Staying true to its reputation of organising exuberant and vivacious college fests, IIT Kanpur recently hosted its annual cultural festival 'Antaragni'. The four-day event saw performances from leading musicians such as the Bollywood music trio Shakar Ehsaan Loy.
A legacy spanning decades
The 54th edition of the festival began on Oct 17 and went on till Oct 20. Students from IIT as well as participants from other colleges attended the event on the institute's premises. Being the most eagerly awaited student event of the year, Antaragni bore witness to an eruption of cultural flair and creative exuberance.
The event was flagged off by Mr. Om Prakash Singh, Director General of Police, Uttar Pradesh, who was invited as the chief guest fort he opening ceremony.
Star performances
The major highlights of the festival were the four professional nights.
"Bollywood night" witnessed a power-packed performance from the singer-composer trio Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy. The performance was a hit with eager students flooding the venue much before the performance began so that the trio opened to a jam-packed audience.
The band When Chai Met Toast was invited to perform on "Fusion Night", while Sitar Metal performed on "Classical Night". But it wasn't just Indian artists that the festival had to offer. The International Carnival of Antaragni hosted artists from Portugal, Poland, France, Korea and Iran.
All play and no work
Apart from the star-studded performances, the fest also hosted a number of interesting events and competitions such as the Mr. and Miss Antaragni (personality pageant), India Haat, Director’s Cut, Kavi Sammelan, Calypso, Jitterbug, Kavyanjali, DJ War, Battle Rap etc.
Celebrities like Rajesh Khattar, Aajjan Srivastava, Darshan Jariwala, Pavani Pandey, Padma Shri Giriraj Kishore also graced the fest as jury members, judging students' performances in various competitions across categories like dance, drama, literature and more. In fact, the varied and multi-hued competitions are hotly contested every year and are a signature of Antaragni.
Page 3 celebrities from the world of fashion such as 2018 Miss India World Anukreethy Vasand and fashion blogger Saloni Sehra also attended the fest's inter-college fashion show event Ritambhara.
Students also had the option to participated in a myriad of informal events such as blind dates, ballroom dancing and more.
A social message
The festival was not just an expression of joy and fun but also a place to discuss burning and socially relevant issues that plague the nation today. With a number of panel discussions, events and competitions were organized to raise awareness among students, Antaragni’19 in association with Rotary International of Kanpur North undertook several social initiatives with regard to conservation of water, the fight against plastic pollution and eradication of polio.
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