Top 10 Things to do at College Fests

The best part about college, aside from the freedom and friends, is the fests that are organized every year. These fests attract students like lectures never can! From food to competitions to games, they have something for everyone. So what are some of the most attractive aspects of college festivals? Read on to know-

10- Take a Break

College fests are something that all students look forward to, for they provide a much needed respite from studies, tutorials, texts and snarky professors. So the best thing to do during your college fest is to set your books aside and have fun. Everybody deserves a break, especially when we have studied our brains off and are THIS close to a burn out. If that is the case with you too after three months of college, in the middle of the semester, college fests are just the thing for you. These fests are filled with fun activities, great food, band performances, games and so much more. So close your readings, take off your nerd glasses and have pure, unadulterated fun for a week or two!...

9- Eat

Fests mean Food! College fests are a time when food joints and restaurants fall over each other to sponsor events and games where they know hungry teenagers will fall on their food. If you are anything like me, the highlight for college fests for you will be all the great food stalls. If your college has a high budget set aside for food, well, you’re in luck! You will get everything from ice creams to pizzas to burgers to candyfloss to dosas to Chinese to..well, you get my point. Moreover, even if your college does not invite too many food joints to have their stalls on your campus, you can always go to other colleges and have great food. Often, these restaurants come up with special discounts for students who live on a budget. This is a great way to boost sales as well as make the students happy. Sometimes, companies like Lays even hands out free samples. Sounds good, no?

8- Scavenger Hunts

Scavenger hunts, like treasure hunts after them, are informal events that everybody can participate in. They are bucketloads of fun, with students running around the campus, begging, borrowing and stealing. The list for scavenger hunts can range from straightforward to bizarre things like the feather of our national bird, photograph with the union president, a girl with seven piercings, a futch in a black shirt or a polka dotted scarf (all real examples from scavenger hunts I have participated in) The students take this game very seriously, often accosting clueless people and demanding photographs of them because their hair is of a certain shade or they are wearing Lakme’s burnt rose nail paint or some such thing.

7- Treasure Hunts

Most colleges have informal events along with the formal competitions like dancing and singing. One of the most fun events out of these is treasure hunting. Personally, I think treasure hunts are one of the best ways to enjoy during festivals. Most treasure hunts require you to participate in teams to two or more, capping at five. The span of the hunt is a part or whole of the campus area. Last year, SRCC organized a treasure hunt that spanned the entire Delhi University North Campus, including six to seven colleges. Sometimes these treasure hunts are theme based, say, for example, a Harry Potter treasure hunt. The prize is more often than not-money. But even without the lure of cash, treasure hunts are a great way to have fun.

6- Dance Competitions

One of the most popular competitions for college fests are dance competitions. The categories for this competition are usually Indian classical (individual and group) and western (individual and group). Besides these standard categories, college often have more sub categories like contemporary, hip hop, belly dancing etc. The competition is usually held on an inter-college basis where all colleges of the university are invited. Some colleges have intra-college competitions or simply non competitive dance performances. The prizes are, again, usually cash or gift vouchers. Moreover, if you are from a strict school where vulgarity or skin show or Bollywood songs onstage were strictly prohibited, college will come as a pleasant surprise to you with its no rules in dancing competitions. If you are not into dancing as such, you can always sit in the audience and cheer on your college and your friends. Watching beautiful dance moves and seamless coordination that you can never achieve yourself can be a good way of appreciating the effort other people put in into making fests so much fun.

5- Singing Competitions

If there is something that is even more fun than dance competitions, it is singing competitions. The teams from all colleges across the university participate in this and the result is a lot of fun, frolic and some very good singing. The standard categories for competition here are Indian group and individual, Western group and individual and instrumental. The group singing, especially, is a very popular event. Sometimes, even the audience joins in when the songs are popular and well known Bollywood or Western ones. It is hard not to get influenced by the enthusiasm of the crowd when their favorite college bands and/or friends are up onstage. My favorite part about singing competitions comes when the cheering of the crowd drowns out even the sound of the performers. For some great fun, participate or just stand in the audience for singing competitions.

4- XYZ Seconds to Fame

This probably tops the list titled ‘The Best Event at College Festivals’. The amount of time allotted to the performers differs from college to college. It usually ranges from 30 to 60 seconds. My college calls it 47 seconds to fame. The rules are simple- the performer or a group of performers have to go up onstage and do absolutely anything that the crowd and the judges like in the few seconds alloted. The range of performances vary from singing, dancing, mono acting, skits, people stripping, wearing sarees, belly dancing, gangam style-ing, juggling, playing ‘Drifting’ on guitars, gymnastics, imitations of professors and actors, reciting poems, telling jokes, Harlem Shake-ing and so much more. This is one event that has something for everybody, even if you have absolutely no talent (Hey! Paris Hilton has no talent either) It is much enjoyed by the audience as well.

3- Meet Friends from Other Colleges

College tends to get hectic. In between endless classes and extra curriculars, one often loses touch with one’s friends from other colleges. College fests are a time when every college relaxes attendance rules and suspends classes and there is a definite aura of excitement in the air. It is also the time when you can go to other colleges to participate in their events or simply to meet your friends there. In universities like Delhi University which have a lot of colleges situated close together, this is especially convenient.

2- Night Events

Colleges have a big budget set aside for their respective fests. This means performances by some big bands, DJ Nights, late night events and more. This also means relaxation of strict curfew times that haunt girl’s hostels in a lot of cases. One of the biggest attractions of college fests are the dance nights and band performances by famous bands and groups. Some popular bands and celebrities that have performed at college festivals previously include Parikrama, Euphoria, Indian Ocean, Sunidhi Chauhan, Honey Singh and more. Not just famous bands, but even college level bands hold performances during the evening which are enjoyed by everybody.

1- Celebrity Visits

College fests attract not just students but even celebs! Celebrity visits to colleges are undoubtedly one of the biggest crowd pullers.  Colleges with rich alumni, huge grants and a big budget usually manage to have famous celebrities visit their campus. From actors to musicians to radio personalities, celebrity visits often have the crowds into a frenzy. When Honey Singh visited Ramjas College, there was almost a stampede in the crowd. Some famous celebrities that have performed in colleges are KK, Kumar Sanu, Sunidhi Chauhan, Pt Bhimsen Joshi, Ustad Zakir Hussain, Varun Dhawan and many more besides. Moreover, minor celebrities, TV stars and reality show stars also make appearances at a lot of college festivals.