Blazing passions, boundless talent, and two years of restless excitement collided at the end of January, as the Social and Dramatic Union, the premier cultural committee of Jai Hind College, organised SHOUTT 2023. This was the return of SHOUTT in its offline form after two years, and the participants were just as ready to let loose as the organisers from SDU were. The city of Mumbai flared up in excitement on the auspicious three days, as the magnificent masquerade commenced on the 30th of January.

The first day of SHOUTT began at 8 in the morning, as both the SDU and the participants blasted through the chill with their vigour. The game was on, and every corner of Jai Hind College began resonating with the famed chant of the SDU. The campus outskirts took on a new persona, as participants of the Sidewalk Graffiti event took their chalks to the walls. The very campus was their canvas, and with their incredible skill and creativity, they breathed beauty and life in every inch within their borders. The events from the college interiors responded with their own roars, as some of the brightest entrepreneurial minds in Mumbai assembled to Create the Buzz. With none other than our esteemed business veteran Nirav Sir judging the event, the buzz was bound to echo through every floor of the college. The thunderous voices were then brought up to eleven, when day 1 of SHOUTT concluded with a war of DJs. The event Upbeat Down the Street gassed everyone up, and set an insanely high bar for the remaining days of SHOUTT to live up to.

Topping the first day seemed like a daunting task, but the events of Day 2 stood their ground. The college gates burst open at 8:30, and the incoming audience were seated in front of one of the most intense panels of all time. The event Rumour Has It, a panel discussion on the infamous show Gossip Girl, initiated the second day with burning aggression. Under the watchful eye of the exceptionally talented Eshita Singh, the seven panellists blew the socks off of the onlookers, as Gossip Girl was scrutinised to the extremes for some absolutely mind-boggling arguments. The day carried on with its initial hype, as the basement then became the stage for the best dancers Mumbai had to offer. The Queen’s Gambit was prepared by the Performing Arts department of the SDU, and every participant displayed a vicious tornado of dance moves that left the audience completely awe-struck. This glorious spectacle didn’t relent with the end of this event, however, as the torch was passed on to our favourite legends of college life, popular ex-students that we’d only heard tales of, and they kept the stage blazing hot. Setting a fantastic show of drama, music as well as dance, the legends managed to bid a fitting farewell to the audience, as the event marked the conclusion of day 2 of SHOUTT 2023.

Two days of SHOUTT had been executed to perfection, and yet the victory lap was miles away. The longest day of the SDU was to begin when the sun rose, as organisers both in the Jai Hind College campus and Y.B.Chavan, the hall deemed worthy of hosting the biggest events of SHOUTT, looked up at the clocks with anticipation. As the calm before the storm crumbled, the clock struck 9, and the events began. The events set to be hosted at Jai Hind College were initiated by the Inquisition, as the Literary Arts department brought out a relentless stream of rapid fire questions in their buzzer rounds. At the same time, the auditorium at Y.B.Chavan shimmied with the groove, as dance troops from all across the city made the audience Feel the Rhythm. The contests kept the excitement running, as the final round of the talent and personality contest commenced at the hall, the place that was to crown this year’s Mr. and Ms. SHOUTT. With yet another flurry of events, including an unforgettable Band Bhasha Bash event booming past the very windows of the hall, we reached the ending moments of SHOUTT. The festival of joy and passion was nearing its end, and J.A.M. was selected as the event that brought it home. As some of the most famous and capable jammers ever duked it out on stage, the audience became witness to an amazing display of vocational skill and quick thinking. With this absolutely marvellous show put on by the panellists, SHOUTT was brought to its closing ceremony. It was a ceremony overloaded with emotions running high, as trophy winners were announced one by one. Everyone from three days of SHOUTT was on the edge of their seat, and when the final trophy winner, the winner of SHOUTT 2023 was announced, the contingents and the organisers all bounced up with celebration, and the festival was officially brought to a close.

The Social and Dramatic Union believes in always taking a step forward as it strives to get bigger and better each year. SHOUTT 2023 set a high standard for college events as a whole, and the SDU is prepared to set it higher still next year.