Akshay Patil, a visitor at Mood Indigo (MoodI), the annual cultural festival of the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-B) has memorised the four-day schedule, and eagerly looks forward to the fest each year. Patil is visiting Moodi for almost a decade now. The story of how it became a tradition in his family starts in the late 1990s, when the convocation hall, was more like a theatre, where the institute would host movies, that were open for all.
Patil shared, “Somewhere around 1998, my parents started coming to IIT-B for movie nights. I tagged along sometimes; I was barely five-years old at the time. Eventually, it became our family’s fun day out.” He continued, “Over the years, Techfest and MoodI became an attraction, and my father would take me to them. I always look forward to MoodI more than Techfest, especially the concert nights, I got so inspired by them that I developed an interest in music and now, I play a guitar.”
Patil, the son of a tailor, stays in Powai, and is currently a final year commerce student at Chandrabhan Sharma College, Mumbai. Patil expressed that he enjoys the singing and dramatics competition a lot. While the most liked event by everybody is Popular Nite, the last event at MoodI, he is always prepared for it. He even has a plan as to when and where to reach for Popular Nite, where it is jam packed, and entry is by pass only. He said, “On December 26, I will stand in queue at 10am, get a pass, then go home. Popular Nite starts by 6pm, so I will come back by 3pm, roam around a little inside the campus, before taking a good spot for the concernt.”