Clubs and associations have been working hard to make the 50th Oasis successful, and the Association of Rock, BITS (ARBITS) is no exception. The Oasis English Press had a chat with Ananth Venkatesh, the coordinator of the club, to discuss the events they are planning for this Oasis.

ARBITS is a ‘non-profit organisation of passionate people who work towards bringing an improvement and a change in the Indie music scene.’ Their main motive is to promote underrated artists who deserve recognition.

The major event conducted by ARBITS during Oasis is a legacy event called ‘Rocktaves’—a semi-professional live rock band competition. Bands from five different cities of India—namely Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata— take part in the preliminary round, winners of which proceed to participate in the main event held at BITS Pilani.

ARBITS will also be organising two prof shows—‘Indie Nite’ and ‘Hip Hop Nite’. For the Indie Nite, they will be calling one of India’s biggest bands, Peter Cat Recording Company (PCRC), and T.ill APES. For the Hip Hop Nite, the hip-hop duo, ‘Seedhe Maut’ would be performing.   

The club has never hosted a hip-hop show before. Their intention is to show the public that ARBITS is not only limited to rock music but is open to a wider variety of genres. In Ananth’s words, they ‘aim to curate events which will [sic] overall enhance the music culture that is prevalent on campus.’

The club faced some roadblocks during the preparation of these events, such as an irregular timeline because of the pandemic. Generally, the preliminary rounds for Rocktaves are conducted before the semester starts but they were delayed this year. The lack of guidance from seniors also posed to be an issue. However, this was resolved by implementing a new system wherein the workforce was divided into several departments. 

When asked about his learning experiences, Ananth mentioned a piece of advice given to him by his seniors. They tend to remind him that ARBITS as a club works solely for passion and love for the artists they bring on campus.

Ananth expressed his pride in the fact that the club directly reaches out to the artists without the involvement of any middlemen. They talk to the managers of the artists or the artists themselves. They are able to convey how committed they are to bringing the artist on campus and show their willingness to promote the artist.

Ananth ended on an optimistic note, stating that out of the 34 years of Rocktaves, Oasis 2022 will be the grandest.