Udaan 2018 was celebrated on 22nd April 2018. It was a celebration of unity, atmiyata and the spirit of oneness, the qualities that the batch of 2018 had strived to inculcate and were successful to a great extent.

The celebration began with a full-fledged three-week preparation journey. An intense brainstorming among the entire Std 11, the hosts, churned out various potential themes for the event and eventually the theme of atmiyata was chosen. Teams were divided according to the tasks: literature department, presentation department, music department, decoration department, etc.

Every department had its own set of challenges! The literature department was instructed that the hosting was to be done without any hard copy during the actual event. It had to be like an extempore performance by the event hosts. The decoration and the presentation departments were entrusted with gathering of incidents glorifying the value of atmiyata. The music department were instructed to find suitable music for the event. Everyone contributed to their best to make this function a memorable festival.

Finally, the day arrived for which everyone was waiting. The much-loved guests of the eve and their parents were escorted in with a chilled welcome drink at 4.30 PM on 22nd April, 2018. The celebration started with “Atmiya Darshan”, an exhibit on atmiyata prepared by the Std 11 students. The host students very earnestly discussed the content of the presentation with the guests of the evening. The anchors commenced the function at around 5 pm.

The occasion started with the poojan of Thakorji. Then the festival, as it would be appropriately termed, was divided into four parts. Each part had one glimpse and gift distribution.

The first part had a song and the hilarious cameo of Kavi Chandraprakash. The second part expressed the extreme hard work and prayers done by our seniors in form of a preparation schedule video. The third part had the most mesmerising part of the show. The UV light dance tribute portrayed the life of an atmiyan. Right from being a tiny 6-year-old at the beginning to passing out and the life ahead. The last part had another hilarious performance in form of a talk show, Sosyo with Susil.

In his speech, Vinamrabhai spoke the words everyone was burning to say and acknowledge. It portrayed the emotions of all the students who were to officially become alumni after the festival.

Then it was time for the speeches from the masters themselves, Vijay Sir and Fuvaji. The worth-knowing advice of life from the mentors of all the students.

The show ended with the capturing of the moments by the outgoing batch and writing their reflections.

The sumptuous dinner then awaited the celebrities of the evening. Everyone was served the dinner warmly by the hosts of the evening, their juniors, the to-be 12th graders.

All in all, it was an evening worth looking back over and over again and cherishing.

Written by: Devang Patel (Class 11 Science)