History
Antarāgni (in Hindi antar means "within" and agni means "fire") stands for 'The Fire Within'. The name of the festival was changed from Culfest to Antaragni in 1993. What began as a simple inter-collegiate cultural event in 1964, has grown into one of the largest cultural festivals of India, drawing over 30,000 enthusiasts from 200 colleges from around the country. Antaragni is a non-profit organisation run completely by students of IIT Kanpur. It started off small, funded entirely by the Student Gymkhana of IIT Kanpur. Today the budget has touched almost Rs 1 crore, raised completely through sponsorship.
| Year | Title Sponsor | Theme | Headlining Performances |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | None | Grammy-winner Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Padm Shri Dr Nerla Venumadha, dancer Astad Deboo.[4] | |
| 2007 | None | Poets of the Fall, Atif Aslam | |
| 2008 | None | Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Farhan Akhtar | |
| 2009 | None | I am the Change | KK, Irish Rock Band Jaded Sun |
| 2010 | None | Bollywood | Shafqat Amanat Ali, Vasundhara Das |
| 2011 | Red Chief | Super Heroes | Sunidhi Chauhan, Irish Rock Band Swanee River |
| 2012 | Intergreti | Medieval Fantasy | Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Raghu Dixit, American Rock Band Black Queen Speaks |
Dream On Campaign
The Dream On campaign attempts to move ahead of the monetary incentives. Through this program the participant are given an opportunity to be mentored by stalwarts in the industry. Dream On kicked off for the first time in with Antaragni 12. The winners were provided with direct internship and training opportunities with organisations eminent in their art. Shiamak Davar's Institute for Performing Arts, Barry John Acting Studio, Lalit Parimoo's Acting Academy and Swarnbhoomi Academy of Music were some of the many participating institutes in Dream On 12.
Events[edit]
India Inspired is the forum where the politically minded discuss the issues concerning the nation and its policies. This stage has seen many eminent politicians, leaders and media persons.[5] The India Inspired panel discussion is one of the intellectual highlights of Antaragni. Important issues which are socially relevant and with an emphasis on youth culture are discussed. In the past years it has witnessed enthusiastic participation from the student community and has led to spirited discussions. Eminent celebrities have graced this event: Shekhar Kammula, noted Telegu film director; Vineet Joshi CBSE chairman; and Vasundhara Das, actress, singer and social activist.
Kavi Sammelan In this arena, the best poets from the nation descend to match their wit and poetic brilliance. Antaragni '10 had Rahat Indori, a painter, professor, poet and film lyricist who is well known for his poetic brilliance and absolute commitment to work. Also present was Dr. Kirti Kale, who is often regarded as the best poetess in India today. Having proficient knowledge of Hindi, Marathi, English and Sanskrit, her programs are broadcast on radio and TV for the last 20 years.[6]
Model United Nations Antaragni '10 added a new event, and in its inaugural year it was a grand success. The first edition of the IITK MUN was the first of its kind in India with exhaustive study guides for each committee and other resource support by dedicated in-house executive board. Aside from this, IITK MUN saw a highly acclaimed Human Rights Council, General Assembly and the Environmental Council. With almost 200 delegates, the MUN saw extensive participation from all over India and promises to be bigger in its upcoming editions.
Competitions[edit]
Competitions in dance, dramatics, fine arts, film and photography, and musicals are conducted. There are also debates, discussions, word games and writing contests in English and Hindi. Many quizzes are held by professional quizmasters. Each of these events have heavy cash prizes and dedicated college teams battling it out for the top prize. Some of the previous filmmaking contests have been judged by established film directors. Dance events witness a jam-packed auditorium with different styles of dance exhibited.
Junoon and Synchronicity organizes eastern and western band rock competitions respectively.
Workshops and TalkS
Workshops, talks and exhibitions are held by experts in their fields. Antaragni's are varied and have something for everyone. The Digital Filmmaking Workshop by Subhash Ghai's Whistling Woods International, Asia's largest film, television, animation and media arts institute in Antaragni '10 was a huge crowd-puller. Similarly the Salsa workshops and workshops on Hip-Hop and Contemporary Dance find lots of takers. Talks in Antaragni usually center around the theme of the festival for that year. Anatargni '10 had the national award-winning film director Mahesh Bhatt. Known for his films with an emotional core and aesthetic feel of romance, he is the director of several acclaimed art films.
Professional shows
Popular bands and musicians perform under the banner of Blitzkrieg. Blitzkrieg is the grand celebration which culminates the festival. It is one of the most sought-after events of Antaragni and the hype about this event abounds in campus long before the beginning of the fest. In the past it has witnessed some truly rocking performances by Poets of the Fall, Glyder etc. KK, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Farhan Akhtar, Shafqat Amanat Ali, Atif Aslam are some of the notable performers who have performed in this festival and left the audience yearning for more.
Prima Nocte Antaragni is thrown open with a grand celebration of IITK culture that is Prima Nocte. Be it a scintillating performance by a rock group or a professional play performance it has never failed to attract huge crowds, being only a taste of greater things to be revealed.[6]
Synchronicity, the biggest rock festival in India, draws rock enthusiasts from all over the country in huge numbers with its mind-boggling quality and international acclaim. India's top bands battle it out over three days and for a chance to grab cash prizes worth Rs 1.5 lacs. The competition has been a launch-pad for some of India's top rock acts. Parikrama started their musical journey in the early 1990s by winning Synchronicity and went on to perform the world over, culminating in a critically acclaimed performance at the Download Festival. Antaragni '10 witnessed the critically acclaimed bands Weaponshop and Them Clones on the final day.
India Haat is the showcase of Indian performing arts. One of the unique aspects of Antaragni, in India Haat professional performers from all over India come to showcase the arts and culture of their state, highlighting the rich cultural diversity of the country. It effectively showcases the varied and rich heritage of states such as Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Jammu and Kashmir, Mizoram, Goa, etc.
Ritambhara The most-watched event of Antaragni, Ritambhara won't be just a run-of-the-mill fashion show with models parading on the ramp, instead it's a full-fledged fashion fiesta to create a platform for promoting upcoming youth in the fields of designing and modelling. With high quality of participation from the elite fashion colleges of India, including NIFD's, NIFT's etc., Ritambhara is grand and glamorous.
Championship
An Outstation Championship Trophy is awarded to the college, other than IIT-Kanpur, which has the highest cumulative score in all the individual competitions. Championship trophies are also awarded for the best performances in individual categories of competitions:
- Dance
- Dramatics
- English Literary Events
- Films and Photography
- Fine Arts
- Hindi Literary Events
- Musicals
- Quizzing
Organisation
The festival is organised by the students. The Antaragni chairman is the only faculty member of the team. Organisation is structured into two levels. The core team consists of festival coordinators (overall heads) and the heads of competitions, events, finance, marketing, show management and public relations. Each category of competition is managed by coordinators with help of secretaries and volunteers. Other auxiliary units such as public relations are managed by executives with the help of secretaries and volunteers. A force of nearly 800 students works for 8 months for smooth conduct of the festival
Participating colleges
Antaragni enjoys participation of all the major colleges of the country. University of Delhi (DU) along with all other major popular colleges from states like U.P., Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana etc. and a lot of colleges from the Kolkata as well as Mumbai circuit. There is an altogether participation from more than 200 colleges nationwide.
Commercial opportunities
The festival has attracted sponsorships from corporations due to huge participation of students from all over India. Lots of alumni also visit the institute during this time. Many prominent names have been associated with many events of Antaragni including State Bank of India, Pepsi, PVR, Spykar, Hero Honda, Classmate, UTV, Radio Mirchi, British Council, WWF, DUKE, DIGIT, DHL, LIC, IDEA, Mahindra, Goa Tourism, Virgin Records, VENUS, Dainik Jagran, Jindal Steel&Power, Union Bank Of India, Woodland, Accel Partners, JK White, Channel V etc. With a heavy footfall of over 15,000 in around four days, association with Antaragni is a matter of prestige and is reflected in the range of sponsorships it attracts.
Gallery
- SONU NIGAM IN ANTRAAGNI 2013......................................
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