Megha Paliwal, the Oasis coordinator of Ragamalika, eagerly dived into a description of the club’s activities. The club is responsible for organizing two contests— ‘Taandav’ and ‘Swaranjali’ — and the classical prof show. ‘Taandav’ is an Indian classical dance competition while the ‘Swaranjali’ is for Indian classical music. Both competitions have group and solo categories. Additionally, the solo category of Swaranjali has two subcategories: vocals and instrumentals.

While there have been no major changes in the rules of these events, a major change has been brought about for the classical prof show. Unlike the past, when they have always had strictly classical performances, this year the club decided to experiment and, fitting in with the theme of the fest, have organized a classical Carnatic fusion performance by a band called “IndoSoul”. According to Megha, people have been losing interest in classical music for quite some time and hence they decided to include a performance which would give the crowd a chance to explore the genre. It would maintain the classical element and would also grab people’s attention, thus effectively killing two birds with one stone.

Ragamalika does not perform during Oasis and their work is more managerial in nature. It started in the summer break when they started contacting artists, keeping in mind the budget and timeline. To ensure maximum participation from other colleges this year, the coordinator has been in constant touch with PCr, as she feels that publicity is a major aspect of organizing these events. She said that her experience as Oasis coordinator has helped her ‘channel people’s energy as well as their mindsets.’ Megha wanted to ensure that this Oasis would be different, but also be in sync with the ideas of all the major stakeholders of Ragamalika, namely the members, alumni, and the StuCCA. She attempted to reach a middle-ground where everyone’s aspirations were met. She considers making the process more organised and easier to understand for the next batch, and involving everyone in the decision-making, as her most important achievements as coordinator.

The club has had a long-standing tradition of involving seniors and alumni in their events. However, she claims, they have evolved to become more confident about their own decisions. ”We definitely want to learn and stick to our roots, but we also pay a lot of attention to how other people perceive us. This (IndoSoul performance) is something peculiar to this year to make sure that we reach out to as many people possible,” she said.

Megha felt that everybody should keep an open mind for all events and respect everyone involved in making the fest happen. She encourages all BITSians to step out of their comfort zones as they might discover new interests that way.