This is the second year in a row that the event will go online, amid fears of the COVID-19 pandemic
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras students will host the 27th edition of the annual cultural fest Saarang virtually, the institute said on January 5. This will be a four-day event, from January 6 to 9. “Reliving the memories of fables and legends passed down through generations, the theme for Saarang 2022 is ‘Lores and Legacies',” it said.
This is the second year in a row that the event will go online, amid fears of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The event is likely to have around 35,000 participants.
“With a rich legacy spanning 27 years, Saarang is strongly embedded into the cultural scene of South India. A team of around 800 students has been working for nearly a year on various events in the run-up to the main event. It is among the largest student-run fests in the country, comprising around 100 events,” IIT Madras said.
Addressing a press conference, Professor Bhaskar Ramamurthi, Director, IIT Madras, said, “Due to these very unusual times, this is the second year in a row that our students are conducting virtually both the cultural and technical festivals, which usually take place in January. Nevertheless, from last year's experience, students have shown that new paradigm does not necessarily mean that you have a festival that is lacking in spirit, participation or quality. We had a good festival last time. This year, I am sure with the experience gained, it would be even better.”
“I congratulate our students for taking the new situation on the chin and going ahead. Though there is nothing like an offline, face-to-face festival, because cultural festivals, in particular, are all about interactions and socialization. But nevertheless, they are showing what can be done and how one can overcome challenges despite the situation and get a reasonable approximation to what would be the ideal cultural festival,” he added.
The events and shows of Saarang 2022 include ‘Indie Night', ‘51 Hours Short Film Making', and ‘Anime Fest',
Click here for the more details on Saarang 2022 events.