Lucid poetry in motion

“Our drama club is like a family. We are more than 80 members all passionately dedicated to theatre,” gushed members of this club which includes students from all semesters and all streams.  “There are no restrictions, anyone can join,” they add.
They recently took part in the Bharata Yatra Kendra, a state level inter-collegiate fest, held at Ravindra Kalakshetra and were declared the overall champions among the 20 participating colleges. Their play Bahumukhi, a Kannada drama, focused on the negative aspects of journalism like sensationalism.

“Not everyone can take part in this competition. They have to be approved by a panel which selects the colleges that can take part. They consider the theatrical background, competitions won and the history of the club. We were selected after many rounds of filtering,” explains Kumar Raju, the cultural representative.

Ranga Vaibhava has not only attracted the present students of the college  but also the alumni. Naveen, an ex-student said, “I was actively involved in the club during college days. Even now, after I finished studying, I  continue to interact with the college theatre group. I’m really happy to be able to pursue my passion.” They have also been selected to take part in the Ranga Shankara playfest. The dance club is also part of ‘Ranga Vaibhava’ having taken  part in the Bharata Yatra Kendra.

“In a 10 minute performance, we showcased nine varieties of folk dances with 72 members on stage, a real record,” said a member of the dance club. “With a performance like that we were sure we would win the first place”, he added. The dance was directed by Raj Guru Hoskote.

The students get a lot of encouragement from the lecturers. “Prof Seshadri, the college cultural secretary, motivates us to a great extent. He always has time to listen to all our suggestions and to answer all our queries. He has retired from the college but still comes back to share his expert advice with us, as does Prof Prabhavathi, the principal of the MES Pre-University College,” said Kumar Raju. “We are very happy that our college not only emphasises studies but also extra-curricular activities like theatre and dance,” asserted the students collectively.