With the preparation for APOGEE in full swing, Palak Seervi, the coordinator of the Chemistry Association, took some time out to speak with the APOGEE English Press (AEP) about their preparations and expectations for this year’s events.

This APOGEE, the Chemistry Association will be organising its flagship event, ‘Whodunnit’, along with the addition of ‘ChemQuest’. ‘Whodunnit’ is a two-day murder mystery event featuring escape rooms and a cash prize of around INR 12,000. With over 750 registrations already, thirteen winning teams will make it to the final round. ‘ChemQuest’ will be a more chemistry-oriented event wherein the participants can ‘gamble’ with chemistry; it involves periodic table darts, invisible ink experiments, and much more.

Talking about the preparatory process, Palak shared that the association began brainstorming the story for Whodunnit all the way back in January and then backtracked the clues and documentation for the murder mystery from there. This was followed by the technical work such as setting up the murder scene and ideation for the escape room.

Recounting her work as the coordinator, Palak expressed that the organising and decoration part came quite easily to her due to prior experience as the joint coordinator of ‘RadioAktiv’ during Oasis. She further added that collaborating with the CoStAA and attending Controls and PCr-A meetings were ultimately smooth sailing experiences, as they were all very cooperative.

Talking about the challenges faced, Palak admitted that participation during APOGEE had dipped slightly last year as a lot of the students preferred to go home during APOGEE. However, this year, as the fest falls days after students have returned from Holi holidays, she is optimistic about a larger turnout of up to a thousand. For this very reason, the association has increased the number of rounds on day one of Whodunnit from three to around six. 

On a concluding note, Palak remarked that these free-of-charge events promise a memorable experience for all participants with over three months of preparation, an engaging storyline on par with those of Netflix, and enhanced storytelling.