Retro will be hip at MoodI

IIT Bombay's cultural festival MoodI

Nostalgia, possibly is the mother of all inventions. At least, the statement holds weight for IIT Bombay this year as they plan to commemorate the past by declaring the theme of this year's Mood Indigo as vintage. A cultural and arts festival, the event is not only Asia's largest college cultural festival but also an integral part of Mumbai's cultural calendar that is known for its great music line-up, décor and technology-based developments.

This time, Gunjan Gupta, media head for the festival shares, "The main motivation behind the theme was to help the youth connect to an era which represents their parents' childhood. Everybody has heard stories of how things used to be a lot classier in their parents' days and would love to experience a similar setting, with similar scenes. Through this theme we aim to highlight unique elements of the vintage era that stand apart in the age of mass production."

(Top right) Marilyn Monroe will define vintage at the fest; (above) The organising team of MoodI 2014

MoodI as it is affectionately referred to, will have hundreds of umbrellas depicting popular Hollywood icons like Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley; that will hang from the ceilings. After brainstorming and selecting from 400 ideas, the organising team cut them down to six. As a sneak peek, we are told, that Broadway shows, a vintage car show, vintage phone booths and housing tents a la Tomorrowland style will be the main highlights of the festival.

The fest will have a typewriter race for which the organisers intend to hire 200 type-writers

What also grabbed our attention was their idea of a typewriter race for which 200 typewriters will be hired. Clearly the inspiration seems to be the popular motif, "The most influential countries in that period were England, France and Italy, the powerhouses of Europe, and they will be some of the key sources of inspiration for the theme." Gupta adds that the ambiance will depict the romance of France with old Parisian umbrellas hanging from the ceilings set to fill the festival with ambient light, old English street lamps, "which can still be seen near the Buckingham Palace, which will be the highlight of the night ambiance, reveals Gupta. Italian graffiti on the walls will add a sense of
completeness to the theme as well.

For music lovers, the organising committee hopes to tread the off-beaten path by engaging in talks with music bands that play Experimental, Country, Folk music and Indie Rock.