Orchestrating Performances Encapsulating Thy Heaven.

The above expansion, had Opeth been an acronym, would have captured the true blue essence of the Swedish band, for whom heavy metal fans would be willing to die for. On the onset, let us remind you that this is not a wiki article on Opeth, as there are millions of sites serving this purpose. What we care for is the following :

Do you wish to wake up early in the morning, just to experience the glory of the Morning Rise and enjoy the Still Life on a Blackwater Park ? Or have you seen enough in life that you demand a Deliverance from the Damnation that has crept into your monotonous life ? Or, Do you simply wish to head-bang along with thousands of others, to one of the most popular heavy metal bands to have graced the Earth since eternity ?

This Saarang, you can do all of the above, and all you need to do is simply turn up at the right place at the right time!

The Venue : Open Air Theatre, IIT Madras                                                                                                          The Date : 25^th January, 2009

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Popularity: 20% [?]

By Maddy, aka Rahul Madhavan

Life is a non-entity. Existing as much in the imagination as in the world. So we often get lost in our daydreams equally about the past as about the future. Reminisces, desires are given a free rein. And like Rudolph, off we go to see the world, ever our own. Wandering so through my wonderland, I find a special place that has been. A trailier to the show that I am, I wish to share…

There were times and there are places. Still, I believe it was the people who spoilt me, as I spoilt them. What else are friends for? Though we may have downed dear davids and sorrows many together, promising never to reveal that which should not be, god knows that I want to meet them even so that they can kick me for revealing it. Living through four years which a bunch of jokers at college has made me stronger fitter and mental. So I owe it to them. Like kids we came, pirates thinking about things to be done (and problems to be solved). More why nots than whys. Randoms. Sitting on the dickey of a car, me and my friend told ourselves, “This is it. This is the peak of life’s journey and it’s gonna be all down hill from here. Let’s do whatever, everything!.” And there it started, the unabashed, shameless salad days and nights.

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Popularity: 16% [?]

Floored by the painted wooden fence scheme? Wowed by the way Saarang glows golden in the top left corner? Or comfortably numbed to it all, for the love of Floyd?

We don’t know what it does to you, but whether it sends Opethian shivers of delight down your back or reminds you of that old story about Tom Sawyer and the fence, we’re sure about one thing - this time around, the twain shall meet. Because in our Golden Jubilee year, we bring together everything. It’s a melting pot, and it’s, er- smoking.

There’s only two ways to react to Saarang. The first is captured by the phrase “Learn it, Live it, Love it’. That’s for all those who don’t want to be left out. But it’s sort of cliched, and we know that. After all, every kid’s favourite teddy bear is the one that gets most tattered.

Still, it’s a bit unwieldy, and so we decided to shorten it down to two short syllables.

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Popularity: 23% [?]

Ever had a kaapi, Chennai-style? The joy of up-ending that cup and watching the delicious fluid stream into that bowl, then pouring back - quintessential, namma Chennai. Saarang is like that - you give to it, it gives to you. A tonic for the senses! And when all the coffee has been drunk, the proverbial cups disappear, leaving you with a warm feeling of fulfillment.

At Saarang ‘09, we cater to your appetite, be it physical, cultural, intellectual or for fun and entertainment. You can never tell what’s coming up next for sure - the only given is that it’ll leave you with that familiar warm fuzzy feeling. This Saarang is the biggest ever, choc-a-bloc full of surprises, and coming right at you like our very own Madras-Chennai express.

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Popularity: 28% [?]

In any student-run cultural festival, there is a tendency to project every small success as the biggest event to happen to mankind since the invention of the wheel. It’s nothing that can be helped really – it’s big from the perspective of the students who are holding it, and the scale of the event. However, the beauty about achievement is that it’s a relative term. That’s why there is so much made about a century on debut in a cricket match, but not about Tendulkar’s 40^th test century. You’ve already seen 39 before and for the 40^th to be an ‘achievement’ there should be something else to it. Something that has never been done before, something that’ll catch your imagination, something that’ll make it seem extra special… Something Saarang.

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Popularity: 33% [?]