The 'festival of lights' was celebrated with lots of enthusiasm and vibrancy as every aspect of the festival was included in the celebration except the 'bursting of crackers.' However the message of enjoying a safe Diwali was given through a skit by the students of class 11.
The day began with the students entering the school in their most attractive yet decent dresses carrying bags full of colours for the Rangoli competition with topics informed class wise well in advance and also carrying eatables for the Potluck party thereafter. The whole school buzzed with excitement as there were no studies but a day filled with creative activities, partying and entertainment.
The schedule for the day began with the distribution of Diwali Assignment to each of the classes and the teacher discussing thread bare how to do the assignment on 'Rivers - Our lifeline' which happens to be the topic for the Annual Day 2018-19. Each of the guidelines was discussed taking examples from their syllabus so that they could get clarity of the work assigned to them.
Around 9:30 a.m. the school was reverberating with active participation of students in all the three floors with inter and intra class activities, each one trying to put their best foot forward. Some of the themes of the inter class Rangoli activity were ‘Unity in Diversity’, ‘Podar school, safe school’, ‘Avoid crackers, save Nature’, ‘Bullying is a crime’ etc, while the themes of intra class activities were diya decoration, thali decoration, toran making, representing the ‘Vision of the school’ in creative manner on chart paper, pot decoration, lantern making, etc. During the judging time, the Judge for the day, the Principal, Ms Preeta Pillai had a tough time in selecting the best between different sessions of a class and between the classes. She selected the winners or the winning creative pursuit based on the accuracy of the depiction of the theme, colour combination, incorporation of novel ideas etc. The potluck party was great successes as a variety of items that suit all palettes were brought by students of classes and they enjoyed them with their class teachers and peers.
It was then time for the extended ‘Happy time’, the most exciting activity of the Diwali celebrations. The sprightly students seemed to have put to fire the atelier with their frenzy dancing movements to the peppy music played one after the other which kept the students tap tapping to their feet till they were exhausted.
Towards the end the Principal again reinforced the fact that to have a safe and sound Diwali and as far as possible not to use crackers. Then there was a potluck party of the teachers along with their leader, wherein a variety of dishes were brought by teachers of all the sections and enjoyed themselves. Soon after that, the Principal shared her happiness and gratitude for inviting her for the potluck party. She then shared a few pleasantries as advising her dedicated team to enjoy a peaceful vacation and to come back with renewed energy in the second half of the academic year.
