Events and Celebrations

Founded in 2010, Amalthea is the annual technical summit of IITGN. It focuses on spreading technical knowledge and suffusing enthusiasm in the minds of the students to develop technology for the greater good of humans. Bringing together the best minds from industrial and academic worlds and providing a platform of interaction between them, Amalthea promises to entice every prospective engineer. Providing an avenue for showcasing innovative products developed at IITGN, we see the best technology being incubated here in the years to come. In a few years we see Amalthea moving minds with intellectual stimulation like no other event could.

Blithchron, the two-day cultural festival of IITGN is an event that acts as a catalyst for budding talents from various universities, colleges and institutes from across the country. The fest showcases events like fashion shows, “The Butler Did It”, Antarangee, Panache, Jobless, the rock competition “String Theory”, a dance competition “Synchronize” and many more. The events have seen a total footfall of 22000 students from colleges in Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat and Gandhinagar. “Boond”, a blood donation drive, is one of the most actively participated events of Blithchron.

Hallabol is an all-night intra-institute sports Festival at IITGN. The highlight of the event is that it encourages not only students but also the staff and faculty to participate in every game. The games played with modified rules are Futsal, Tug of War, Frisbee, Touch Rugby, Foot Volley, Gully Cricket, 7 Stones, 3 a side Baddy, Basky, Dodge ball and Kho-Kho.

An Intra Institute fest, celebrated to bring the whole IIT Gandhinagar family together to experience, relive, share and admire the beauty of technology through fun, amusing activities and events which will fix the dents that science and engineering could not be fun, but could be if viewed from different perspective and would leave the alluring scars of the fair in the minds of audience. Apart from exhibiting creative ideas, there are also various games for whole IITGn family.

Jashn, started in the year 2011, is a three-day fun-filled intra-institute cultural fest with innovative, traditional and exciting events/games, including art exhibition, photography and movie-making competitions, quizzes and dance, drama and musical performances. It was started with a vision to promote inter-batch interaction and elevated participation of students in the cultural events.

Out of its synergy with TED, a nonprofit organization devoted to “Ideas worth Spreading”, IITGn witnessed its first independent TED event titled TEDx IITGandhinagar on Aug 31, 2014. The event featured seven eminent personalities from diverse domains: Dr Vidyadhar Oke, inventor of the 22 - shruti harmonium; Harun Robert aka Rob, India's biggest kids' icon and animation film-maker; Khurshed Batliwala, faculty at Art of living and director of WAYE (World Alliance for Youth Empowerment); Neeti Kailas, a social entrepreneur and winner of the Rolex 2014 Award for Enterprise; Rajat Nagpal, filmmaker and entrepreneur; Jiten Thukral and Sumir Tagra, artist duo determined to blur the line between fine art and popular culture.

This event, co-conceptualized by faculty members and students is chiefly organized by the cultural body of the student gymkhana. It is known as the ‘IIT Gandhinagar mela’ where the IITGN family collectively enjoys regional food, music and dance. Winter Carnation has proved to be a broader platform for interaction among students, faculty and staff.

A science filled contest with challenging demonstrations of some basic technical concepts centered on helping Dexter escape the vicious traps set up by DeeDee and Mandark.

Starting with the batch of 2011, Eureka has become a platform for the freshers’ batch to showcase their talent and potential. After the five-week long Foundation Program at IIT Gandhinagar, the freshers organize a cultural evening for the rest of the IITGN community with performances of dance, drama, music, poetry recitation, and other activities.

MuSTY (Musical Sensation of The Year) is an intra-college singing competition that showcases the talent of IITGN's most popular and sensational singers, the finals of which are held during Jashn, the intra college cultural festival of IITGN. Winners in Jashn are chosen based on popular vote and judges' opinion.

On 5th September, Teachers Day is celebrated all over India, in the memory of Dr. Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan, former President of India. IITGN celebrates Teachers Day, with both teacher’s and student’s active participation. Students make personalised cards for the faculty appreciating their interactive teaching and motivating atmosphere created by them. On this day, teachers and students come together and play games where rules are set by the students!

One of the IITGN’s traditions is Udaan, the farewell dinner for the graduating batch. The evening is one of nostalgia, where the soon to be graduates relive the memories of their years in the institute and share their experiences in the valedictory function. There are also speeches by faculty members, in which they share their unique experiences and wonderful memories with the batch.

Basant Panchmi celebrations commence with Saraswati Puja followed by community Prasad distribution. Several cultural activities such as plays, dance, etc. are held, which witness immense participation from the IITGN community. Participation of children in the celebrations has always been the highlight of the evening.

Entirely organized by the students, Diwali at IITGN is celebrated with great festivity. Hundreds of diyas, colorful rangolis and lights adorn the campus. The decorations done every year are unique and a treat to the eyes. Evenings are filled with games and other merriment.

Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated over a span of 5 days, during which aarti of the Ganesh idol is performed and prasad is distributed every morning and evening. Musical and dance performances fill the evenings with joy and festivity. ‘Visarjan’, the immersion of the idol at the end of 5 days, is the most engaging part of this festival.

This festival is one of fun and frolic. The whole IITGN family, including faculty, staff and students, indulges in the spirit of colors, splashing colored water and spraying colored powder on each other. Sweets and snacks are shared amidst an atmosphere of joy and exuberance.

Students at IITGN celebrate Janmashtmi in an ardent and energetic way. The student community is divided into groups, which participate in the traditional “Matki Phod” competition. In this competition, the team has to create a four layer human pyramid to reach a curd laden earthen pot at the top and break it. Dance, music and spraying of colors follows.

In the season of Navratri, the students organize a Garba Night. Garba is a form of Gujarati folk dance characterized by fluid movements and rhythmic variations. Students and staff members dress up in traditional clothing and dance to Gujarati garba music. The alluring attire and synchronized dance steps make this event a treat for the eyes.

This occasion is marked by floral carpet, made from several varieties of flowers. This is akin to the rangoli made by the north Indians out of powders of various colors. The event kicks-off with cultural events such as Onam songs (Onappaatt) sung in a group, dance (Thiruvathirakali) and fun-filled games. This is followed by the grand lunch (Sadya) consisting of about 26 dishes, served in plantain leaves.