Interview with the president

The upcoming King’s College London Diwali Show is the first major show of the academic year in the London University circuit, and is also the most highly-anticipated show, incorporating a huge variety of talents and attracting vast numbers of people. This year’s show is the 19th of its kind, and is taking place on the 21st November at Barbican Hall. We caught up with the President of the committee Janan Sakathevan to find out more about the preparations and what we can expect from the show.

The KCL Diwali show is one of the most prestigious shows in the London university calendar. Do you feel like you have a lot to live up to as the President?

Most definitely! The Show has progressed so much in the last 19 years, having started as quite simply a small show in a lecture theatre with a capacity of only 300. The Show comes with a huge reputation and I want nothing more than to enhance this and hopefully take the show to the next stage!

I am privileged to be part of this Show that has the unique capacity to unite such a multicultural society, gifting everyone involved with new friendships and unforgettable memories.

How stressful has the process of organising the show been? Were there any particularly difficult situations that you had to deal with?

My role this year is based purely on effective communication! My aim is to help produce an efficient Launch night, Show and After Party. Not only for the students involved to recognise they are part of the most Spectacular Student Show in Europe, but most importantly for our beloved audience to thoroughly enjoy and relish every moment!

Overall the organization for the show has been enjoyable and quite the experience! Organising which venue to use for the Show was quite taxing but like all issues we ran into we all worked well to reveal a final product we were happy with!

Tell us about this year’s committee. If they were characters from "Mr Men & Little Miss," who would they be? Don’t hold back!

This year’s committee is perfect! We have such an array of talent and personalities, I couldn’t have asked for a better group to work with!

Kelan Patel would definitely be Mr. Mischief with his cheeky antics especially when it comes to sneaking into halls to flyer our events. Always the source of much banter! Amisha Patel is Little Miss Fun. You will never catch her without a smile on her face. The most pleasant person I know and just a pleasure to have around. Mihir Patel has been nicknamed “The Comedian” with his quick wit and endless sense of humour. However he has also been the cause of some very fond memories catching him off-guard, hence he is Mr Daydream. Little miss giggles will sufficiently describe Suniti Marwaha. Another individual who’s graceful presence was always accompanied by a smile; a smile that won over half the new KCL students. Lastly our Little Miss Busy, Anne-Marie Watanabe. An Incredibly busy and hard working member of our committee.

Being so involved in the show must take up a lot of time. Have you struggled to balance it with your studies?

I would be lying if I said that I could easily handle my studies and helping to produce the Show. The truth is the Show is such an important ambition of mine that it has quite simply taken over! I am currently study “Diwali Show” at King’s College London. The Show is the number one priority at the moment, not just for me but also for the entire committee. We all understand that to produce the Best Show around we must give it our 110%.

Despite the fact that it is called the “KCL Diwali Show”,the event always attracts people from all different races, religions and universities. What do you think it is about the show that draws in such a diverse range of people?

This is very true and my favourite part of the entire show. The Show quite simply is an enjoyable experience. It is such an experience that attracts such a diverse collection of individuals. The number of students involved in the Show year in, year out epitomizes its rewarding ability to create new friendships and memories.

Furthermore, we have now confirmed for SONY ENTERTAINMENT NETWORK to film and broadcast the show. Just another example to reveal how far the Show has progressed to become the UK’s Largest Student-led Show every year! It’s no wonder so many people are drawn into the Show!

What can we expect from this year’s show? Any surprises in store?

Most Definitely! Since the very beginning of our preparations, my aim has always been to help produce an efficient Launch night, Show and After Party. Not only for the students involved to recognise they are part of the most Spectacular Student Show in Europe, but most importantly for our beloved audience to thoroughly enjoy and relish every moment!

I have also been very conscious of paying attention to the little details that people will remember even after the Show. I am proud to announce, The KCL Charity Diwali Show will be the first student-led show to include Pyrotechnics!

The show will literally be a blast!!

The show will be held on Monday 21st October. For full event details please visit our upcoming events section. Check out the latest promotional trailer below courtesy of this year’s host. Kutti Hari.