PC: Balagopal, RSET Media Team
Being an engineer was never on my list of dream jobs—not even close. That list, by the way, did include me wanting to be a barber as a five year old, just saying. And yet, somehow, here I am: a student of RSET. I have a feeling that at least some, if not all, of our readers relate. In the three years of my college life, trying to make myself more interested in all things technical has been difficult, I’ll admit, but some things in college make it bearable. And what may that be? For me, it is Bharatham, the biggest non-technical event of RSET. I’d say Bharatham is a safe haven for students, a way to express themselves in the form of art, a solace from all of the assignments, records, tutorials, and tight schedules. It is a three day event conducted by RSET’s very own Arts Club where all five houses—Aryans, Mughals, Rajputs, Spartans and Vikings—take part, fighting tooth and nail for the Overall Bharatham Champions Cup. The final three days of this year’s Bharatham took place from the 20th to the 22nd of March, 2025. And let me tell you—it was three days of absolute fun, chaos, and pure, unfiltered joy.
In the days leading up to Bharatham, the campus came alive, with students occupying every empty corner to practice various forms of the Arts. The air buzzed with competitive spirit. Claps echoed in The Lakeside as girls of different houses practised Oppana, a dance form native to Kerala. Laughter bounced off the STEAG entrance walls as others practised for Nostalgia. Boys sat around with duffu, a percussion instrument used in duffmuttu, their rhythmic chants ringing through the air. Meanwhile, participants of the Theme Show practised their stride with confidence and flair.
Thematic, Prop, and Band rehearsals on the other hand, were mostly off campus. Students either rented out spaces, or gathered at homes of generous day scholars. Held on the last day of Bharatham, Prop and Thematic had the most coveted 50 points each—points that could change the leaderboard in unexpected ways. Houses poured most of their budgets into these events, by renting out studios and hiring choreographers, in hopes of delivering their best performances. Personally, I look forward to these the most as a member of the audience.
Deco, on the other hand, is very taxing and expensive. Students pulled all-nighters crafting logos, banners, props, and the like. The sheer amount of time, energy, and money invested by each student—all in pursuit of victory for their House—leaves no room for doubt; Bharatham is indeed the result of all their hard work.
Speaking of hard work, another big group of students—trust me, they filled the entire Chavara Hall stage—comes to my mind. The Bharatham ‘25 Committee. Writing an article about Bharatham and not mentioning them will be the biggest blunder I could make. Their collective efforts is what made Bharatham ‘25 the event that it became. The Committee had the Arts Club Secretary, Danish Vivan, at its helm, with the rest of the Student Council backing him. It had many core and subcore teams, and as much as I’d love to list out every single one of them, the word limit, sadly, won’t let me. But their efforts is in every nook and cranny of the whole event—in the beautiful artwork at The Riverine, where different coloured fabrics were knotted onto a fishing net, creating an ombre of blue that swayed with the wind, evoking a sense of serenity—like the ocean at its calmest. You could see it in each and every announcement that they made, in the list of rules each event had, ensuring that they took place without a hitch. In the background animation that you could see on stage, on the stage itself—how it was prepared and equipped with the carpet, lights, and displays—and even in the photo drive that got circulated among students after the event. I could go on, but, like I said, unfortunately, I won’t be able to.
Various events took place before the final three days called pre-launch events. As someone who has zero to almost no talent in the singing/dancing aspect of Arts—I have no shame in admitting that—I found myself more inclined towards the drawing-painting-sketching part instead. As a result of that, I participate in the pre-launch events, namely tree painting. Standing around a coconut tree whose bark had been painted white—to give that fresh, blank canvas type feeling—for the whole day, getting a fresh tan from the afternoon sun, occasionally even climbing the tree to reach the top parts, sketching and painting vivid colours, patterns and images onto it, had all been worth it for my team as we placed first. The theme was negative space, and artists from each house showed extraordinary talent with their own creative interpretations of the same. Almost all literary and visual arts events took place the week before the 20th, showing incredible turnout of students from all the years, all eager to contribute points for their House on the Leaderboard.
Now, for the highlight of the event—the first day, the 20th. Picture this—Chavara Hall, jam packed with students and faculty alike all brimming with excitement, some even skipping lunch just to catch the best seats. Why? Because the Chief Guest was none other than Mr. Neeraj Madhav, aka NJ—a name that needs no introduction. His music carried us through the lockdown and even late night playlists. As soon as he stepped into the hall, the crowd exploded—screams and applause erupting from all corners of the room. Being vertically challenged myself, I had to crane my neck and balance on tiptoes just to catch a glimpse of him. And—because the man clearly gets it—he hopped on top of the tables that were meant for demarcation, causing the crowd to go absolutely feral—in a good way, of course. He rapped along to his tracks, hyped up the audience, and brought the entire hall to life. Along with the task of inaugurating Bharatham, he came to launch his new single: Old School Lady. He used a sample of an old iconic malayalam song – Maadapraave Vaa, in it, which resulted in a perfect mix of nostalgia and rhythm that had us all bopping along like we were at a mini concert. And, let’s be honest, we absolutely were.
The first day even saw our principal, Fr. Dr. Jaison Paul Mullerickal CMI singing a melody, which was totally wholesome and unexpected, leaving us students cheering and applauding. After the Inaugural ceremony, we dove straight into the good stuff—Nostalgia and Theme Show. Students entered the stage in colourful costumes and put on even more colourful performances. The first day was truly an embodiment of what Bharatham truly is—a celebration of talent, unity and creativity.
All the excitement and fervour from Day One allowed a smooth transition into the steady beat of Day Two, which was also Ethnic Day. Girls walked around wearing the prettiest of things, their dresses or sarees swaying along a phantom wind, like they were ethereal beauties in some Fantasy World. Strolling around campus, students took Instagram worthy pictures, the entire campus acting as the backdrop—thanks to the Deco Committee, who scattered aesthetic pockets all around, giving the campus an actual Arts Fest feel. Meanwhile, events took place in multiple halls all over campus, so much so that the announcer of the results could not even pause to take a breath. Each day has something to look forward to, and in my opinion, for Day Two, it is the Battle of the Brahmas—the Eastern Band Competition. Everyone makes it a point to be in Chavara Hall to witness the spectacle that it is—the lights, music and the stage presence of the bands, truly makes it nothing short of being a concert. The crowd roars with applause and screams, singing and dancing along to the tunes they’re most familiar with. It left us all at an all time high—phone storage space full, vocal cords slightly fried from excessive screaming—setting the perfect level of expectations and anticipation for the last and final day, Day Three.
Now for the crescendo of Bharatham—Day Three. Like I mentioned earlier, this is what makes Bharatham, well… Bharatham. The day kicked off at 8:30 am, with the Western Band Competition. Students took to the stage and belted songs from different rock genres—from pop rock songs to headbanging metal anthems. The instrumentalists shone throughout, playing really hard riffs and solos, impressing the judges and inspiring the wannabe rock enthusiasts—ahem, me—to maybe even try giving the electric guitar a go. I mean, who wouldn’t? They looked so cool up there—owning the stage like they were born for it.
As the day rolled into the afternoon, boys marched onto the stage to give the best performances of their lives for Prop Dance. Each House’s witty use of their respective props made it hard to choose who was the best among them all as an audience member. Following Prop Dance was the Duet, where participants sang melodies and fast numbers, which offered a nice reprise and a trip down memory lane. It was the perfect interlude between energy packed Prop and the emotional rollercoaster that is about to follow—Thematic. Houses choose a real-world social issue prevalent in society, and interpret it in the form of dance. Watching the dances always sends chills down my spine. It leaves me heavy with the realisation—is this what happens around the world? Am I that oblivious? Deep shame hangs over me.
It is always performances like this that leave an impact on the audience, which is why, Thematic is the one thing you should not miss during Bharatham.
With all of the events of Bharatham 2025 finally over, we moved onto the fun and different closing ceremony. Different how? Usually, we’d have a vote of thanks and the award ceremony and be done with it. This time, our very own Bharatham ‘25 Committee members took to the stage and danced to our favourite tunes. Honestly, nobody expected it, and it turned out to be the most heartwarming moments of the fest. Most of the Committee heads were seniors, and this may have been their last moments on a stage during their campus life—and that hit home. What followed after their energetic performance, was the Vote of thanks. Committee members—core and subcore—were called onto the stage by Danish, the Arts Club Secretary, and Alna Khaleel, the Chairperson. There were many names, and a few heartfelt apologies for the ones they might’ve missed. Once credit was given where it was due, we finally arrived at the most awaited part of Day Three—the announcement of the winners. Now, the Spartans have a bit of a reputation. They were the reigning champions, year after year, and they’d just won the Ranabhoomi ‘25 Cup too. Naturally, most people had mentally handed them this one as well.
But plot twist: The Rajputs won.
They swooped in and won the Overall Bharatham Cup, breaking the Spartans’ four-year winning streak in one glorious upset. What entailed after was pure chaos—The Rajputs running onto the stage, screaming and hugging each other, some laughing and dancing, and some even shedding tears of joy. It was a sight to behold—truly a victory of hardwork and perseverance.
And with that, the grand spectacle that was Bharatham came to a close. If you couldn’t tell from the sheer length of this article, yes, I love Bharatham. It truly makes our college life akin to what we see in the movies. Bharatham gives us all a platform to improve ourselves—the memories and lessons we learn from events like this in college, carry on to have a huge impact in our lives. It was not just an Arts Fest, it was a much needed break from the monotonicity of our academic lives, and a reminder that we can have fun along the way. It changes us for the better, and prepares us for the world. The stress and the amount of planning that went into this event, even the occasional mental breakdowns, was all worth it. Bharatham ‘25 was an unforgettable celebration of joy and talent. It has left me eager with anticipation about the next year—will the Rajputs defend their title? Will the Spartans have their comeback? Or will another House steal the show?
Only time will tell. But one thing is for sure—I will be there, front row, screaming my lungs out again.
