Jisha Surya
Thiruvananthapuram: Cultural festivals of professional colleges have come a long way from the modest youth festivals of the 90s. It is the presence of celebrities, prize money, variety of shows, the gilts and glamour that grade the programme rather than the actual competition or talents. The inter-college competition, usually held in February- March, has turned to be the most prestigious events in the college. Be it for ‘Ragam’ of NIT Calicut, ‘Dhwani’ of College of Engeering Trivandrum, ‘Crossroads’ of Mar Baselious College of Engineering and Technology and the ongoing ‘Aagenya’ of Govt Engineering College, Bartonhill, budget is no more an issue.
The quantum leap in the budget amount will surprise many. The budget amount for the 3-4 day programme ranges from Rs 15-25 lakh. A major chunk of this amount is shell out for the ‘Proshows’ or the mega event, which features performance of celebrities. From Shankar Mahadeven and Sonu Nigam to MTV celebs Reghu Ram and Rannvijay Singh, all have made their way to professional colleges here. Band performance is an indispensible event.
“Finding the sponsor is a big task. Some of us have even faced that ‘get out’ moment. But, all that depends on how effectively you convince them. Mostly companies who recruit students show interest in giving funds,” said Remit Chennithala, one of the organisers of ‘Crossroads’. This year, the budget was Rs 21 lakh.
Abhilash N C, one of the co-ordinator of ‘Dhwani’, there will be some CETian in most of the companies, who help them in getting the sponsor. One of the major sponsors of Rs 25 lakh event this year was Wipro.
Apart from the ‘Proshows’, it is the prize money which is another attractive feature of events. “Dance events are the major crowd-puller and it gets more sponsers. Most colleges will have a major dance team. The prize money ranges from Rs 20,000 to 30,000,” said Anuraj N A, who was one of the organiser of ‘Aagneya’ in 2011.
The students also have some quirky ideas to woo the sponsors. Each year’s programme will have some socially-relevant/green themes such as blood donation, right to education, plastic-free city etc. “Some companies show eagerness to give fund when they hear about such theme. The students use several innovative ways to popularize the theme,” Anuraj said.
Sponsors and their brands get due promotion during the event. “We used LED videowalls this year. It was expensive, but we could effectively highlight advertisements. Some wish to advertise their brands by sponsoring the costumes of the anchor,” said Remit. The title sponsors (Rs 2-3 lakh), co-sponsors (Rs 1-2 lakh) etc will get exposure in media promotions.
Some events are a combination of cultural and technical festival. Mechanical engineering wing of the college may sometime organise auto-expo along with this. The auto expo will have interesting display of vintage cars, altered bike etc. The popular bike stunts too will be part of this.
If you think, the entire programmes are organised by the students, you are wrong. A number of event management companies usually compete to arrange the mega event. “That is because it is difficult for the students to get in touch with celebrities. They help us in arranging the celebrity guests,” said Anuraj
The preparation for the events in February-March will begin from January. Most events have well-updated websites created by the students. Effective use of social media is another highlight of these events.
Thiruvananthapuram: Cultural festivals of professional colleges have come a long way from the modest youth festivals of the 90s. It is the presence of celebrities, prize money, variety of shows, the gilts and glamour that grade the programme rather than the actual competition or talents. The inter-college competition, usually held in February- March, has turned to be the most prestigious events in the college. Be it for ‘Ragam’ of NIT Calicut, ‘Dhwani’ of College of Engeering Trivandrum, ‘Crossroads’ of Mar Baselious College of Engineering and Technology and the ongoing ‘Aagenya’ of Govt Engineering College, Bartonhill, budget is no more an issue.
The quantum leap in the budget amount will surprise many. The budget amount for the 3-4 day programme ranges from Rs 15-25 lakh. A major chunk of this amount is shell out for the ‘Proshows’ or the mega event, which features performance of celebrities. From Shankar Mahadeven and Sonu Nigam to MTV celebs Reghu Ram and Rannvijay Singh, all have made their way to professional colleges here. Band performance is an indispensible event.
“Finding the sponsor is a big task. Some of us have even faced that ‘get out’ moment. But, all that depends on how effectively you convince them. Mostly companies who recruit students show interest in giving funds,” said Remit Chennithala, one of the organisers of ‘Crossroads’. This year, the budget was Rs 21 lakh.
Abhilash N C, one of the co-ordinator of ‘Dhwani’, there will be some CETian in most of the companies, who help them in getting the sponsor. One of the major sponsors of Rs 25 lakh event this year was Wipro.
Apart from the ‘Proshows’, it is the prize money which is another attractive feature of events. “Dance events are the major crowd-puller and it gets more sponsers. Most colleges will have a major dance team. The prize money ranges from Rs 20,000 to 30,000,” said Anuraj N A, who was one of the organiser of ‘Aagneya’ in 2011.
The students also have some quirky ideas to woo the sponsors. Each year’s programme will have some socially-relevant/green themes such as blood donation, right to education, plastic-free city etc. “Some companies show eagerness to give fund when they hear about such theme. The students use several innovative ways to popularize the theme,” Anuraj said.
Sponsors and their brands get due promotion during the event. “We used LED videowalls this year. It was expensive, but we could effectively highlight advertisements. Some wish to advertise their brands by sponsoring the costumes of the anchor,” said Remit. The title sponsors (Rs 2-3 lakh), co-sponsors (Rs 1-2 lakh) etc will get exposure in media promotions.
Some events are a combination of cultural and technical festival. Mechanical engineering wing of the college may sometime organise auto-expo along with this. The auto expo will have interesting display of vintage cars, altered bike etc. The popular bike stunts too will be part of this.
If you think, the entire programmes are organised by the students, you are wrong. A number of event management companies usually compete to arrange the mega event. “That is because it is difficult for the students to get in touch with celebrities. They help us in arranging the celebrity guests,” said Anuraj
The preparation for the events in February-March will begin from January. Most events have well-updated websites created by the students. Effective use of social media is another highlight of these events.
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