Festember '23, the 49th edition of NIT Trichy's annual inter-collegiate cultural festival, was a resounding success. Brimming with excitement, learning, and entertainment, the fest spanned over three days, leaving an unforgettable mark on everyone.
Over the last few decades, Festember has established itself as a homage to the multiple facets of humanity. The Inaugural Ceremony happened in the Barn Hall from 6 PM to 8 PM. After the invocation and lighting of the lamp, the various dignitaries of the occasion addressed the gathering. The Inauguration ceremony was presided over by the Chief Guest. Mr. Arun Kumar, the IIS Joint Director at Prime Minister's Communication Cell & CBC, Chennai, and the Guest of Honour, Mr. A. Syed Hameed, the Associate Director of SDSC SHAR, ISRO and the Project Director for the Augmentation of Solid Motor Production Facilities Project. The inauguration ended with a Kuchipudi recital delivered by Smt Vidushi Vyjayanthi Kashi, a Sangeet Natak Akademi Awardee, in association with SPIC MACAY NIT Trichy Chapter.
The language cluster of Festember 23 was a platform for participants to showcase their linguistic prowess. The English cluster featured a range of events such as Cryptic Crossword, Debate, Extempore, Just A Minute, Potpourri, What's the Good Word and Spell Bee. As for the trivia buffs, there were a variety of quizzes such as the Frankenstein Quiz, India Quiz, Lone Wolf Quiz and SpLitEnt quiz in store. The Tamil cluster held a myriad of events, such as Sagalakalaa Vallavan, Asatha Povathu Yaaru, Kodambakkam, Padathodu Pesava, Uyarthani Semmozhi, Sokhanani. For the savants in Hindi lits, there were a myriad of events like Cricket Quiz, Vaad Vivaad, Tatkalik Bhashan, Rochak Mantrana, and Titanic Safari, held under the Hindi Cluster while the Telugu Cluster organised a Treasure Hunt and Picture Interlinking Quiz.
The Art cluster served as a platform for participants to unleash their creative flair through events such as Body Art, Chisel the Climax, Paper Dressing, Wall Painting, and Art-o-matic. Events such as Mime, Theatrix and Mono Acting were witnessed under the Dramatics Cluster. As for the shutterbugs, the photography cluster organised Conceptual, Live and Portrait Photography, along with Reel-live-it.
The Shrutilaya Cluster witnessed events like Solo Instrumental (Percussion and Non-Percussion), Solo Vocals and even a Carnatic Music Quiz. With events like Tarangini, Acoustics, Gigahertz, Solo Vocals Eastern, Solo vocals Western and Upbeat, the music cluster was a raging success. Likewise, Choreonite, Eastern Solo, Western Solo and Duet Freestyle, under the dance cluster, proved to be spell-binding to both audiences and participants alike.
With events like Mr and Mrs Festember and Fashionitas, the fashion cluster was a scintillating display of grace and elegance. As for the adrenaline junkies, excitement and challenges awaited at every turn with the Gaming Cluster that boasted of events like Tekken, Valorant, Rocket League and Splash Spree.
In addition to a plethora of events, Festember'23 offered a variety of workshops and informal events. VR and PS4, Rage Room, Sumo Wrestling, Human Foosball and the Escape room were the attractions offered under the informals. For the people with a penchant for learning, workshops on Music production, Personal styling, Resin Fusion couple dance, La Bachata Dance, and Paper cut animation were conducted. Furthermore, the Japanese Exhibition was a phenomenal success, providing a window into the rich culture Japan holds. Additionally, the drug awareness campaign 'Drug-Free India' by the Central Bureau of Communication was conducted.
Opus Luminaire, the film series of Festember, promoted the upcoming movie Jigarthanda DoubleX with a distinguished panel of film artists involving its cast and crew. The star-studded panel consisted of the prominent director Karthik Subbaraj, esteemed actor SJ Suryah and talented actor-dancer Raghava Lawrence as they narrated their journey in the making of this film. The fest also featured inspiring guest lectures with distinguished individuals like Sridhar Vembu, Sivarajah Ramanathan, Velumi Arokiaswamy, Anil Srivansan, Gaurav Juyal, Hip Hop Thamizha and Madhushree who all shared their insights and experiences in their respective fields.
Festember ended with the Valediction at Barn Hall at 7 PM. TAGA Masayuki, The honourable Consul-General of Japan in Chennai, was the chief guest of the valediction and delivered a speech celebrating Japanese culture and was thoroughly impressed by the showcase of Japanese traditions in festember. He invited the audience to visit Japan for its rich heritage and to participate in various study exchange programs. Finally, in collaboration with Spic Macay NIT Trichy Chapter, Sri KK Ramachandra Pulavar, a Padmasree and Sangeet Natak Akademi awardee, graced the stage with his troupe with a Tholpavakoothu show.
The sensational proshows were truly the grand finale of Festember'23. Harry D. Cruz, Bharath, and RubZ headlined the Party Nite. Thaikuddam Bridge, Julia Bliss, and Neeti Mohan delivered electrifying performances on Rock Nite, EDM Nite and Pop Nite, respectively, leaving the audience in awe as they danced the nights away.
Festember 23 witnessed high spirits of competition from various colleges like IIT Madras, IIT Palakkad, SASTRA University, Thiagarajar College Engineering and several more institutes throughout the four days of the fest. As the gates of this edition of Festember closed, SASTRA University emerged as the overall champion of the fest.