JoyFest
Joyfest 2011 was held at TAPMI from the 27th to the 30th of October 2011, as a part of our celebrations of the Joy of Giving Week.
Joyfest brings together the youth of India as a part of the Joy of Giving Week. The Joy of Giving Week has been conceptualized by GiveIndia, an NGO, India’s largest philanthropy exchange, in order to bring together, people from all walks of life to help the poor and the underprivileged. Mainly, it involves the aspects of giving to the less fortunate and sharing a part of our lives with them. It is a ‘festival of philanthropy’ to show our concern for and to the less privileged lot.
The Social Endeavour Group of TAPMI believes that the youth of India should take the initiative to sensitize people on the issues/problems faced by the underprivileged. The basic idea was to involve the management students of TAPMI in teaching orphan children dance, music, arts and craft in campus and finally organize an event showcasing their talent on the 30th Of October, 2011.
Also, as part of Joyfest, we invited Namma Angadi, a social organization from Kundapur which gives training to young craftsmen in the nearby areas in order to make them self-reliant and provide them with the required technology and skills, to the campus to display and sell handicrafts in our campus on October 29. The organization also undertakes the marketing and promotion activities of local craftsmen and organizes exhibitions on handicrafts. The event was a grand success.
Children from Shri Krishna Bal Niketan and Childrens’ Home, Nittur participated in the four day festival this year, and on the final day, a performance was put up by the children who had been trained in the discipline of their choice, such as singing, dancing, arts, crafts and dramatics. A group of volunteers for each of the discipline facilitated their learning as their mentors, aiding them throughout the span of four days.
Close to 40 volunteers schooled the children in various aspects of dance, music and dramatics, and the children responded by putting up an excellent final-day performance in presence of guests, staff and students of TAPMI, which included Prof. Simon George, Prof. Raghunath Rudran, Colonel K Thammayya Udupa and our distinguished alumnus Mr Vilas Naik. Mr. Vilas Naik also entertained the children, and indeed everyone present, with a magic trick.
During these four days, after getting permission from Shri Krishna Bal Niketan for bringing the children to TAPMI, a bus was arranged for transportation of the children and representatives through TAPMI administration. Snacks were arranged for the children and the representatives.
Simultaneously, a group of volunteers travelled to Childrens’ Home, Nittur to teach the disciplines to the children there. Leaving the college every day after classes at 5.30 pm, they would go to Nittur every evening to spend quality time with the children, and, in the process, teach the children the various disciplines of music, dance, drama, arts and craft.
Dance groups presented solo or group dance performances, as did the groups trained in music. The children trained in dramatics presented a series of highly humorous skits, and the children associated with the arts and craft put up an exhibition of their displays, all of which were highly appreciated.
The role played by some of our student colleagues who acted as translators cannot be overlooked, as they were facilitators for the close relationship that the children shared with their mentors.
The evening concluded with the felicitation of the participating children by the staff and the guests, followed by snacks and high tea. After that, the children returned with promises of coming back next year, a promise which we look forward to with great anticipation.