At Cerebrum’s ‘Voices of Yore’, old poems get new tones
A participant prepares to recite a patriotic poem in a tone charged with the emotion of 'Love' as drawn by the spin of a wheel. (Photo Courtesy: Mohak Kapoor)
By PRANAVI AMBATI
Greater Noida: Within a quaint auditorium, poets atBennett University celebrated the timelessness of the verses penned by leaders of the Indian National Movement in the much anticipated ‘Voices of Yore ’ poetry recitation competition .
Conducted byCEREBRUM – the official Literary & Debating Society, the poetry competition was part of the week-long ‘Hamara Uttar Pradesh ’ campaign leading up to the Republic Day celebrations. The recitation competition dated January 23, 2024 saw students challenge themselves in reciting the poems written by Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore , poet-activist Sarojini Naidu and Hindi litterateur Harivansh Rai Bachchan, among others.
In a unique twist to the competition, participants were also assigned a tone in which they had to deliver the poem. The tone of their performance and consequently, their fates rested on the spin of a wheel.
A first-year student pays close attention to the words of the poem he is set to read out loud. (Photo Courtesy: Mohak Kapoor)
“The idea we had when contemplating the event was to explore how the tonality of a literary composition changes with a change in era. To add an element of surprise, it was decided to have both the poems and the tone be presented to the participants on the spot,” explained Pranavi Ambati, who is serving as the Secretary of theCEREBRUM Club .
“We thought that participants would be daunted by the spontaneous nature of the event. However, we had walk-in registrations while the event was in progress, with registered participants calling their friends to also join in. It shows that the event was a fun experience for them – which is what we as a club were hoping for,” added the Joint Secretary Adamya Veer Jain.
Alongside them, the participants were also judged by the Student Council President Aryan Jindal as well as the Vice President Clubs & Committees Diksha Diwaker. Criteria of judgement included ‘poetic recitation’, ‘clarity of speech’ and ‘adherence to the tone’. The results of this competition that showcased the timelessness of poetic compositions will be declared on mail on January 25, 2024. The winners will then be felicitated at the Republic Day celebrations on the campus on the 26th.
“I participated in the competition as I found the poster featuring the black-and-white stills of the poets extremely gripping. And the experience was just as fun! Who would have ever thought of reading aloud Sarojini Naidu’s ‘To the God of Pain’ in a humorous tone?” said Aditi Raj, a second-year BA LLB student who was among the gathered participants.
(The writer is a Semester-4 student of the BA Journalism and Mass Communication programme.)
Greater Noida: Within a quaint auditorium, poets at
Conducted by
In a unique twist to the competition, participants were also assigned a tone in which they had to deliver the poem. The tone of their performance and consequently, their fates rested on the spin of a wheel.
“The idea we had when contemplating the event was to explore how the tonality of a literary composition changes with a change in era. To add an element of surprise, it was decided to have both the poems and the tone be presented to the participants on the spot,” explained Pranavi Ambati, who is serving as the Secretary of the
“We thought that participants would be daunted by the spontaneous nature of the event. However, we had walk-in registrations while the event was in progress, with registered participants calling their friends to also join in. It shows that the event was a fun experience for them – which is what we as a club were hoping for,” added the Joint Secretary Adamya Veer Jain.
Alongside them, the participants were also judged by the Student Council President Aryan Jindal as well as the Vice President Clubs & Committees Diksha Diwaker. Criteria of judgement included ‘poetic recitation’, ‘clarity of speech’ and ‘adherence to the tone’. The results of this competition that showcased the timelessness of poetic compositions will be declared on mail on January 25, 2024. The winners will then be felicitated at the Republic Day celebrations on the campus on the 26th.
“I participated in the competition as I found the poster featuring the black-and-white stills of the poets extremely gripping. And the experience was just as fun! Who would have ever thought of reading aloud Sarojini Naidu’s ‘To the God of Pain’ in a humorous tone?” said Aditi Raj, a second-year BA LLB student who was among the gathered participants.
(The writer is a Semester-4 student of the BA Journalism and Mass Communication programme.)
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