IIM Lucknow presents Manfest-Varchasva, the Annual Business, Cultural & Sports Festival. The fest will be held from Nov. 20th-23rd, 2014 at the IIM Lucknow campus. Over the past two decades, Manfest, the Annual Business Conclave provided a platform to bring together academicians, students and practitioners of management while Varchasva, the Annual Sports & Cultural Extravaganza, caters to some of the best talents in the country to come together in a celebration of creativity and spirit to attain supremacy. This year, Manfest and Varchasva will come together to host a four-day Megafest like none ever seen before! The marriage of a Business Conclave and a Sports & Cultural Extravaganza, with a plethora of events that cater to all, it will be a gala show of grit, glitz and gumption.
The theme for Manfest-Varchasva 2014 is: “Quest for El Dorado” with the intent being to shift the focus firmly on India. The current economic climate, the progressive agenda of the incumbent government and India's unprecedented foray into the realm of space exploration will all have significant bearing on the imminent future. The aim is to celebrate India’s success and urge people to move forward in the quest for El Dorado: a place of inordinately great opportunity.
Manfest started out as a simple quiz and debate competition in 1988 and grew from strength to strength to set new benchmarks. From being the first B-school competition to be officially accredited by ISO 9000:2001 certification, Manfest became the first Indian B-school Fest to host an international band on campus when it flew down the American rock band Pain of Salvation in the year 2010. Legendarily, Manfest has witnessed some of the biggest leaders and thought icons on campus including Mr. Azim Premji, Dr. D. Subbarao, Kishore Biyani, Mr. Kapil Dev, and Prahlad Kakkar. It was the first to offer PPIs to B-School students as awards to winners of the management events and is the only B-school fest where a management event participant was offered a PPO on-the-spot. Witnessing mammoth offerings such as 19 management events, INR 22 Lakh in prize money, the Lucknow City Marathon with INR 1 Lakh in Prize Money and 1500 participants and launch of Eternity-the fest’s very own EDM property, Manfest has crossed several milestones over the years. Cultural Nite, an evening dedicated to the exponents of Indian Classical music, is a tribute to Indian classical performing arts at Lucknow – the seat of Nawabi culture and tradition. Kailash Kher, Mohit Chauhan, Anushka Manchanda, Kay Kay, Salim-Sulaiman and Euphoria have graced Bollywood nites in the previous editions of Manfest.
Varchasva has the prerogative of being one of the most competitive cultural & sports events in the country, garnering huge participation from students across the length and breadth of the nation. Varchasva has witnessed several high-octane dance competitions, a series of mind-boggling literary events, splendid theatre acts & street plays and striking fashion parades crossing all thresholds of creativity and fun. The previous edition of the fest has seen an attendant footfall of over 13,000 from top B-Schools and undergraduate colleges. Sahara Force India Pit Stop challenge and a performance by the NGO Aashayein, wherein 40 children with special needs performed live, created a new benchmark for cultural events in the country. Halla bol is a CSR initiative wherein over 300 participants performed street plays in 6 villages in and around Lucknow to create AIDS awareness last year. Another feather in the cap is the Varchasva Cup, where contingents from 30 B-School from all over India fight it out for 25 major indoor and outdoor sports. On the one hand Sand Art witnessed talented artists entertain and narrate stories through rare and unique art forms, while on the other hand Shadow Artistry mesmerized the audience with the art of storytelling through shadows. Stairway to Hell is the western rock band competition that sees pan-India participation from rock, punk, grunge & metal bands. One of the key highlights of the fest is Unplugged, which is an acoustic night with beautiful melodies open for anyone to participate in.
This year, Manfest-Varchasva aims to push the bar even higher, carrying forward the legacy of one of the most prestigious institutes in the country. Spread across different verticals: Management events, Cultural Events, Leaders Express, Sports events, CSR Initiatives and Entertainments, will see the best minds and the most talented young individuals of the country battle it out for prizes galore. It shall make for one the most challenging, yet exciting times in the city of Nawabs. The presence of thought leaders and inspirational stalwarts from diverse backgrounds will lead to some of the most intellectually stimulating discourses and highly competitive events within the hallowed walls thereby taking the 28 year-old tradition to heights hitherto unexplored.