Summary
St James’ School paid homage to the iconic British rock band, The Beatles, by presenting the musical Sgt. Pepper Gets Back to a packed auditorium over three consecutive days — November 26, 27 and 28
St James' School
St James’ School paid homage to the iconic British rock band, The Beatles, by presenting the musical Sgt. Pepper Gets Back to a packed auditorium over three consecutive days — November 26, 27 and 28.
This marked the school’s 15th production, skillfully directed by Sumit Lai Roy. The production served as a platform for 60 students and 11 teachers to showcase both their creative and managerial talents.
The script, crafted by students during workshops in the school, was primarily contributed to by Aloran Sarkar of Class X and Nathan Holt of Class XII. Featuring around 40 songs from the legendary band formed by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr in the 1960s, the musical had members of the school band participating. The lead role of Jude Kite was convincingly portrayed by Avinash Rai of Class XII.
The two-hour production also showcased the musical talents of Soham Bandopadhyay (Class XI), Caleb Gomes, Krish Roy Barman (XII), Abhishek Chandra (XII) and Srinik Paul Chowdhury (VIII).
The school’s dance team impressed the audience with well-synchronised moves, choreographed by Ishan Chiripal and Himanshu Chiripal. The beloved rock-and-roll medley featured teachers joining the students in spirited jiving.
Deep Phoenix, a musician, mentored and trained the school band, with special acclaim for drummer Aryan Mukherjee and lead guitarist Shaurya Dalan of Class XII. Students showcased their musical prowess on instruments such as the bass guitar, keyboard, trumpet, saxophone, violin, cello and mouth organ, enhancing the timeless Beatles’ numbers.
The meticulously designed stage and costumes garnered praise, particularly during the Circus Act, where students portrayed special characters such as Newton, Einstein, Cleopatra, Rambo, Hrithik Roshan, Rohit Sharma, Messi, Ronaldo and others.
The production also featured an AV presentation and an art tram, adding to its richness and diversity.
English teacher Ritika Das expertly co-ordinated the culmination of four months’ hard work. The performers expressed their gratitude to principal T. H. Ireland through a rendition of Now and Then.
Reflecting on the accomplishment, the principal shared: “This musical was a dream project of mine. I always wanted to do something on The Beatles. With the immense talent we have, I think we pulled it off. The boys performed live 40 of The Beatles’ iconic songs. It’s quite remarkable for a band of the sixties to have a school pay tribute almost 50 years after they split.”
Vivekananda Mission School
The musical interpretation of Panchatatwa, comprising more than 30 students.
Vivekananda Mission School showcased a performance centred on panchatatwa — symbolising the five elements of nature — during its annual concert held at Kala Mandir.
The cultural extravaganza saw participation from the Lower Primary section to the senior-most classes. Naibedya, the teachers' choir, also sang and shared excerpts from scriptures.
The chief guest was singer and academician Indrani Sen, whose voice mesmerised the audience.
Rector Arnab Chandra, in his address, emphasised the importance of students being active both academically and culturally.
The event included the felicitation of the board achievers of 2023. Recognising not only academic accomplishments but also talents, innovative thinking, remarkable improvement and other categories, awards were given away to 63 students.
The cultural performance featured 371 students from the Pre-primary, Primary, Secondary and the Higher Secondary sections. Their creative presentations portrayed various elements of water (jal), air (vayu), earth (prithvi) and fire (agni).
The Pre-primary students presented The Magical Journey of Water through enactments, songs, dance and recitation. The performance also highlighted the misuse of water by mankind, concluding with a solemn oath to conserve water and nature.
Classes I to IV showcased a dance drama on air, depicting the destructive power of wind.
The students of Classes V to VII presented The Cosmic Odyssey through enactments, songs, dance and recitation, with a special appearance by Bhooter Raja from Satyajit Ray's Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne.
Classes VIII to XII delivered a powerful performance on fire. A group of students presented an English play on saving the Earth.
"Our annual function also included the prize ceremony for all achievers. I congratulate all the achievers, participants, teachers and support staff members who made the event a success," said principal Anaya Dutta.
Julien Day School, Ganganagar
Teenage participants from the Tribal Exchange Programme showcased their talent and ethnicity with dance performance.
Students and teachers of Julien Day School, Ganganagar, took part in a tribal exchange programme, for the first time. The programme was aimed at spreading awareness among mainstream children about those hailing from backward regions and areas affected by strife and conflicts.
The visiting children were from the borders of Bengal, Jharkhand, Odisha and other interior regions. These children hail from families that are allegedly involved in the Naxal movement. The children are, however, part of a government-aided organisation now, that is trying to bring them back to the mainstream world.
The students of the host school got to learn from the visiting children how some of them are forced to grow up under adverse conditions. The members of the tribal community also spoke about their rich culture and heritage.
The event was a learning experience for children from either side thanks to an interaction session and sharing of ideas, opinions and values. The visitors also shared their dance and music with the hosts through some wonderful performances. The cultural exchange promoted unity as it bridged the gap between diverse worlds through shared experiences.
"The students and I got to see a rich cultural programme. Our students interacted with the visitors. They were happy to be part of this unique programme and we want to hold more such events," said principal Bobby Baxter.
Griffins International School
The three witches, and their filthy trappings - students recreate a scene from the play, Macbeth, on Day 2.
Griffins International School held its seventh annual day for its Primary and Secondary students on December 1 and 2 respectively.
The students also set up an exhibition on STEM subjects and languages on both the days.
On Day I, the chief guest was Susanta Kumar Chakraborty, vice-chancellor of Vidyasagar University. The guest of honour was Amit Patra, deputy director of IIT-Kharagpur. Also present were the school chairman, Abishek Yadav. The programme began with the students performing Ganesh Vandana. Principal Renu Aneja presented the annual report tracing the achievements of the children.
Next, 39 students were felicitated in four categories — Academic Excellence Award, Cultural Excellence Award, Excellence in Sports Award and 100% Attendance Award.
Finally, Nursery to Class V presented a colourful play, Earth Drama, that highlighted climate change.
The chief guest on Day II was Partha Pratim Chakraborty, former director of IIT-Kharagpur. The guest of honour was IAS officer Kempa Honnaiah, additional district magistrate of Paschim Medinipur. The programme began with a dance performance on Dashavataram.
Sixty-four Secondary section students were then felicitated for their hard work.
A performance on Navarasas or the nine emotions followed. The students infused dance, music and drama in their show.
“The sole purpose of establishing this institution was to bring world-class education within the reach of talented students from rural areas,” said Yadav.
"The evenings were not only about performances but also to put on record the hard work of our children in academics and other activities,” said the principal.
Delhi Public School, Howrah
Parents check out a version of ludo at the Math Mela 2023.
Students of Delhi Public School, Howrah, aimed to demonstrate the integral role of mathematics in their daily lives through a Math Mela 2023 organised for the students of Classes I and II.
This event proved to be instrumental in helping the young learners grasp mathematical concepts and refine their problem-solving skills in an engaging and interactive manner. Parents and students alike were invited to explore the puzzles and number games showcased in each classroom.
The preparation leading up to the exhibition proved to be enjoyable for the students. Various games and entertaining activities were available for both parents and children to take part in, including Tricky Shapes, Hooping by Counting, Bingo Battle, Hungry Frog, Hop into the Number, Connect the Colour Dots, Number Maze, Shapes Hopscotch, Ping Pong Bounce, Roll and Score, Addition Spin Wheel and others. The Addition Spin Wheel emerged as the main highlight.
Visitors actively engaged in most of the games, fostering a sense of bonding and excited conversation as participants either scored points or faced challenges.
The games were strategically designed to enhance a child's analytical, cognitive and logical reasoning skills.
"I appreciate the hard work of the young students. The Math Mela 2023 reflected our teaching pedagogy, which aims at providing students with experiential learning experiences, that in turn will enable them to think logically," said principal Sunita Arora.
National English School
(From left) Tamanwit Saukhan, Abhigyan Pal, founder-principal of National English Mousumi Saha, Ankita Biswas and Sahil Pradhan after taking part in the quiz.
A four-member team from the National English School successfully advanced to the final rounds of the Indian Army Quiz 2023, a competition organised to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Kargil War.
Outperforming 32,000 institutions nationwide, the school secured the ninth position in the contest. The team consisted of Ankita Biswas (Class VIII), Abhigyan Pal (Class IX), Tamanwit Sadhukhan and Sahil Pradhan (Class XI).
The preliminary rounds took place at Fort William grounds in Calcutta on November 20. The semi-final occurred in Shillong on November 25, and the finals were held at the Manik Shaw Auditorium in Delhi on December 3. Each round assessed the students' knowledge of the nation's political issues and the role of the Indian Army.
In recognition of their achievement, each student, accompanied by mentor Pritha Ganguly, received tablets as tokens.
The quiz not only served as a significant learning experience for the students but also fostered strong team spirit, co-ordination and resilience.
Rector Samir Saha hailed the team's achievement and their keen mind. “Our focus extends beyond academics. We nurture holistic skills that shape remarkable individuals," he said.
"Our school's success reflects our commitment to nurturing well-rounded individuals, fostering growth in various aspects of learning," said founder-principal Mousumi Saha.
Last updated on 04 Jan 2024
