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The Informal Discussion Group
St. Stephen’s College
Yearbook
Report 2009-2010
The
Informal Discussion Group (IDG) is 50 years old. And 50 illustrious
years later, we still got game. The year 2009 was remarkably
successful- brilliant guests, regular talks, some new beginnings,
some ambitious schemes, first years, long meetings, hopes, dreams...
and did I mention first years?
Yes, my friends, this year is
monumental. Epic, in fact, and for a number of reasons. Firstly, the
IDG expanded its membership and inducted 20 first years. Second, we
turned 50. Third, we elected a notoriously violent President. And
lastly, we argued. More than normal.
Ok now to the important stuff.
We had talks. Lots of them. They were very good. Binayak Sen showed
us the grave nature of public healthcare in our nation. Karan Thapar
gave us one of the most entertaining and witty talks we’ve ever
had. We questioned Sharmila Tagore on everything from censorship to
(somewhat problematically) her son’s love-life. Shyam Benegal
educated us about the nuances of film and Urvashi Butalia gave us a
unique insight into the eunuch community. Arun Shourie made us
rethink our religions, while Arvind Kejriwal gave us his perspective
on people participating in government. Shabnam Hashmi told us about
her work with ANHAD. Shiv Shankar Menon told us about the grievous
nature of the Sri Lankan conflict. Nafisa Ali spoke to us about her
multifaceted life, while Begum Noor Bano gave us an inside view on
Nawabi culture. Akeel Bilgrami gave us a fascinating view on Gandhi
in the modern world. Alka Acharya enamoured us by giving us a
refreshing perspective on our Chinese neighbours. Timeri N Murari,
Y.S. Rajan, T.K. Oomen, Khalid Tyabji, Zafar Iqbal , and Sam Pitroda
were all insightful and incisive.
We attempted to start a
democratised Discussion Forum where students would collect and talk
about, well, anything under the sun. We were met with some
roadblocks and varying degrees of success. Yet, we soldiered on.
Ultimately, year five-oh is
memorable because of the people. Gurnoor’s dedication knows no
bounds, much like his ability to annoy. Arjun, the silent stalwart
bent on a Kay-Friesan tryst, hajmola-chewing Yash whose inane SMSes
ensured our sanity during meetings, and Roshni whose insight ensured
a flow of excellently selected guests.
We’d like take to our
metaphorical hat off, and nod our tousled heads in admiration for
our right-honourable President, Gurnoor Dhillon and his third year
crew. We can only hope that in the years to come, we, with our
first year army, can continue the noble tradition of the IDG. This
year’s been good, and 2010 will be better. Because that’s just how
we roll.
www.theidg.blogpsot.com |
