LADY IRWIN’S KUDIYAN FLOORED BY SHAHID MALLYA

Came back to the The zest of campus life premises at the two-day Quintessence ’22

angela.paljor@partner.hindustantimes.com elhi University (DU) fests are back, and how! The young brigade is going gaga over getting to live like pre-pandemic times, and what was witnessed on Monday and Tuesday at Quintessence ’22, the annual cultural festival of Lady Irwin College (LIC), was an unleashing of nostalgia, revenge fun tactics and power-packed performances.

On the first night, students grooved to Hindi, Punjabi and English chartbusters belted out by DJ Sumit Sethi. And at the finale, singer Shahid Mallya took to the stage amid applause and non-stop whistling that filled the air with renewed vigour. “I was looking forward to his show ever since the posters came out,” gushes Khushi Sachdewa from Maharaja Agrasen College, who remained perched close to the

Dfront row with her friends. Mallya sang several tracks, but Ikk Kudi (Udta Punjab, 2016) was the icing on the cake. He even tweaked the lyrics to “Ikk kudi Lady Irwin vich hai, jaddi maare samne hai, aaethe hai, aaethe kaithe hai”. “The crowd went crazy!” shares Muskan Sehdev, a third-year BSc (Hons) student and cultural president. He later called Anushka Bhatt — a student of LIC — on stage to sing a few of lines of Kaisi Paheli Zindagani (Parineeta, 2005).

A number of events were held during the day, such as Vizana ’22 by the photography and film society and Naturaleza ’22 by the eco-club, which saw students battle it out to claim the top three spots. “It feels amazing to be back to the place you love,” says Vimita Varshney, a thirdyear student and college president. “We did face issues organising the event, but as a team, we made it happen. The footfall says it all!”

Mental health issues, domestic violence became the choicest themes for Nukkad Natak aka street theatre competition Why miss the opportunity to pose for the camera.. no? So, shake a leg! Iconic film characters played muse for students showcasing their creative streak on day one

Social discrimination, gender equality were some themes selected for the fashion show A’la Mode ’22 Participants of the dance competition had quite a few fun moments on the stage

Dance societies from 15 colleges across Delhi-NCR displayed their best moves at Vyam ’22 The fest ended on a high note, with singer Shahid Mallya’s soulful music

Youngsters let their hair down, danced and sang along at this offline fest after a two-year lull

Shutterbugs made sure they have enough content for their reels and memes

PHOTOS: SHANTANU BHATTACHARYA AND MANISH RAJPUT/HT