As BOSM 2026 approaches, the BOSM English Press sat down with Dheeraj Chaudhary, the coordinator of the Department of Firewallz, to discuss the department’s responsibilities and preparations for the fest.

Dheeraj explained that before the fest began, their workload primarily consisted of ‘inventory acquisitions and planning’. He stated that the department’s ‘real work started from day -1’, when vendor vehicles, stall staff, and sports teams arrived on campus. During the fest, Dheeraj noted that Firewallz acted as a ‘barrier between the Chief Security Officer (CSO) and the student body’ to manage all security and discipline arrangements.

Dheeraj pointed out that while PCr handled online communication before arrival, Firewallz served as the ‘first offline contact’ for outstation teams upon entering through the BEED Gate near Connaught. He explained that after Firewallz frisked and registered the participants, they routed the participants to BOSM Controls for fee verification and RecNAcc for accommodation, before issuing their ID Cards at Gym-G. Dheeraj added that Firewallz also oversaw the distribution of mess stubs for teams, stall staff, and EMU workers, working in coordination with SSMS and the SFC.

Speaking about recruitments, Dheeraj stated that the process had been completed three weeks prior to the fest. He explained that their work included long, demanding hours at the BEED gate, and the one quality they looked out for was camaraderie and vibe match. Dheeraj described the department’s structure as a tight-knit 50-member team comprising third-year coordinators, second-year team leaders, and first-year volunteers. As team-bonding exercises, the department usually held interactive sessions called ‘panels’ a week before the fest, where members painted their Gym-G inner booth board together.

Reflecting on his tenure as coordinator, Dheeraj shared that attending pre-fest meets with his seniors during his previous year had given him direct experience of how the fest functioned. He remarked that ‘it was the same’ as he had expected, which allowed him and his joint coordinator to run pre-fest meets and coordinate smoothly with other departments this year.

Dheeraj noted that the role brought along challenges, highlighting a recurring theme where outstation participants would blame Firewallz specifically even for mistakes outside their purview, such as portal glitches, simply because Firewallz was the visible face at the gate. On a parting note, he assured the GBM to ‘have a great BOSM’ while they handled the security and sanctity of the fest.