After all the initial hype and anticipation, it was finally time for Spectrum '08 to hit the road. An event organised by the Department of Media and Communications, Spectrum is meant to act as a platform to showcase the work of students from the department as well as provide the students with an opportunity to interact with professionals from the media industry.The event is being held over a period of two days, May 20th - May 21st 2008. It was thus inaugurated on May 20th, in a most special way, with a recitation from the Holy Quran by Mr. Ashfaq Ahmed.
This was followed by an official inauguration in the form of a welcome speech by Dr. Firoz, Chair, Department of Media and Communications. In his opening speech Dr. Firoz summed up the concept behind the event, saying, "Spectrum, apart from exhibiting the creative portfolio of the graduating class of 2008, provides a serious platform for student, academic and industry interaction."
With this idea in mind, the department has put up a brilliant display of their students' best works. Creative photographs, advertising campaigns, short video productions and written articles by the media students are all on view for visitors to enjoy. Spread across the ground and second floor of Manipal University's Dubai Campus, these stunning exhibits bear ample testimony to the abundant talent that prevails in the Department of Media and Communications.
Visitors enjoy an exhibit of photographs shot by media students - Photograph by Mitalee Kurdekar -
Having looked at some of the exhibits, Mr. Vivek Joshi, Senior Lecturer, Department of Business Management, commented, "Spectrum '08 is a great event, especially because everybody has contibuted to it. It is a pleasure to be here." He was especially impressed with the posters on child abuse and racism, he added.
But that was not all. Day one of Spectrum was also marked by an interesting panel discussion on "Consumerism: A Trend in Contemporary Media". The distinguished set of panelists included Mr. Ron Kapadia, COO, City7; Mr. Syed Ahmad Hussaini, MD, Impact BBDO; Mr. Raju Nagrajan, Managing Editor, The World Magazine and Mr. Navin Kapoor, a Managament Consultant. Each panel member had five minutes to put forth his views on the subject, as a result of which a number of issues were brought to attention during the course of the dicusssion.
Mr. Hussaini raises a pertinent point - Photograph by Deepthi Unnikrishnan -
These were then taken up at the time of cross-questioning of the panelists. The discussion had a moderator in Mr. R. N. Shukul, Senior Lecturer, Department of Media and Communications; while there were also two esteemed analysts in the form of Mr. Jacob John, Managing Director, SMTC Media Services and Dr. Firoz, Chair, Department of Media and Communications.
After deliberating over a considerable amount of fascinating perspectives on the subject, the panel then took questions from the audience members. By the end of the session, we ended up with more questions than answers on the subject - a rather conspicuous statement on the vastly intriguing nature of the topic of discussion.
This serious debate was then followed by lunch, after which there was an opportunity for students to learn about the finer nuances of television production. Mr. Rajeev Kheror, Head of Programming, ZEE TV, Middle East, conducted a seminar on 'Television Production: Planning and Programming'. Students looking to specialise in this fast-paced medium of communication had much to imbibe from this short, yet detailed session.
Mr. Kheror interacts with media students- Photograph by Deepthi Unnikrishnan -
Mr. Kheror responded to queries about television that the audience members had posed, while at the same time offered tips on the best way to make a foray into the television industry.
The day ended on a high, with the promise of more to come on Day Two of Spectrum '08!
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