IIM-B organises cultural fest, Unmaad

From its relatively humble beginnings with events more or less confined to Bangalore colleges, ‘Unmaad’ has evolved today to a multi-million rupee, gigantic, national event. Over three days, Unmaad saw a record attendance of more than a thousand outstation participants and several thousands from in and around Bangalore. This year’s edition, similar to last year’s, featured a diverse set of more than 50 events that ran non-stop over 72 hours, including literary events, performing arts, fine arts and other events like Mr. and Ms. Unmaad, the Unmaad Ramp of Fire, the B school of Rock and a host of interesting workshops and audience events.

Teams from all over the country displayed their talents at Unmaad, with extremely high quality participation; examples being IIT Bombay’s touching original play on the last days of three men condemned to the gallows, and the home team, IIM Bangalore’s adaptation of a play on the political manipulation of Dalits in today’s society, the socially conscious street plays, the grace of the classical dance performances, the heavy-metal mania of the Amateur Rock featuring some of the best college bands from all over the country slugging it out for top honors, the prettiest and most handsome faces walking the Unmaad ramp in creations that would have made Rohit Bal proud, and some of Bangalore and indeed, the country’s best quizzers battling it out intensely during the audio-visual and open quizzes.

The big events for each day, though, were definitely the big-ticket professional performance nights featuring two of India’s most popular solo artistes, Lucky Ali and Kailash Kher, along with Indian and Pakistani mega-stars, Indian Ocean and Ali Azmat as part of the Unmaad Unity Concert, forming an integral part of the Unmaad 2007 experience. A selection of India’s finest musical artistes were also performing during the ‘B school of Rock’ event judged by Sam Lal, arguably India’s best rock-writer. Ticket sales for the concerts continued at fever pitch throughout the preceding week and during the fest and the Bannerghatta Road campus was flooded with students from colleges all over Bangalore along with students and corporates from Bangalore and places as far away as Delhi and Calcutta.

Taking brand Unmaad all over India this year were Radio Mirchi and Channel V, two of the principal media partners. Radio Mirchi were, in fact, broadcasting for one entire day straight from IIM Bangalore’s campus – taking the excitement of Unmaad all over Bangalore. Channel V also broadcast live from Unmaad 2007 across the country. It is certain, then, that the Unmaad fever worked its magic again, bringing with it three days of Madness, Melodrama and Magic, right here at IIM Bangalore.