The essence of THOMSO

The deadly foe has been vanquished yet again....and now is the time for mirth and merriment.

Toiling day and night all through the midsems, knowing that is the only way you can attain a respectable score, is a daunting task indeed (now one would rather say the effort put in is nothing compared to the tougher, life-sustaining ordeal during the endsems). It was only yesterday that exams concluded and a few days hence comes "Thomso" - this time especially for the 'Gods of fun' (I bet 'Meta' and 'Pseudo-Meta' stand for more than that). Flying rumours, commotions in the Cultural council, misgivings about the TOC and SAC's affairs, and incessant chatter about which lady is going to grace 'Vogue' - would make even an Alzheimer's patient guess IITR's annual cultural fest is approaching near.

One will do anything and everything to make sure nothing can ruin his plans for the immediate near future - be it finding a partner for the much awe-inspiring and hyped Salsa workshop, or learning new dance moves for the 'Xhilaration' nights. And why not ! Seldom does an IITian get an opportunity of displaying HIS talents to an audience comprising of people in the same league as himself - without fear of attracting sardonic mockery of his exceptionally unusual endowments. The world yonder (outside the realms of IITR) perceives us as science-loving geeks and we have this one chance to prove it wrong - to show it we are a little studious all right but nonetheless normal, fun human beings who, maybe have had a greater portion of luck (or misfortune I might say) relative to their colleagues who took the JEE but failed to make it to the top ranks.

I remember first year when we were simply mesmerised by the enormity of this fest (most of us had only seen an event as big as the school annual day until that time). Dazzled by consistently rising participation and the recognition it has, we felt heart broken on missing out on even one amongst the plethora of events hosted during those three days. Now some of us don't even care to step out in the chill of winter and visit the source of forte musical notes rocking the environs. I wonder if this transition has resulted from the two-and-a-half years spent here or from frequent disappointment of seeing a 'backup artist' as the lead singer in the much anticipated Pro-Nite. One can never say for sure what we're about to confront unless and until we actually see it happening in front of our eyes.

Nonetheless, Thomso is a welcome change from class lectures that would no doubt be prescribed by doctors as the best hypnotics for insomnia, nagging tutorials and threatening professors that have so advertently become a part and parcel of our daily lives. The time when the campus becomes abuzz with life in stark contrast to the usual quiet that befalls at most times. Three consecutive evenings of fun and respite from the terrors mentioned above. Something we're never going to enjoy again once we pass out as engineers from this glorious institution.

So much to say, while I contemplate upon my plans for doing something good enough to entice a pretty girl to come with me to Salsa after having missed out on the previous two occasions, I leave you in the company of a quote that a wise man very rightly made (yes, that was me !):

"The essence of Thomso lies not in what you can gain from it; it inherently lies in your contribution to make it better and more enjoyable."

PS : Nice work TOC ! You really deserve accolades for finally getting something like JAL into the campus (Better not be a rumour this time).