was formally started in 1974-75 as Mardi Gras, the focus of the festival being to promote interest in cultural and literary activities and to develop the organizing skills of the students.
. The last couple of years have witnessed the addition of an international flavour with concerts by Opeth
, Hammerfall
, Led Zepplica from Southern California, Matmatah
, and Duo Bertrand en Cie. Swedish progressive metal band Pain of Salvation
and renowned playback artist Krishnakumar Kunnath (KK) performed at the Saarang 2011.
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 IIT Madras. It is a five-day long event held towards the end of January every year and is attended by around 50,000 students. Called Mardi Gras when it was started more than thirty years ago, the fest has gone on to become an integral part of the city culture of Chennai. It was renamed Saarang in 1996.
History of Saarang
IIT Madras has been hosting an annual cultural festivalCulfest
A culfest or cultfest is an annual event organized by colleges in India.-General format:Most college culfests last from two to five days...
for the past thirty years. Saarang also has its roots in the ‘cultural week’ of the early 1970s. "Classes would happen as usual during the day, but students from city colleges would come and take part in different competitions every evening for a week. We’d have our dinner and then come and spend the whole evening in the OAT (Open Air Theatre). There was no prize money at all, but just winning something at IIT’s cultural week was a coveted honour.” says V.G. Idichandy, then a student and former Dean of Students at IITM.
The fest was formally started in 1974-75 as Mardi Gras, the focus of the festival being to promote interest in cultural and literary activities and to develop the organizing skills of the students.
Time
Saarang takes place during four days near the weekend of Republic Day at IIT Madras. The event starts with a classical night, which is then followed by the Choreo night, the Light Music night and the rock concert.Events and Workshops
With more than fifty events, Saarang offers a variety of fare to choose from for both the participants who are out to chill out and those who come for serious competition, in almost any literary or cultural activity.Professional Shows
Over the past few years, Saarang has been host to light music giants Shankar, Ehsaan & Loy and Sonu NigamSonu Nigam
Sonu Nigam is an Indian playback singer whose songs have been featured in numerous Hindi movies, as well as films in Assamese, Punjabi, Bengali, Marathi and Kannada language. He has also released numerous Indi-pop albums and acted in a few Hindi feature films...
. The last couple of years have witnessed the addition of an international flavour with concerts by Opeth
Opeth
Opeth is a Swedish heavy metal band from Stockholm, formed in 1990. Though the group has been through several personnel changes, singer, guitarist, and songwriter Mikael Åkerfeldt has remained Opeth's driving force throughout the years...
, Hammerfall
Hammerfall
Hammerfall or HammerFall may refer to:*HammerFall, a Swedish power metal band*Hammerfall, a novel in The Gene Wars universe.*Hammerfall, a city in Azeroth, the fictional world of the computer game World of Warcraft....
, Led Zepplica from Southern California, Matmatah
Matmatah
thumb|240pxMatmatah were a popular French rock band. Their popularity also extends to India, where they have played in many rock shows in Mumbai , Pondicherry and Chennai .-History:...
, and Duo Bertrand en Cie. Swedish progressive metal band Pain of Salvation
Pain of Salvation
Pain of Salvation is a Swedish progressive rock band featuring Daniel Gildenlöw, who is the lyricist, chief composer, guitarist, and lead vocalist. Their sound is characterised by powerful, accentuated guitar work, broad vocal range, abrupt switching between heavy and calm passages, intense...
and renowned playback artist Krishnakumar Kunnath (KK) performed at the Saarang 2011.