V-Day gift: light-and-sound show to showcase DU’s journey through history

From the uprising of 1857 to the incarceration of Bhagat Singh, Delhi University has stood witness to some of the most significant moments in India’s history over a century. To make the students more aware of its splendid history, the grand story of the erstwhile Viceregal lodge, currently home to Delhi University’s Vice-Chancellor, DU plans to hold a one-of-a-kind light-and-sound show on Valentine’s Day.

“Delhi University has a lot of history attached to it. The history of this country has played out in a microscopic way at the university. The lodge had been at the centre of major events — the Uprising of 1857, the Gandhi Irwin Pact, the court hearings of the Bhagat Singh trial and more. It was on DU premises that Lord Mountbatten had proposed to Lady Edwina. It was within the chambers of DU that Bhagat Singh was jailed. Through the medium of light and sound, we went to bring alive the unique journey of the university, and through that narrate the larger tale of India’s independence struggle,” Dr  Malay Neerav, Professor of History at St Stephen’s College, said.

The show will be held on all three days of the Antardhvani festival of Delhi University at the Viceregal lodge, from February 14-16.

The Viceregal lodge became the office of the University of Delhi in 1933.

“The idea was conceptualised about two years ago, by Vice-Chancellor Dinesh Singh. A core committee, comprising academicians and professors, worked on it. The university has seen a lot. So, we picked up  some seven-eight markers that define DU’s journey.

Then, with the help of sound, light, pictures and dialogues, we weaved these into a grand tale — one that will be showcased at the event,” Dr Amrit Kaur Basra, a member of the core committee, said.

A group of student interns, also took part in the process, by helping the team reorganise the university’s historical records. “Once we knew the events we wanted to showcase, we took help from a technical team for the sound and lights. This is the first time a show of this kind is being organised in DU,” Basra said.