<p>The gala revolved around ‘Onam’, the traditional Kerala festival wherein the arrival of King Mahabali is celebrated every year. It was also the perfect opportunity for the seniors and faculty members to interact with the new batch of entrants into the college.<br /><br />It was the perfect occasion for the students to dress in their very best. Whilst the girls decked themselves up in saris, salwars and churidars, along with lots of jewellery, many boys sported mundu, the traditional Malayali attire, as well as kurta and dhoti. <br /><br />The proceedings were carried out in a traditional Malayali manner. It began with a shingari melam troupe, a procession of musicians dressed in mundu and beating drums down the driveway of the college. One of the fourth year students, Harish Shankar, had dressed himself up as King Mahabali in a red and gold mundu, plenty of gold jewellery, a crown and a printed umbrella. The shingari melam was greeted by an array of girls clad in white and gold saris, and then carried on into the area where the events were taking place. The dignitaries for the day included the college administrator, Abdul Hameed and the principal, T C Manjunath.<br /><br /> The students welcomed them with a ponnada, or a Kerala-styled shawl. After a brief inauguration ceremony, which included the ceremonial lighting of the college lamp, the crowds moved to the different parts of the college to take part in the events.<br /><br />The first event was a talent hunt organised by the senior students for the freshers. It was divided into three rounds: the introduction round, in which the participants had to give a brief sketch of themselves; a talent round, in which they had to showcase their skills; and a task round, in which they were asked some unexpected questions and judged based on their answers. Several freshers dazzled the audience in the talent round, such as Zeeshan who performed a hip-hop dance to some upbeat tracks. Several other events, such as a chilli-eating contest, a slow-bike race for the teaching staff and an inter-departmental pookalam competition were also held.<br /><br />Nayana, a second year student of electronics, said that the best thing about these celebrations is that it got the students of the college to interact with each other. “We have it every year, and it’s a lot of fun. Everyone enjoys to the maximum, and we also get to spend time with the freshers, which is great!” she said.<br /></p>
<p>The gala revolved around ‘Onam’, the traditional Kerala festival wherein the arrival of King Mahabali is celebrated every year. It was also the perfect opportunity for the seniors and faculty members to interact with the new batch of entrants into the college.<br /><br />It was the perfect occasion for the students to dress in their very best. Whilst the girls decked themselves up in saris, salwars and churidars, along with lots of jewellery, many boys sported mundu, the traditional Malayali attire, as well as kurta and dhoti. <br /><br />The proceedings were carried out in a traditional Malayali manner. It began with a shingari melam troupe, a procession of musicians dressed in mundu and beating drums down the driveway of the college. One of the fourth year students, Harish Shankar, had dressed himself up as King Mahabali in a red and gold mundu, plenty of gold jewellery, a crown and a printed umbrella. The shingari melam was greeted by an array of girls clad in white and gold saris, and then carried on into the area where the events were taking place. The dignitaries for the day included the college administrator, Abdul Hameed and the principal, T C Manjunath.<br /><br /> The students welcomed them with a ponnada, or a Kerala-styled shawl. After a brief inauguration ceremony, which included the ceremonial lighting of the college lamp, the crowds moved to the different parts of the college to take part in the events.<br /><br />The first event was a talent hunt organised by the senior students for the freshers. It was divided into three rounds: the introduction round, in which the participants had to give a brief sketch of themselves; a talent round, in which they had to showcase their skills; and a task round, in which they were asked some unexpected questions and judged based on their answers. Several freshers dazzled the audience in the talent round, such as Zeeshan who performed a hip-hop dance to some upbeat tracks. Several other events, such as a chilli-eating contest, a slow-bike race for the teaching staff and an inter-departmental pookalam competition were also held.<br /><br />Nayana, a second year student of electronics, said that the best thing about these celebrations is that it got the students of the college to interact with each other. “We have it every year, and it’s a lot of fun. Everyone enjoys to the maximum, and we also get to spend time with the freshers, which is great!” she said.<br /></p>
