Special Issue (Round Square Literary Fest 2020)

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Established: 1995

SPECIAL ISSUE

Sunday, November 1st 2020

Festive Dawn The pandemic seems to have doused us with the awareness of how unaware we have been of the world around us. We saw heard, tasted and lived through schematic portals where the world we wanted to live in was merely a click away.

Today, we stand bound by the knowledge of how fragile our existence as humans truly is.

This knowledge also dawns in the need to revive the human coonect. Literature serves as the perfect medium to nourish this bond. It has been the melting pot of all conceivable human emotions and the perfect path to retrace and find stories that bring us closer in companionship and togetherness.

“When you write you are alive.”

These words by the Headmaster capture the essence of the Round Square Literary Fest – Cela Fiesta, the second Conference to be hosted by AVS this year. He spoke

about how imperative it is to be mindful and aware of each other’s presence. He mentioned how he had reached this conclusion while writing a thesis on the sociology of literature.

The Conference intends to provide a platform for creative individuals to come forward and share their thoughts in a variety of ways.

In the “Meet the Author” segment of the Opening Ceremony saw our alumni and Sahitya Akedemi Winner, Janice Pariat, share her thoughts with the participants. Ms. Pariat answered all queries ranging from her work to the multiple neurosis that assail would-bewriters, with her usual tonguein-cheek humour. She made it a point to emphasise on how important it was to not limit ourselves to preconceived notions and stay caged in limitations created out of society’s expectations. At the end of the day, she advised that we must aspire to live life creatively.

DAY 1

Slam Poetry Read & Rhyme Create A Disguise

FIGHTING WORDS SLAM POETRY

The Cela Fiesta edition of Slam Poetry witnessed poems on a variety of topic, ranging from burning issues like leadership to the nuances of love. Renditions that stayed in the minds capture a ‘A Purple Sky’, with a

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romanticism during a dull and a suspiciously long quarantine afternoon. Whereas, ‘I Murdered Someone for You’, takes the audience through the nook and crannies of a love that is intense and almost primal in its

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nature. ‘Leadership to Be’, took us back to the days when we believed Power Rangers really did save the world.

Though it slightly deviated from the traditional course

of slam poetry, it was uplifting to hear a multitude of thoughts and ideas presented through various forms of poetry.

Play On Words Read & Rhyme

The Read & Rhyme session of AVS’s Round Square Literary fest Cela Fiesta 2020 scheduled on the first day of the International Conference, began soon after the interaction with the renowned author and alumni, Janice Pariat.

Moderated by Saumya Jindal and Mahi Agarwal, vibrancy of the event was augmented by the twentyone student performers from across the globe. We did see young Hillary Clintons and Julius Caesars, but what brought the house down was Shripriya Kajariya’s

brilliant role play of the sleepwalking scene from Macbeth. The students made a conscious effort to dress up and speak like the characters they had chosen. To add to the variety, two students recited impactful poems in their mother tongues.

“Not a dull moment!”, exclaimed one of the teachers when asked about the session. After the vote of thanks was given, the students exchanged their social handles to add to the fun. All in all, the virtual conference, was a memorable event for all participants.

The intention behind the segment ‘Create a Disguise’ of the AVS Round Square Literary Fest – Cela Fiesta, was to provide a platform where participants did much more than merely create a diversion. The challenge was aptly lived out as participants picked up prominent characters from across history and mythology and created a suitable disguise so that the audience had to guess who they were from the clues that were given. It was a highly interactive session that lived up to the expectations of the participants and the audience.

THINK AGAIN Create A Disguise

DAY 2 Why I Did What I Did Movie Club Music Club Become A Character

MEANING OF BLOODSHED Why I Did What I Did

Why I Did What I Did segment of the AVS Round Square Literary Fest – Cela Fiesta kicked off with introductions of the characters the participants had chosen to depict. The event commenced with none other than Hitler speaking about the reasons that lead to his choices, followed by Anne Frank and Babur. It

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also included fictional personalities like Joker, Shylock and Lady Macbeth. The discussion was heated with interesting questions and responses, not only by the participants but also participating teachers which made the discussion in the symposia more intriguing and fascinating.

AVE, Sunday, 1st November

When a dozen movie enthusiasts come together, a lot can happen. The movie club, “In Motion” was a grand success. Diverse genres, ranging from romance to thrillers were discussed with unparalleled enthusiasm.

Classics like Forrest Gump and Dead Poets Society to gen z favorites The Fault in Our Stars and Piku. To add to the energy, the host of the event Parthiv Gargo presented his own compilation of our favorite movies over the decade. Each student presented a movie review and spoke about their attachment to the movie and how it had influenced them. It was an evening of action and drama and therefore riveting.

SCREEN TIME Movie Club

TUNING IN Music Club

Hosted by our very own students, Priyanchi Sharma and Nusra Majumdar, the Music Club was an absolute success, with active participation, meaningful discussion and amazing performances from the Round Square delegates.

With performances ranging over a wide array of genres, from modern Indian Hip-Hop to soulful patriotic tunes,

the session was in no way uneventful. The delegates also presented and reviewed various songs, each unique and masterful, a true representation of their genres and styles of music, ranging anywhere from Electro-Pop hit Starboy to Mozart.

Overall, the event was truly inspirational, with eye opening discussions and soul touching music.

A friendly guessing game for most part, one would think that the title suggests being completely in character- it’s partially true. Clues were dished out to rapid answers famous characters from myths and stories. It’s safe to say that we have the ‘Percy Jackson’ series to blame for the accuracy of the answers relating to the Greek Characters. A few characters came in royal get-ups well equipped with bundled belts or a bloodied pair of hands along with aids such as a stained knife to live their characters to the fullest. Perhaps the most refreshing part of the event was the post-game discussion which invoked food for thought. Opinions regarding their character’s take and place in the modern world were shared sprinkled with controversial takes and banters on the side.

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REMEMBER THE NAME Become A Character

AVE, Sunday, 1st November

IN CLOSING Two hectic days of Round Square came to an end this evening, as all good things must, with a session that was memorable to say the least. The evening’s proceedings began with a lively and informative interaction session with esteemed author of Assamese literature Rita Chowdhury, who entertained several questions from the young delegates, sharing her views on the importance of literature in shaping the mindsets of the youth of the nation. Following the interaction session, Ma’am Rajbir Sindhu shared her thoughts on the event and extended

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her congratulations to The Assam Valley School for hosting such a successful event. The bulk of the session however was spent cherishing and enjoying several wonderful performances from all the participating schools in a Cultural Evening celebrating diversity. Last, but most certainly not the least, the entire event was capped off by the School’s Round Square Chairperson, Gayatri Sapru’s, vote of thanks. Overall, the entire session and in extension the event, was a resounding success.

Editor-in-Chief: Jeremy Jahau Deputy Editor: Letminlun Haokip Associate Editor: Anoushka S. Rabha Correspondents: Neelabh, Ojas, Lavanya & Ssara Design & Layout: Jeremy Jahau Illustrator: Takhe Tamo Reela, Eloziini Senachena, Tanisha Bhadra Photo Credit: Letminlun Haokip Mistress-in-Charge: Ms. Sarmistha Paul Sarkar Publisher: The Assam Valley School, P.O. Balipara, Dist. Sonitpur, Asom-784101, India E-mail: ave@assamvalleyschool.com Telephone: 09678074320/08812009627 Website: www.assamvalleyschool.com Patron: Dr. Vidhukesh Vimal, The Headmaster of The Assam Valley School

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