The Student Life Office drives the extra-curricular, student leadership and development programming of the University which range from creative and performative arts, leadership and training opportunities, experiential learning, volunteering opportunities, driving student-led programmes and much more. By championing, guiding and encouraging student organisations, clubs, initiatives and events, the Office promotes maximum student participation and involvement in campus life. Through our various programmes and activities, the Office strives to give our students the best of opportunities.
The various programmes and initiatives of the Office will help students appreciate the intricate connection between human life and its socio-cultural fabric, thus enriching student relationships between each other and the world around them.
Clubs and Societies
At Ashoka University, when not occupied with academics, students will find themselves immersed in pursuing their hobbies and interests through clubs and societies! These will give students an ocean of opportunities to contribute and enrich their campus experience culturally and intellectually. Ranging from music, dance and gaming to community engagement, language, creative writing, photography, culinary and much more, students may choose from amongst the array of existing clubs and societies functioning on campus, and also initiate their own!
A ‘Club’ is a focused group working towards a specific field of interest. A ‘Society’ is an umbrella organisation which has under it two or more clubs. These clubs have diverse interests and pursuits with a common objective and focal interest area that affiliates them to a single domain and binds them together.
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Annual Traditions
The Clubs get ample opportunity to showcase their talents through annual traditions created by the Office such as Jashn-e-Jazba (a platform for clubs to provide a sneak-peak into what they do); Annual Production Fortnight (a year-end mega-event) where clubs bring to the fore their creative work that the year’s hard work and passion have culminated with; Clubs and Societies Fair, interuniversity events and other regular activities.
Mentorship Programme
Training and support that is ongoing through the year, the leadership and members of approved clubs and societies interact and meet with the mentors from the Office on a regular basis. The meetings are used to pilot planning of club/society activities, brainstorming and troubleshooting, thus creating an active and vibrant culture on Campus.
Creative Spaces
The Student Life Office also brings to students a host of physical spaces for a variety of creative pursuits. While a fully equipped and functional Music Studio will help students record and produce their own music, the Art Room will allow students to chase their artistic pursuits. The Music Room hones a host of musicians, vocal and instrumental alike. The Student Commons is a space that has been thoughtfully curated for the purpose of study, discussion, public speaking, student meetings and debates. It is an expanse that has been creatively thought out in terms of placement, design and interiors, to allow for the various intellectually and creatively stimulating activities that students can pursue in their learning, outside the classroom.
Events & Initiatives
Baithaks
This programme has been conceptualised and envisioned to create a non-stage forum, centred on performing arts and conversations that intend to engage, listen and speak with the audience. With this format, Baithak aims to bridge the insurmountable divide between the audience and the performer. The Baithaks range from beginning a dialogue on relevant issues around us, to simply soaking in the creative churning of an art form such as poetry, dance, theatre, storytelling etc. The programme was launched in the year 2018 and has organised multiple Baithaks since then including but not limited to Kathak Mehfil by Ishwari Despande, ‘Love Expressed….’ by Dilip Shankar and Mandakini Goswami, ‘Sattriya Bela’ by the Majuli Monks of Assam, ‘Ek Baar Ki Baat Hai’ by ‘Jashn – e – Qalam’, Vilasini Natyam by Purvadhanashree and Leather puppetry by B. Muthuchandran.
The Yellow Line Express
‘The Yellow Line Express’ is an initiative that aims to provide an opportunity to Ashokans to explore Delhi as well as other cities: their art, music, theatre, cuisines, monuments and much more! All of us have our own unique experiences of each city and it means different things to different people. The Yellow Line Express seeks to give every explorer their own special reasons to explore these cities.
As a city with diverse pasts, Delhi has not only seen the rise and fall of great empires but has also been at the heart of the nation-building process in independent India. This city with its distinct historical past and rich cultural heritage is an interesting amalgamation of modernity and tradition, past and present, old and new, local and global. The Yellow Line Express aims to capture this unique juxtaposition of Delhi, through the various tours that will be conducted under its ambit. Each tour aims to explore Delhi through a distinct lens; its historical monuments, its rich heritage, its flora and fauna, its mouth-watering cuisines, its bustling markets and the way in which Delhi is lived by its inhabitants, every single day.
Some of the tours that have been conducted so far from campus include ‘Trees of Delhi’ by environmentalist Pradip Krishen, Food Walk in Chandni Chowk with Sohail Hashmi, ‘Birds of Delhi’ in Okhla Bird Sanctuary & Sultanpur National Park, Museums of Delhi, Exploring ‘Mini-Bengal’ of Delhi, ‘Quila-e-Kuhna’ mosque at Purana Quila, ‘Surajkund Mela’, ‘Dilli Haat’, a walk at Mehrauli Archaeological Park and a ‘Walk with Djinns of Delhi’ in the ruins of Ferozeshah Kotla Fort. Special outstation trips to Mahmudabad Fort to experience decadent cuisines and ceremonies have also been organised.
Haats
Ashoka University, located in Sonepat Haryana organises a cultural expansion event in the form of a ‘Haat’, to acquaint our multicultural students hailing from diverse backgrounds, with experiences and realities of local Haryanvi cultural heritage. Educative, informative and interactive; these ‘Haats’ aim to indulge students and staff in a cultural and social evolvement blending them with the Haryanvi heritage by showcasing artisans, food stalls, craftsmanship etc. From the durry workers of Panipat to artisans of the Khadi Ashram, the famous Pyaarelal Pedawala to the signature jalebis of Maturam Halwai, from our potters of Asawarpur to beautiful bangles from the chudiwali, it is a platform for students to witness, the indigenous spirit of Haryana. The ‘Haat’ encourages hands-on interaction between the local artisans and the students, to build a mutual relationship and appreciate the Haryanvi heritage and also participate in making the artefacts by themselves.
Lecture-Demonstrations & Guest Sessions
At Ashoka University, “Education” is not confined to degrees and grades! Learning – that is marked by quality and depth of knowledge – is part of the accomplishment, which adds excellence to the education here. Awareness of and engagement with different kinds of art and cultural activities gives one a complete picture of the world around, and more importantly, a complete understanding of one’s own self. Some of the stalwarts of their fields and disciplines whom the community have witnessed on Campus so far, include – Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, environmentalist Pradip Krishen’s “Wild Tours” with students, exploration of issues around gender through movement art with danseuse Mirra Arun, Dhrupad by maestro Padma Shri Ustad Wasifuddin Dagar, Thumris by Padma Shri Shubha Mudgal, Kathak recital by Padma Shri Shovana Narayan, pottery workshop by an indigenous artisan from the neighbouring village, music concert by Rabbi Shergil, Solo Theatre performance by Anant Dayal, “Partition Project” by Sonam Kalra, Sufi music by the Niyazi Brothers, “Women on Record” by Vidya Shah, folk traditions by the Manganiyars from Rajasthan, Bhapang by Jumma Yogi Khan, Pandvani by Padma Vibhushan Teejan Bai, Raagini: Haryanvi Kissagoi, Dastan-e-Goi, dance maestros Leela Samson and Justin McCarthy (also a faculty member)– and many more! Expect to be exposed to a myriad of cultural forms ranging from folk to classical to fusion. Not only this, but the Office also programs various creative workshops such as recycling, survival cooking, photography, pottery, gardening etc.
Through such a vibrant and syncretic programme palette, the Office aspires to bring a synergy of cultures, traditions, experiences and opportunities to the student’s doorstep; thus, making these precious years of their University life memorable with moments of awakening new sensibilities and taste.
Getting Involved
As students at Ashoka University, individuals will be encouraged to initiate their own projects and/or participate in the wide range of extra-curricular activities buzzing on campus. Be it running a club, working as an elected member of the Student Government, taking along a diverse team, in short, simply being a dynamic student in all spheres of their “student life” at Ashoka University – the Office will help them to effectively carry out the various responsibilities and projects that they undertake. With a variety of sessions conducted throughout the year, here is a glimpse into what these largely entail.
Lead
Student Life at Ashoka University is for and by the students. The Office ensures ample opportunities for students coming from diverse interests and talents to showcase and hone their skills. Leadership opportunities are found in leading and programming various inter-university events and activities – to name a few – Banjaara, Ashoka University’s Annual Inter-University Festival, Ubuntu – the Indo-International Cultural Festival; Ashoka Literature Festival, Ashoka Business Conclave… and many more.
These are opportunities for extensive leadership, teamwork, the spirit of volunteerism, organisation, ideation and most importantly, creation and innovation. The Office creates the opportunities, along with providing the support and mentorship needed to cultivate their inner skills and potentials. All students need to do is come and participate with all the energy and enthusiasm they can bring!
Volunteer
The Student Life Office has a few other channels too for student contribution and participation. The Office recruits volunteers throughout the year for the entire gamut of the programmes that it does. It is for students to choose their area of interest and they will be on board for this creative journey! Paid internship opportunities are floated to students, who wish to work on certain projects of the Office. These are opportunities for students to create traditions and concepts based on novel ideas that they might bring to the table. The Office has also recruited student entrepreneurs and programmers, to create certain tools towards technical sophistication in functioning. These are some, but not all the opportunities that students might find throughout their “student life” at Ashoka University.
Office Hours
Members of the Student Life Office are available to meet and interact with our students. Be it a conversation or thought students wish to share, an initiative students wish to propose, a problem students wish to seek assistance for or anything else that students wish to have a patient hearing for… the office members are all ears! The Office has a systematic procedure for booking appointments with anyone that students wish to meet. The Office looks forward to having students visit them over the course of their academic years at Ashoka University.
