BOSM continues to be one of the most important times of the year for athletes and sports lovers. For the general BITSian, however, it is generally nothing more than five days of slightly better food. The thirty second edition of the fest is set to change those notions – aiming to let the BITSian junta in on the festivities while ensuring that sport remains the primary concern of the fest.

BOSM 2017 is expected to have teams from all around the country come in along with a few international teams from Sri Lanka, bringing the total turnout to around thirteen hundred. Every year, there are a substantial number of registered outstation participants who back out at the last minute. This often leads to problems with scheduling – a significant change in the number of teams from what was expected sometimes requires the format of the tournament itself to be changed. The CoSSAc, however, is confident of a good turnout this year because of the introduction of a pre-payment system. All participants were required to pay thirty percent of the total registration fee online before coming on campus and hence fewer teams are expected to back out.

The present CoSSAc, which was elected after last year’s BOSM, has been working tirelessly since the winter break to make the fest a grand success. An initial setback it faced was with travel arrangements. Travel bookings for all fests were done by a third-party agent who arranged tickets on a credit basis. However, the agent backed out this year due to a lack of profit. The issue was resolved and alternate arrangements were made.

Food stalls this year will house the regulars, with a prominent addition being the fruit stall. Players with matches early in the morning often find it difficult to have breakfast before their matches. Hence, the CoSSAc has asked a redi owner to set up a stall to provide players with healthy food.

Earlier, coaches used to arrive on campus two weeks before BOSM. However, the Sports Council managed to arrange for them from the beginning of the semester. Unlike last year, grounds were also available right from the first week of August, enabling them to prepare in a more holistic manner. The competition is expected to remain the same. Hence, the performance of the teams is entirely dependent on how well they’ve practised.

As BOSM is a sports fest, professional performances are not very high up on the CoSSAc’s priority list. However, they did expend quite a bit of effort in bringing two of India’s most popular comedians, Rahul Subramanian and Sumit Anand, for a show which students can attend free of cost. The aim of organising the show was not to generate revenue but to get the general BITSian populace involved in the fest. The CoSSAc found a free show viable because of the excellent work done by the Department of Sponsorship and Marketing (BOSM), who managed to procure over 10 lakh rupees in sponsorship. The increase in budget also allowed the CoSSAc to increase the prize money significantly so as to attract more participants.

Other shows happening during BOSM include a freestyle football show and a Ghatka performance, both of which will take place at the rotunda on Friday. Arsenal FC, one of the main sponsors, will conduct events like free-kick challenges during the fest. Other things to look forward to this BOSM include talks by Devendra Jhajharia and Tanvie Hans. Jhajharia, who is also the Chief Guest for the inauguration ceremony, is a Paralympian double-gold medallist javelin thrower while Tanvie Hans is the first Indian woman to play in the English Premier League. Ms. Hans, who plays for Tottenham Hotspur FC, will give a talk on Friday, and will also play in a small exhibition match.

The main goal for the CoSSAc and the Sports Council is to increase BITSian participation in the fest. They are hopeful of getting bigger audiences for matches and are positive that the teams will get the encouragement and support they deserve.