| Festival Name | Waves |
| College Name | BITS Pilani, Goa Campus |
| When | November |
| Where | NH 17B, Bypass Road, Zuarinagar, Sancoale, Goa 403726 |
| Footfall | Around 40k |
| Celebrity Visits | Nucleya, Raghu Ram, Vishal-Shekhar, Lost Stories, Amit Trivedi, ZkhirKhan, Farhan Akhtar, Salim-Sulaiman, etc. |
| Social Presence |    |
BITS Goa’s annual cultural fest, Waves is a floating ocean of talent, art, skill, creativity, dazzling lights, booming melodies, and limitless fun in the chill, tropical environs of Goa. It attracts students from across the nation. During Waves, one can witness all sorts of amazing competitions, including breath-taking dance-offs, eclectic musical performances, heated debates, intense poetry slams, and a wide variety of other informal events. Come and witness Waves, BITS Pilani, Goa.
That’s just the days, the nights of Waves have always sizzled with stars like Vishal-Shekhar, Amit Trivedi, Farhan Akhtar, Salim-Sulieman, Nucleya, The Local Train, etc. Their astonishing musical acts set the stage on fire. For everything that BITS Goa is and represents, Waves is the fest you just can’t miss!
Waves has been a massive success in past years and is ranked among India’s top 10 cultural fests, with over 60,000 plus visitors and a turnover of INR 90 lakhs, with over 180 universities participating throughout India. It attracts students from throughout the nation. Various fantastic competitions can be witnessed throughout Waves. Heated debates, passionate poetry slams, and various other informal gatherings and a wide range of events.
Waves has become India’s fastest-growing cultural festival because of exciting performers, intriguing activities, a boisterous crowd, and a festive Goan vibe.
Waves BITS Pilani Goa –2021
Theme- ‘ Ile de fantaisie’!
Dance among the butterflies, listen to the birds chirping or take a joyous ride on the unicorn, to the magical kingdom amidst the clouds. Injecting with enthusiasm and letting higher spirits go even higher as we ride on top of the Ferris wheel. Unmask the suspense, chasing us in the carnival. An affair of thrill and excitement awaits.
Waves BITS Pilani Goa -2019 Theme
Break the chains of monotony, and set the explorer, in you, free; because Waves 2019 is going to be an electrifying journey. Let yourself be consumed by wanderlust, and walk through sprightly forests, rugged mountains and gushing sea. Board the whistling trains, and sail the never-ending ocean.
Come, En Voyage, and let trill fill your soul. Dance with the fireflies, listen to summer birds sing, and make yourself lose in the epic odyssey of a three-days grand event. It’s time to move out of the shadows of everyday life because every tale has two shades. Let us and explore the unexplored and set En Voyage on uncharted ventures; only at Waves 2019. Goa is waiting, where are you?
History of Waves – BITS Pilani, Goa
Waves are among the top 10 Cultural festivals in India. Celebrities like Farhan Akhtar, Amit Trivedi, Neeti Mohan, Vishal–Shekhar, Priyanka Chopra, Kalki Koechlin, Kailash Kher, Karsh Kale and musical acts like Nucleya, Ritviz, Quintino, Marnik, Lost Stories, have performed at Waves in recent years. Famous comedy houses like All India Bakchod, TVF, Being Indian, and others have also performed at Waves.
Waves BITS Pilani Goa also hosted celebrated events like Sunburn and Femina Miss India eliminations. It has evolved into one of the leading college cultural fests in India. Waves sees its roots in an intra-college festival organized in 2005.
Waves was first organized in 2006 as an inter-college festival, which became a prominent regional cultural festival in Goa.
Many colleges participated in Waves in the subsequent years, and Waves became one of the biggest and most coveted cultural festivals. Waves then reached another milestone in 2008 when it entered the mainstream and came to be known as a popular National Cultural Festival in India, which had a theme suiting the culture of Goa- “Nirvana.” This edition of Waves was such a big success that the next year, 2009, saw two editions of this festival.
TThe fame and glamour of Waves attracted participants from all over India every year. And, the festival exponentially grew in terms of participation and number of events. Waves 2014 witnessed an international act, The WorldFest, a Coke Studio performance for the Indie Nite, as well as the Searock event, which had become one of India’s biggest semi-professional rock band hunt contests.
BITS Pilani, Goa celebrated 10-year anniversary of Waves with the theme as Waves 2016– “Tides of Time.”
Waves 2019
Tagline: En Voyage on Uncharted Ventures!
The 2019 edition of Waves is tipped to be bigger and better than all of its previous editions. The theme “En Voyage on Uncharted Ventures” promises to take the performers on an exhilarating and electrifying journey for the three days. The fest is to be held from the 1-3rd November, Though eliminations of different events such as SeaRock, Inverse, and SMTF(Show Me The Funny) have already taken place in various cities across the country.
Waves BITS Pilani, Goa, 2018
Tagline: Embrace The Shadows!
Waves 2018 featured events organized by the various clubs of Music, Dance, Literary, Quiz, Drama, Moot Court, and the Fine Arts. ‘Major 4 ’ attractions of Waves, Natyanjali, Fashion Parade, and Mr. And Ms. Waves and SeaRock attracted a massive crowd of cheering students. Specials, another segment, consisted of unique events like Treasure Hunt, Photography Competitions, Film making, Last Entrepreneur standing, etc.
This edition of Waves attracted a footfall of over 50,000 with students from 150+ colleges taking part in the events. It was also the first edition of Waves in which a Youtube Conclave was held, and many known Youtube celebrities like Meghna Kaur and youtube channel Filter Copy shared a stage and engaged in a fun round of games.
The Pro Nites of Waves 2018 witnessed performances from Farhan Akhtar in the Bollywood Night and Quintino, one of the top 25 DJs in the world performed in the EDM night. The Indie Night saw a performance from music band Anand Bhaskar Collective.
Waves BITS Pilani Goa, 2017
Tagline: A Tale In Two Shades!
Waves 2017 introduced a completely new and unique concept of celebrating the abstract. It aimed at making the audience forget reality for those three days and take them onto another plane of euphoria. Apart from the biggies, even the smaller events received an overwhelming response.
Photography events like ‘Montage,’ ‘Mezzo-tint,’ ‘Time Lapse’ and ‘Reverse flash,’ ‘Waves Open Quiz,’’ Waves Debate Championship,’ ‘Rubik’s Cube Challenge,’’ Wallstreet Fete’ also saw phenomenal enthusiasm and success. Other events like Searock, Show Me The Funny also showed rapid growth from the last edition of Waves. For the Bollywood night, Vishal-Shekhar gave an unforgettable performance and ended the festival on a high note.
Waves BITS Pilani Goa, 2016
Tagline: Tides of Time.
Waves 2016 was filled with a multitude of events and dazzling nights featuring top artists of the country. It began with a grand inauguration in the auditorium. An art performance by Kala and a humorous sketch performed by the Mime Club stunned everyone present. Events such as the game of Scrolls, Drinkathon, Jukebox, and Sizzle saw amazing participation and enthusiasm.
Searock, India’s largest semi-professional rock band competition exhilarated the audience throughout the night with performances ranging from the band “Three Hours Peace” to “Wild Amigos.” DJ Spin-off was a single event held in association with the PartyMap DJ Academy. Dozens of people flocked to the outdoor stage to groove to the electronic beats.
Comedy Night witnessed rib-tickling performances by top comedians Kenny Sebastian and Zakir Khan. Waves 2k16’s nights concluded with thrilling performances by bands Aswekeepsearching and The F16s as part of the RedBullTourBus, breath-taking performances by singer-composer Amit Trivedi who was accompanied by the phenomenal Neeti Mohan. The DJ Night, which was a blast, with Nucleya blowing the minds of the people present.
ProNites at Waves BITS Pilani Goa
Waves BITS Pilani Goa rapidly achieved popularity far and wide due to the euphoria and ecstasy it creates in its Professional Nights or Pro-Nites as they are called. Popular national, as well as international artists, perform every year at Pro Nites. Waves has previously featured the likes of Vishal–Shekhar, Priyanka Chopra, Karsh Kale, Blackstratblues, Kailash Kher, Shafqat Amanat Ali, Shankar Mahadevan, Strings, Indian Ocean, Parikrama (band), Thermal and a Quarter, Pakistani Rock act Raeth (band), Carnatic Rock band Agam (band), Dead Letter Circus, Candice Redding, DJ NYK, DJ Suketu etc.
The Pro-Nites of Waves are divided into three nights, to cater to varied tastes of the audience:
EDM Nite
The EDM Nite held on the last night during which an Electronic musician performs. Previous editions of Waves BITS Pilani Goa have seen gigs by eminent electronic music artists like Nucleya, Quintino, Marnik, Diego Miranda, Ritviz, etc. This is the most significant musical act of the whole fest and draws the most massive crowd.
Waves EDM Nite also hosted an official Pre-Sunburn event. There are usually two to three acts on EDM night, with the opening acts performed by upcoming artists, followed by the leading artist.
Indie Nite
Indie Nite is always a crowd puller; with performances of star music artists. In the past, Indie Nite has seen performances by Dead Letter Circus, Blackstratblues, Anand Bhaskar Collective, The Yellow Diary, The Indian Ocean, and Sifar, among others.
Bollywood Nite
Bollywood Nite is a major crowd gatherer. It has witnessed performances by renowned Bollywood such as Vishal–Shekhar, Kailash Kher, Salim Sulaiman, and Farhan Akhtar, among a lot of others
EVENTS
DANCE
Dancing Duo
Dancing Duo is a duet dancing competition. Contestants come in pairs and dance their way through multiple engaging rounds while showcasing their dancing skills and chemistry. This event attracts dancers from various styles and makes for a great crowd-pleaser and is definitely a must-watch!
Natyanjali
This is one of the Big Four events of Waves. Natyanjali is a stage team dance competition that has colleges from all across the country bringing their best. There are two categories in this event: Thematic where teams convey a message through their dance and Non-thematic where the teams perform anything they wish. Teams will be performing their own prepared dance sequences on a stage, in front of a judging panel. Each team will be judged against the other teams performing under the same category, i.e. Thematic or Non-thematic.
Footloose
Footloose is the newest addition to the Dance Events of Waves, with its second edition taking place this Waves. This is a team street dance battle where teams from all over the country take it to the streets and face off to see who’s really the best. Footloose is already a crowd favorite, and the competition just gets bigger and better.
Sizzle
Sizzle is a solo street dance battle event. The dancers bring their own flare, making the one-on-one battles intense! Being one of the most anticipated events of Waves, Sizzle proves to get bigger and better with each edition. The highlight of this event is the Final face-offs that take place out on the streets, amidst energetic, cheering crowds.
MUSIC
Indian Rock
One of the most anticipated events in WAVES, this is the grand stage for all rock enthusiasts and budding artists of the country. With all the amazing music and the Led Zeppelin vibe, the participants truly bring out the amazing flare of all the greats.
Jukebox
This is a solo event under the Music category in which participants use their vocal abilities to compete. The song can be Indian or Western.
Rapsody
All of us have heard the songs of Panjabi, Divine, Raftaar. Well, get ready to experience the Local Hip-Hop culture, this Waves. For the first time ever, we present to you the Rapsody, a showdown for all rap enthusiasts.
Solonote
One of the most anticipated events of Music, here participants bring only their instrumental prowess to the fore, and not their vocal ability. Only one instrument is allowed per participant, but this one instrument can be anything, and they’re allowed to play anything. Because of this variety, there’s a lot of excitement and mystery surrounding this particular event, which makes it a sublime showcase of budding musical talent.
SeaRock
One of the most grandiose semi-pro rock band competitions in the country. Alumni of the likes of Zygnema, The Family Cheese, Knight Shades, and Inner Sanctum. Bringing you enticing opportunities to showcase your talents, Searock is back with its 15th iteration this fall.
Click here to Register
The silence of the Amps
If you wanna listen to pure music or for a delightful experience of musicians, join us in Silence Of The Amps, where you can listen to the Acoustic Covers of your favorite artists.
“Music that is acoustic, unwired, unplugged is it’s purest form”-Craig Conley
Drama
Nukkad Natak
A street play addresses a public issue and engages the public through its intensity and vivid scenes. Gather your crew, build up your scenes, compose your jingles, and join us in Nukkad Natak, the street play event, to put up a captivating production to impress the masses.
Rangmanch
All the world’s a stage, so round up your cast and bring the stage to life, in Rangmanch, the stage play event. Participants get the opportunity to perform a play of their choice and display their acting skills, engaging the audience with their words, music, and theatrics.
Design
Let’s not get wasted
This is an artsy event where you make use of your creativity. You will be given some (useful) waste and you have to make the most creative thing you can, according to the (secret) theme that will be given on spot.
“Creativity is contagious, pass it on.”-Albert Einstein
moTEEf
We’ve got a creativity challenge for you. With a theme that will be provided on spot you will have to use your imaginative powers to design a T-shirt. The final round will include transforming a plain white T-shirt into a cool and trendy fashion statement outfit! So team up and get creative
Kick Start
You will have to make use of your complete creativity in this design contest. Participants will be given a dull white sneaker. This piece of footwear needs to be transformed into a cool and trendy looking sneaker by you. The theme will be given on the spot. Are you up for the challenge?
Avant-garde
Find your inner diva with our new design event: avant-garde, literally translating to people or works that are experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society. Here you have to put together the most creative and realistic outfit according to the theme, and here’s the challenge, with your everyday clothes! Only people who love challenges may enter!!!
Fine Arts
Artathon
Artathon is exactly what it sounds like: a marathon of Art. With 3 surprise rounds, this event tests your creativity and makes you think on your feet. Each round tests different artistic skills, requiring the artists to express their ideas in their artwork.
Blind Art
This fun event involves teams of two, where one describes the item to be drawn, and the other (blindfolded) artist draws the same, based on the description. Which pair has the best communication and trust? Try it and find out!
Just Fold It
The Japanese art of paper folding is not as simple as it seems. Create a colorful composition from the given paper sheets and present it to the judges. Join us, and turn an ordinary square sheet of paper into an extraordinary creation of your own, using Origami and your imagination!
CARPE DICTUM
Inverse
The national poetry slam for Waves ‘19 is your ticket into the world of the spoken word. Time to break out the old meter, dust off that rhythm and put those poetic devices to work to deliver a performance of a lifetime. If spoken word poetry is your passion, this is the place to be. Fabulous prizes await!
Cultural Gauntlet
The cultural gauntlet is the perfect place to put your skills in the English language to the test. Whether it is maintaining grammatical accuracy in Just-a-Minute, going head to head for a lifejacket to escape a hypothetical sinking ship in ShipWreck or switching views on the fly in Block and Tackle. The Cultural Gauntlet has got all your bases covered!
Melas“Everything irrelevant to life”
Word Games
The ultimate test of your mastery of the written word! Whether you’re a practiced word wizard or just looking to kill some time with a refreshing detox, our carefully curated collection is right up to the task. Tackle a fun miscellanea of crafty puzzles – puns, palindromes, cryptic crosswords and so much more – as you valiantly vie to be the victorious virtuoso. Let the (word) games begin!
FASHION
Fashion Parade
This is our fashion design and choreography competition and it receives participation from teams coming from over 100 colleges. It is one of the most highly anticipated events in the fest. FashP has provided a platform for students to show their taste and style in fashion. Fire up the ramp with your panache and confidence in this battle of beauty and style
QUIZ
Waves Open
“The fifth Grand Slam of the year.“
The Vices Quiz
“There is no God here.”
Voyage – The Travel and Living Quiz
“How far do you think you can go? “
Film and Photography
SHO(R)T
Short is a themed team short film competition. This competition takes place online and is a great platform for budding filmmakers and film enthusiasts to hone their skills and show off their work. The winning film has an amazing opportunity to get published online.
Oh Snap!
Oh Snap is a team photography competition. This competition takes place online and all the submissions follow a certain theme. Oh Snap is a great opportunity for a photographer to show off what the world looks like through their eyes and what an ideal means to them.
SPECIALS
Strangely Familiar
Strangely Familiar is a competition in which two participants, unknown to each other are paired up and get to know each other by participating in quizzes and games as multiple teams. Judges for this event are generally famous Youtubers like from the channel Filter Copy.
Show Me The Funny
Show Me The Funny is a stand-up comedy competition that provides a platform for emerging stand-up comedians of the country to showcase their talent. The eliminations shall be held in a few cities all across the country, where participants shall perform a stand-up comedy act in the allotted time. Another round will be held on Day 0 of Waves, which will be open to all. The winners of this round, as well as the winners of the national eliminations held in the various cities, will compete in the final round. The winner will have the golden opportunity to open for the Waves comedy night.
Contention
The contention is BITS Goa’s very own Parliamentary Debate Competition. Hosted in the British Parliamentary format and with over 100 participants, stimulating motions, an array of prolific core adjudicators and amazing cash prizes, it is a tournament not to be missed by any debater
Newsance
How many of us have seen press conferences on television before? Those of MS Dhoni or maybe even Trump? Have you ever dreamt of being one of the interviewers? For the first time in Waves, DoJMA brings to you Newsance – the mock press conference. Have a try at being a journalist in this thrilling event where participants compete in a fast-paced environment to ask the most grilling and enticing questions!
Mr. and Ms. Waves
Mr. and Miss Waves is one of the Big Four events of Waves. Held in the auditorium, it is a personality-based contest packed with grueling interviews, impromptu performances and a cutthroat talent round. The highlight of this event is the notorious Notepad Guy, who makes each performance all the more entertaining.
MOOT
Lex Omnia is one of the premier events conducted by Waves. It is a Moot Court competition where students from Law Colleges compete. The debates are long, stakes are high and you’ll survive only if you can engage. There are two sides to every story, the right one is the one you make them believe.
IRSHAD
“Irshad” is a Hindi-Urdu performance poetry competition that aims at bringing different perspectives of the things, happenings and feelings in the world, at one platform of blissful poetry. This year we plan to reach out to the poets through our regional qualifiers in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Lucknow, Jaipur, Indore, Aligarh, Hyderabad, and Goa.
Human Library
Every one of us has a story to tell. The person sitting next to you on the train, the guy who just sold you coffee – all of their lives are bundles of experiences just waiting to be told. And what better way to relate to these tales than a book? Even better, a human book? This Waves, engulf yourself in a story told like never before! Come to the Human Library, and uncover the mesmerizing tales of our wonderful and energetic “books.”
To keep yourself updated on the upcoming college fests and college buzz, stay hooked on to GrooveNexus.
Content courtesy: Wikipedia and Waves official website.
