As BOSM approaches, the BOSM English Press had the opportunity to sit down with Abhinav Vulli, the Coordinator of the Department of Firewallz, for a chat about the department’s preparations and responsibilities for the upcoming fest.

Abhinav explained how Firewallz was the first entity that outstation participants interacted with; they streamlined the registration process, oversaw the frisking and verification of ID cards, and also helped register coaches, referees, and alumni. They were tasked with other security-related activities, like patrolling during the concerts, and particularly during BOSM, they also handled the distribution of mess stubs. He said that when an outstation contingent came to campus, Firewallz verified that they were on the list using their college ID cards, which they retained, and handed them  BITS visiting ID cards in their place, to be returned at the end of the fest. The participants were then handed over to the Department of Controls, BOSM (BOSM Controlz), and the Department of Reception and Accommodation (RecNAcc), to complete their registration.

Abhinav said that they coordinated with CoSSAc before the fest to streamline the registration process. He added that RecNAcc helped with tents and inventory, and BOSM Controlz helped with the panels that were to be placed in front of the Firewallz booth. The inner booth would be at the Gym-G grounds, and the outer booth would be at the Beed Gate of campus, which was the entry point for fest visitors. The Coordinator said that this was because, if the booth were to be set up at the Main Gate, it would restrict the movement of campus staff and supplies.

Abhinav recounted that they had started preparing two to three weeks before the fest would commence. Recruitments from the 2025 batch had gone well, the juniors had been interactive, and the department had bonded over their work. An issue faced by them, especially by the juniors, was that since institute holidays were not declared during BOSM, their hands-on work at the booth clashed with their labs and tests. He remarked that for some reason, for the past few years, it had always rained during BOSM, which caused some issues, but they worked through it.

Speaking about his experience as Coordinator, Abhinav said that it had been pleasant so far; he had interacted with CoSSAc, and they had been friendly and helpful. It had been nice to see his juniors bonding with each other. His parting words to the freshers on campus were that this was their first fest, so he hoped they would enjoy themselves as much as possible.