Odissi dancer Sujata Mohapatra performs at the inaugural ceremony of Alma Fiesta at IIT, Bhubaneswar. Picture by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, Jan. 13: The story of Arabian Nights came alive at the Janata Maidan here with the start of the third edition of Alma Fiesta, the socio-cultural fest of the Indian Institute of Technology, Bhubaneswar.

Besides dance, dramatics a band performance and competitions, a marathon organised as part of the fest will create awareness about the endangered Olive Ridley turtles.

“Arabian Nights is the theme this year. We have a person dressed up as the Old Man from the novel The Old Man and the Sea to welcome all. Speedy the Turtle is the mascot of Alma Fiesta, 2012,” said Rohit, who is coordinating the fest.

Director of the Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology B.K. Mishra inaugurated the fest.

Sujit Mohapatra, founder of Bakul Foundation, Shruti Mohapatra, chief of Swabhiman Group, and Sanjeev Das, vice-president, corporate affairs, Indian Metal Ferro Alloys, spoke to the students on the inaugural evening.

Children from the city-based Asha Kiran Orphanage also performed.

Various events have been lined up for the three-day event.

On the second day of the event tomorrow, students will participate in a variety of events such as dramatics competition, dance competitions and Salsa workshops.

Budding artists and painters can show off their creative skills at events such as Shaedz and Blind Strokes.

Alma Fiesta will also feature that time-honoured game, Antakshari, which is a favourite with students. On the third day, Alma Fiesta will start with a call to protect the endangered Olive Ridley turtles in the Youth Marathon.

“The youth marathon will be a race through Bhubaneswar to create awareness for the cause of the endangered Olive Ridley turtles. I’m excited about this event especially because it will not only be about how fast you can run, but about the cause for which your are running,” said Bijan, another student.

BIZZ IT — the business quiz and Alma Fiesta Youth Quiz04 will follow this.

A series of events such as Litspree, Mock Courtroom, and Rise Up will keep participants busy the entire day.

The social aspect of Alma Fiesta will be brought out in events such as Perspective, the social case study competition, and N-Circled, the street play competition.

The valedictory day will be marked by a performance from the band “Bandish” from Delhi.

More than 200 colleges from Odisha and from outside the state are expected to take part in this fest.