The Psychology and Sociology Club of Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram organized the Inter-School Psych-Socio fest, Mosaic: Patterns of Life 2018 on 28 July 2018. The unique festival aimed to provide students from 31 distinguished schools with a platform where they can mix the thrill of competition with a great learning experience. The festival was an amalgamation of eleven events – Manovishleshan, Merge, Poise, Showcase, Tasveer, Showreel, The Devil’s Advocate, Thought Bubble, Sociology Garage, Just a Minute, and Nukkad Natak.
MANOVISHLESHAN- an Analysis of The Mahabharata was an event where students could offer their unique perspectives on the celebrated epic, ‘The Mahabharata.’ The participants were required to prepare a power-point presentation highlighting their analysis of the scripture from a psychological as well a sociological point of view, quoting examples from the text. The judge for this competition Ms. Kanchan Bharadwaj is a Hindi lecturer in Jamia Senior Secondary School.
MERGE, the blend art event tested the analytical, communicative and acting skills of the participants, using their understanding of psychological aspects. This onstage competition involved recitation of a poem, dramatization and a painting/sketch on the given themes. The judges for this event were, Mr. Dushyant Kumar; a renowned theater person; Ms. Nupur Kundu, who specializes in Fine Arts, and Mr. Aakshat Sinha; an artist, writer, poet, and Director of Untitled Creation, Pvt. Ltd.
POISE, was a Western Dance Competition that explored the correlation between movement and emotion. It tested the ability of the participants to express, emote, and represent the theme, “We carry inside us the wonders we seek outside us,” portraying their perspective through the medium of dance. The judges for this event were Ms. Tanvi Bajaj, who specializes in dance therapy and movement analysis, and Ms. Sukhmani Lamba, an actress and dancer.
SHOWCASE, was a movie analysis competition that tested the analytical skills of the participant, as well as their understanding of psychology. The participant was required to study, understand and represent a movie in a unique and interactive way, highlighting the psychological concepts and ideas expressed in the movie. The judge for this competition was Ms. Anupriya Sircar, a Clinical Psychologist at Max Super Specialty Hospital.
TASVEER, the photo essay competition was an event that encouraged the participants to look beyond the surface and find a deeper meaning in the theme, “You are not a drop in the ocean, you are the entire ocean in a drop.” The event intended to give the participants a platform to capture imperceptible moments of everyday life and weave a story that can only be portrayed through the work of a photographer’s lens. The judge for this event was Mr. Mohit Vij, a fashion and fine arts photogropher, and filmmaker.
THE DEVIL’S ADVOCATE was a turncoat debate, which tested the participants’ abilities to think about an issue comprehensively and consider both sides of the given argument. This event enabled them to see that, as with so many other things in psychology, the answer to a problem is not always clear cut. The judge for the event was Mr. Amit Kharbanda, who is currently leading MyBox Technologies.
THOUGHT BUBBLE was an essay-writing competition that aimed to test the participants’ abilities to think critically about a serious social issue and propose solutions through the medium of an essay. The judge for this event was Ms. Chaaru Sawhney, a research associate at the Department of Sociology, Delhi Public School of Economics.
SHOWREEL, the movie-making competition, intended to provide an opportunity to the participants to interpret and analyze the theme, “When you let go of who you are, you become who you might be,” and present it in the format of a movie. The participants made use of their artistic vision and creative skills to present a piece that made the audience introspect on the deep-rooted message behind this theme.
SOCIOLOGY GARAGE was a panel debate which encouraged the participants to assume the role of various social institutions as they discussed and deliberated on some of the problems faced by the society today. The students were required to come to a consensus amongst the various institutions and submit a final report presenting their conclusions. The judge for this event was Professor Arvindra A. Ansari, Head of the Department of Sociology at Jamia Milia Islamia.
JUST A MINUTE gave the students an opportunity to take a complex sociological phenomenon and present their thoughts in a concise manner, within the time frame of 60 seconds. Participants were assessed on their spontaneity, and clarity in perspective. The judge for this event was Ms. Tarunnum Siddique, who is currently working with the Sarojini Naidu Center for Women’s Studies, Jamia Milia as an academician.
NUKKAD NATAK, an amalgamation of sociology and theatre, aimed at raising social awareness through street plays centered on social issues. It allowed the participants to enact their interpretations of the given theme while keeping intact the dramatical and theatrical aspects of the play. The judge for this event was Mr. Neyaz Khan, a theatre artist, writer and director.
The event concluded with the Closing Ceremony. The Western Choir presented a splendid rendition of ‘Imagine’ by John Lennon, which was followed by the welcome address of the Principal, Ms. Vanita Sehgal. In her speech, she expressed her appreciation of Psychology and Sociology as subjects. She emphasized the role played by psychology in an individual’s journey to sensitizing themselves to the world, and that of sociology, which is to set the trend of what happens in the society. She stressed on the fact that these are the subjects that students carry with them out into the real world. She then expressed her admiration towards the students and teachers who made the event a huge success.
The Principal’s speech gave way to a scintillating performance by the budding artists of the school, who depicted a myriad of emotions with the help of an intriguing blend of various arts, namely, dance, music, and theatre.
This year is a landmark for the Sociology department, since it marks the inception of Mimansa, the Sociology Club of DPS R.K. Puram. As its first collective effort at publishing different perspectives on pressing social issues, it presented Paradigms, the Annual Sociology Magazine, which aims at sparking curiosity within the readers about the complexities of the society they are embedded in. The esteemed Principal, Ms. Vanita Sehgal, launched the magazine along with students of the Sociology Editorial Club.
The Principal, Vice Principal and the Judges, were invited onstage for the prize distribution.
The Vote of Thanks was given by the Vice Principal, Ms. Padma Srinivasan. The event concluded with the attendees rising for the National Anthem.
The recipient of the rolling trophy was Ryan International School, Vasant Kunj. The other awards are as follows:
| EVENT NAME | POSITION | SCHOOL |
| Manovishleshan | 1st | Delhi Public School, Mathura Road |
| 2nd | Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s Mehta Vidyalaya | |
| Merge | 1st | Bluebells Model School, Gurugram |
| 2nd | Bal Bharti Public School, Gangaram Marg | |
| Poise | 1st | Birla Vidya Niketan, Pushp Vihar |
| 2nd | Springdales School, Dhaula Kuan | |
| Showcase | 1st | Springdales School, Dhaula Kuan |
| 2nd | D.A.V. Public School, Sector 14, Gurugram | |
| Tasveer | 1st | Delhi Public School, Noida |
| 2nd | The Indian School, Josip Broz Tito Marg | |
| Showreel | 1st | D.A.V. Public School, Sector 14, Gurugram |
| 2nd | Vasant Valley School, Vasant Kunj | |
| The Devil’s Advocate | 1st | The Indian School, Josip Broz Tito Marg |
| 2nd | GD Goenka Public School, Rohini | |
| Thought Bubble | 1st | Delhi Public School, Mathura Road |
| 2nd | Father Agnel School, Noida | |
| Sociology Garage | 1st | Father Agnel School, Noida |
| 2nd | Bharat National Public School | |
| Just A Minute | 1st | Modern School, Barakhamba Road |
| 2nd | Ahlcon International School, Mayur Vihar | |
| Nukkad Natak | 1st | Delhi Public School, Mathura Road |
| 2nd | Ryan International School, Vasant Kunj |