Vox Populi Vox Insti

After a not-so-brief hiatus, we bring to you a fresh episode of the Postscript series, this time with that one team in insti which lives and breathes robotics - Team Anveshak. Tune in to listen to Shubham Jain and Pavan narrate their amazing championship tales, give fundaes on building a Mars rover and share their hope of staying a "foRover team". And, as always, do not miss the rapid fire at the end!

Since the onset of the pandemic, terms like mental health and wellness have been thrown around a lot, for reasons that are obvious to all. 

In this episode of the Daily Lives Series, we catch hold of two Clinical Psychologists of the Wellness Centre, IITM and engage in a meaningful conversation with them about the types of issues they often see within the student community, how they deal with it, how we should look at the brighter side of things in life. 

We also get an insight into the well structured mental health help system IITM has set up and how many students can take advantage of it.

Listen until the end to find out how Jinna and Arun soothed the anxieties of the students while navigating through their own ups and downs. 

MBA is one of the most coveted post graduate degrees for students of all backgrounds. It is no secret that for all its hype, MBA involves a lot of stress and extremely hectic schedules. 

We decided to talk to two people who did their MBA from insti to find out what the real picture is. What all does an MBA at IITM offer? What is the student ecosystem for it? Join us as our guests Karan Jassal and Navneet Kaur fondly recollect their memories of insti and share their story with us.

Listen and share!

In this episode of PostScript, we talk to Dev Priya and Jai from the Madras Sharks - insti's celebrated aquatic sports team. 

Despite the past two years without a pool, the team has kept their spirits alive. We ask them about what has kept the team going and how they plan to sustain their legacy. From fun inside stories to thrilling sagas of their victories at the inter IIT, join us to feel the adrenaline as they talk about their wins, defeats and once in a lifetime experiences.

TIMESTAMPS:

Intros - 0:55

Discovering Water Polo - 5:28

Value of a Peer Group - 7:28

2019 Women's Gold - 10:08

Swim-Team Bonding - 17:00

Weekend Practice Brunches - 18:39

The Sharks' Rep at Inter IIT 2019 - 19:56

Anti-Cheering - 21:15

Home Ground Inter IIT - 24:03

CGPA vs Inter IIT - 28:37

Team Traditions - 33:54

Taking Lite - 41:12

Rapid Fire - 44:32

Sound Effects from : www.zaplsplat.com

Your questions answered.

Shout out to Unman Nibandhe (SGS 2021-2022) and Aman Kumar (SGS 2020-2021) for joining us on the podcast!

Timestamps:

01:42 - Feasibility of reopening the campus

05:00 - Steps taken by the administration

07:10 - Prioritising the 2020 batches

18:25 - Update on the mess staff

27:50 - Making learning bearable

30:12 - Addressing backlog of labs

33:17 - Campus life without campus

38:24 - Holding on to the resolve

41:44 - Replies to The Mail

No newbies to basking in the spotlight, the OG's of the Oratory Club, now graduates, Pranav and Rishabh join us to chat about all things insti, all things Oratory.

They talk to us about getting into the oratory scene, trying almost everything insti has to offer, crazy mishaps, political correctness in oratory and much more. We also challenge them to a VPVI styled spin the yarn and a fun rapid fire at the end.

Tune in to the sixth episode of Season 2 of Vox Populi Vox Insti and let us know what you think!

Timestamps:

1:20  Put Intro

5:00 OC Traditions

8:30 The Roorkee Roulette

16:15 Teamwork in the club.

18:10 OC gets a new name?

18:50 Spin the yarn ft. OC gawds

22:55 Cancel or Censor?

27:45 On-stage cups, oop-

35:34 Rapid Fire

40:17 Saraswati, Godavari and Delusion

41:28 Why Lifestyle club deserves a podcast episode

41:40 Shout out to the Writing Club

43:05 Dear Juniors..

We rewind time back to when scholars were the only students on campus - and to a time before that as well. Insti is home to a very diverse set of students, and one of the many facets of our diversity comes from the different courses we all come here for. In the series we call Daily Lives, we take a sneak peek into the lives of some students who have different stories to tell from those of the UG junta.

To kick off the series, we talk to Saad and Vijay, PhD students of IITM, who tell us what the life of an average (or not so average) PhD student at insti is like.

Let us know what you think.

In this episode, we catch up with Kishan and Neel of Team Avishkar. While we were all at home, the team was back at insti, on a mission to win the next Hyperloop challenge. Though they weren't ready to divulge details about their secret return to campus, we got them to spill a few other interesting stories. From meeting Elon Musk to driving door-less cars, to making insti and the nation proud by winning numerous accolades, these two have done it all. Tune in to listen to them talk about their incredible journey, mishaps, fundaes and more. 

Time stamps

01:37 - Intros

02:38 - Why Avishkar? 

03:40 - Team traditions ft. Idilis

11:27 - Sleeping on the floor in LA

13:22 - Near death experiences 

14:43 - Meeting The Elon Musk

16:41 - Anything for the team

18:30 - Channelling Uri energy at SpaceEx

19:27 - Pic gone wrong (almost!) 

24:01 - Avishkar a startup? 

29:47 - Breaking locks to go to America

36:04 - Rapid Fire

38:56 - To, Juniors

39:54 - Bloopers

Listen NOW!

It's been well beyond a year off the football grounds for Sooraj and Midhun, yet nothing can dampen their spirits. Tune in to the third episode of our ongoing PostScript series to find us in conversation with these to-be-grads from one of Insti's most followed sports teams - the Madras Wolves.

In this episode, we dig out an in-detail narration of the dramatic finals at Inter-IIT 2k19, some insider stories from the team, tales of sweet victories and frustrating red cards and yes, enviable memories of the campus.

Stay with us till the end for fire (not-the-rapid-kind), fundaes and a few funny bloopers.

Timestamps:

1:20 - Put Intro: United Fans Unite 

8:00 - The Online year 

9:45 - Favorite Wins 

14:24 - Good times, Bad times

19:01 - IIT KGP and the Red Card

28:18 - Inter-IIT Memoirs

41:35 - The Rapid Fire

46:18 - Dear Juniors.

49:30 - Oops, the bloopers.

In the second episode of our ongoing PostScript Series, we engage in conversation with Akhil and Sharthak, graduating members of one of the most energetic cultural clubs at Insti, Choreo Club AKA FreakWen(u)C.

Dive into the episode to know more about the team, the secret to their ultra-tight bond, their experience of winning Saarang’20 Choreo Nite and most importantly, for lesser-known, amusing deets about the crew. 

As an added bonus to this episode, check out the Dead Student Society’s segment on Free Will to find out if you choosing to listen to this episode is really in your hands.

Let us know what you feel by emailing us!

Timestamps

Who, What, Where - 00:18

Choreo Club in 3 words - 04:56

Enviable team traditions - 06:08

Unforgettable competitions - 06:33

Favorite performances - 13:09

Academics and Dance - 15:56

Rapid Fire Round - 19:43

For the Juniors - 23:25

Dead Students Society: Free Will - 24:04

Sound Effects from : www.zapsplat.com

Introducing PostScript, a series where we invite some of the graduating members of Insti's teams to talk about their experiences, learnings and failures.

For the first episode we have with us Raftar, Insti's celebrated formula racing team.

They talk to us about their team, building a racing car, (not?) balancing acads along with it, going to Germany and winning Formula Bharat 2020. Listen till the end for the fun rapid fire, fundaes and of course, the bloopers.

Sound Effects from: www.zapsplat.com

We are back, after quite a long hiatus. Well, who am I kidding, we all needed a break.

This time, more unsolicited fundaes, debatable thoughts, nutsy stories, piquant news, legendary cups and putting peace.

In Insti, About Insti, Of Insti. Keep listening to 2021-22's Vox Populi Vox Insti, T5E's very own podcast.

Now that you are here, make sure to hit that follow!

In the third part in our series titled "Offbeat", we speak to Pranjal Mehta, an alumnus of the 2019 batch of our institute and co-founder of the E-plane company. We ask him about what different parts of his institute life that influenced the start up, and he also talks about how his time at insti shaped this venture, in the tenth and final episode of the first season of the T5E Podcast.

In this episode, as a part of our Offbeat series, we speak to Sreenath Srikrishnan, an alumnus of the 2020 batch from the Department of Biotechnology. We speak to him about his time in insti, and his experience founding IBLoT, a non profit to improve the Biotech space in India and bring together like minded people.

Contact us with feedback, or inform us of potential guests, at t5e.iitm@gmail.com

In the first episode after our winter hiatus, we kickstart a new series entitled "Offbeat" where we speak to people across the institute who have tried out unconventional things during their time in institute and beyond. For this first episode in the series, we speak to Zarin Shihab, a alumna of the HS department and a professional actor. We speak to her about her career in the film industry, how insti shaped her experience, and some fun stories from her time here. We hope you enjoy the conversation, and we'd like to thank her for coming on!

If you know someone who'd be a perfect fit for future episode, do get in touch with us at t5e.iitm@gmail.com

In this special episode, the T5E Podcast team welcomes IITM's new batch of 2020, and tells them what they should not do when IITM reopens.

One of the important "not-to-do's" is to not take anything your seniors say very seriously. Tune into listen as a bunch of seniors reminisce about their time in the institute, and for an additional segment of light bulb jokes. 

The T5E's Freshie Toolkit can be found at https://www.t5eiitm.org/freshie-toolkit-2020/

Feedback can be sent at https://t5epod.in/feedback, or to t5e.iitm@gmail.com

In this episode, we talk about how the modified evaluation methods of the semester have been impacting student's lives. 

Finally, we speak with Prof. Jithin John Varghese, a faculty of the Chemical Engineering Department, and speak to him about how he has had to change how courses work this semester.

In the concluding part of V for Virtual, we first breakdown the mildly interesting news for the week and bid farewell to the graduating batch of 2020, who have now received, or are going to receive their degrees in the mail. We give them tips to follow the institute guidelines for shooting the graduation video. Find our very own sample at https://t5epod.in/convo2020

Finally, we speak with Ayush, the E Cell head, and Breasha, the institute sports secretary, about their vertical's respective ideas for the coming semester. This concludes this series, and we will be back again in a fortnight with a brand new episode.

Interviews have been edited for clarity and brevity. Views expressed are those of the interviewees.

Intro and Outro music from https://audionautix.com

Swoosh Sound Effect from http://soundbible.com

In the second part of our series ‘V for Virtual’, where we explore how spaces in insti are adapting to virtual mode, we are joined by Tejas, the CFI head, and Mukund, the Co-Curricular Affairs Secretary, and we talk about how CFI and Shaastra are adapting and their plans for the academic year.

Timestamps:

1:42 - Tejas' Interview

17:00 - Mukund's Interview

Interviews have been edited for clarity and brevity. Views expressed are those of the interviewees. 

Intro and Outro music from https://audionautix.com

Swoosh Sound Effect from http://soundbible.com

In this episode, we introduce a new segment titled "Composite Time News", where we give a rundown of the interesting news of the week.

For our main story, we talk about how spaces in the institute are going virtual for the coming semester, and how they are adapting.

First, we speak to Vishnu Sanketh, Cultural Affairs Secretary (Literary Affairs), IIT Madras (2020-21) about the plans that the Saarang team has for the year.

Next, we speak to Unnikrishnan, Events Core (2020-21) of Sangam,  on how cultural clubs are adapting to this situation, and their plans to engage interested students.

This is the first in a series where we explore how insti space are adapting to the virtual mode. Part 2 will be out next week! Thanks for listening, do subscribe to us on the platform of your choice!

Music from https://audionautix.com 
Sound effects (Swoosh and Phone Ring) from http://soundbible.com

Timestamps:

00:35-04:16 - Composite Time News.

04:30-06:25 - Virtual Spaces at IITM.

06:35-15:57 - Vishnu Sanketh talks about Saarang 2021.

16:12-27:03: - Unni talks about the plans of Sangam 2020-21.

DISCLAIMER: The segment at the start of the episode entitled "Composite Time News" is intended to be humorous, and is not a reflection of real news. The T5E respects the diversity of people and ideas on campus and does not intend to offend any person and/or idea.

Batteries are not included. 

In this Part II of the bonus episode of Vox Populi Vox Insti, we have six amazing graduating women talking about their time in insti. In Part II (of II) of their highly engrossing conversation, Kowshika, Naomi, Niharika, Nikhita, Pravallika, and Ramya talk about expectations, gender roles and binaries, freshie experiences, solutions, and much more! 

DISCLAIMER: The thoughts, opinions, and experiences mentioned in the podcast are personal to the individual(s) and should not be construed to be representative for the entire institute. We acknowledge and respect the diversity of backgrounds, experiences, and views that exist within the campus.

In this bonus episode of Vox Populi Vox Insti, we have six amazing graduating women talking about their time in insti. In Part I (of II) of their highly engrossing conversation, Kowshika, Naomi, Niharika, Nikhita, Pravallika, and Ramya talk about careers, being a ‘Woman in STEM’, diversity quotas, PoRs, hostel wings, and much more!

'Swoosh' sound effect from http://soundbible.com and music from https://audionautix.com

DISCLAIMER: The thoughts, opinions, and experiences mentioned in the podcast are personal to the individual(s) and should not be construed to be representative for the entire institute. Here at the T5E, we acknowledge and respect the diversity of backgrounds, experiences, and views that exist within the campus.

Timestamps:

00:00 - In Her Shoes; Introductions.

04:30 - Career prospects

04:55 - Niharika on discovering the phrase ‘Women in STEM’

08:45 - Nikhita on iGEM, and foreign conferences

1030 - Niharika on the same topic

11:40 - Nikhita on foreign internships

12:33 - Niharika on her experiences with foreign internships

15:44 - Ramya on the Women in STEM tag

18:57 - Corporate Diversity Quota in Internships and Placements

19:12 - Pravallika on how women’s efforts are trivialised

21:23 - Ramya on her placement experience, and ingrained sexism

25:08 - Niharika on her experience as a placement core

28:40 - Nikhita on insti mentors, male and female

29:59 - Niharika on peer groups

32:35 - More on peer groups

32:40 - Ramya’s experiences with her batchmates

35:30 - Naomi on friendships in her department

37:12 - Kowshika on friendships and bonding through sports

38:48 - Niharika on academics and wing sizes

40:55 - Ramya on cross HS-techie wings

41:34 - Kowshika on moving from shared to single rooms

42:19 - Niharika on wing sizes and why a wing stays together

43:44 - PoRs: Does having more women in the team, especially in leadership roles make a difference?

44:15 - Naomi on her experiences as SocSec and in Music club

48:44 - Kowshika on leading girls and putting together a team

50:18 - Ramya on her experiences in Evolve

54:48 - Pravallika on women in leadership roles

58:53 - Co-working spaces and their importance

59:16 - Pravallika on her campaigning experience

1:02:41 - Niharika on co-working spaces and her experience in the placement team

1:05:41 - Kowshika on availability of space in sports

In this episode, Sai Guha and Saksham talk about the new semester, and the new normal that's going to be with us for a while.

Later on, a special guest joins us for an interview to talk about her time in insti, her final semester, and more.

Music from http://audionautix.com.

Disclaimer: This episode was recorded on 22nd July, and is based on the information available upto then.

Check out the website https://t5epod.in

Introducing the T5E Podcast,” Vox Populi Vox Insti”. Coming June 2020. Find out more at https://t5epod.in/teaser

Sound effects and music taken from soundbible.com and http://audionautix.com