Bhubaneswar, Sept.13: The season of freshers’ parties is here and the spirit of friendship and bonhomie is echoing in colleges across the state
Seniors are doing all that it takes to make the newcomers feel at home by throwing theme parties for them. And with ragging out of the equation, breaking the ice has become a warm and fun affair.
Juniors at Piloo Mody College of Architecture, Cuttack, were not sure if the “Back to School” theme would be the best idea for freshers’ day. School uniform-like costumes, socks, shoes, two ponytails tied with red ribbons, spectacles with a neck cord and water bottle around the neck sounded like the perfect nerd look. But when seniors reminded them of model Deepal Shaw jiving to the Kabhi Aar Kabhi Paar remix track, they were game for it.
“We had the bash of our lives. Boys couldn’t do much about their costumes, but we had to the option of using our creativity. Most of us got quirky hairdos, wore our shirts out and teamed it up with short skirts. I chose a funky spectacles frame, never mind the neck cord,” said Stuti Mohapatra, a first-year architecture student.
While Stuti was lucky to escape the introductory session with a couple of fun questions, her classmate Shivangi Bharadwaj was asked to perform a belly dance on a Bollywood item song. “I was very conscious at first but all my inhibitions vanished when one my seniors joined me on stage,” said Shivangi.
Students of the English department at BJB Autonomous College in Bhubaneswar believe in experimentation. After a boisterous masquerade party last year, they went retro this time. Girls arrived in polka-dotted churidar-kurtas and spiced up their look with kohl-rimmed eyes, hoop earrings and bandana hair bands. Boys stuck to tight bell-bottoms and flaring sideburns. Peppy Hindi songs from the 80s brought the auditorium alive.
“We asked the juniors to act like yesteryear actors and deliver famous dialogues. They took it in a very sporting way,” said Pritam and Lakshmi, final-year students of the department.
At Ravenshaw University in Cuttack, seniors of the political science department decided to test the newbies’ spontaneity and wit by organising a mock parliament. The juniors posed as members of the ruling party and their seniors fielded a range of questions on current issues.
“Our seniors are very friendly but when it came to facing each other as the government and the Opposition, we did not pull our punches. After a heated debate, all of us went up on stage and danced together,” said Sonali Ghosh, a fresher, who acted as leader of the Lok Sabha.
The university’s Sanskrit department students accorded an unusual welcome to the juniors. They invited members of a spiritual organisation, who made the newcomers bend and twist to a series of yoga postures.
“They seemed to have taken the saying, ‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy’ a little too seriously. But it was all in good humour,” said a junior, who did not wish to be named.
Utkal University students might not host parties on outstanding themes but they made a mark in this flurry of freshers’ parties in unique ways. Instead of welcoming juniors with the routine long-stemmed roses, English department students presented to the fresh batch saplings collected from Bakul Foundation, a voluntary youth organisation.
Students of a women’s college in Bhubaneswar said they had planned to host a Hawaii-themed bash for their juniors but college authorities played party pooper.
“They did not agree saying that the beach outfits would be a problem even if it’s an all-girls college. We have to think of another unconventional theme now,” said a student.
What about institutes like Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC)-Dhenkanal, which offer one-batch courses?
“There are no seniors to throw a welcome party for us or guide us with studies. But, on the brighter side, we learn to become independent and more responsible,” said Anwesha, a student of English journalism.
