Dedicated towards the upliftment of the LGBTQ+ community on campus, Anchor is a queer support group and is the Gender and Sexuality Cell of BITS Pilani.

The Oasis English Press reached out to Kaushik Kumar Pati, the Oasis Coordinator of Anchor, to discuss the working of the club and its preparations for the upcoming fest.

Kaushik explained that their goals include generating awareness and creating a safe space for queer people and allies alike. He added that it works to counter any unsafe activities against members of the community on campus. 

When asked about the activities Anchor had planned for this Oasis, Kaushik explained that the club would set up their trademark Pride Stall. The club will also organise Pride March, with content creator Raghav Sharma as the lead speaker for the event. 

He also shared that they intend to organise a pride trivia quiz — ‘Proudly Queer’ — for the first time. Additionally, they would feature workshops from two sponsors, Plum and Cisco, at their stall. Plum will be setting up an experience zone for the attendees, while Cisco will be giving out merchandise for the Pride March and conducting activities. Furthermore, as part of the pre-fest activities, they screened the 2022 Bollywood flick Maja Ma.

Regarding preparations for the fest, Kaushik remarked that work had been pretty mundane. He added that Anchor’s work has been taken up a notch, with new sponsors and collaborators. 

Kaushik emphasised that he was concerned about safety, especially after the ransacking of their stall in BOSM 2023, and added that he was taking steps to acquire security for their stall.

Talking about his experience as club coordinator, Kaushik said that although the work had occasionally been stressful and mind-numbing, he was looking forward to getting the coordinator pass and seeing the events come to fruition. As the interview came to a close, he urged BITSians to ‘turn up at the stall and have a fun time’.