Backwaters set for ripples across B-schools

KOZHIKODE: The annual management fete of the Indian Institute of Management -Kozhikode, ‘Backwaters’, has set to break all records in terms of participation and unique programmes this year. More than 6,000 students of the top 65 B-schools of the country have registered for the event. The three-day fest comprising more than 20 events,  which will begin on November 18, has adopted the theme ‘People. Profit. Planet’. The students will compete for a prize money of more than Rs 1 lakh. The programme coordinators are baffled by the number of entries they have received this year for the flagship programme ‘White Knight’.  In early years, the number of entries for the programme, where various colleges present business plans, had never exceeded 50. However, this year they received around 200 business plans of which 20 have been short-listed for the final presentation. Top venture capital firms officials would judge the event and also provide support for the teams who are interested in start-ups.Another eye-catcher at ‘Backwaters’ this year is the ‘Whistle Podu’ event which is sponsored by IPL cricket team Chennai Super Kings. The event would bring out possible options for making the team an internationally reckoned brand.It is for the first time that an IPL teams is heading to a B-school looking for ideas to promote their brand. Senior team officials and India Cements will judge the works of the contestants and announce the prize.The much-awaited and heavily-tagged ‘Avatar’ is another event that is expected to make a mark at the Backwaters.  In the event, 20 candidates from the 20 best colleges of the country will compete with each other to become the best future CEO. The contestants will have to undergo a 72-hour gruelling battle to emerge as the winner of a Rs 1-lakh cash prize.  The open quiz ‘Bizzathalon’, where the grey cells would be put to test, is also a sought-out event among the students. Top quiz masters of the state will lead the event.  The conclave for undergraduate students ‘Shiksha’ would bring an elite team to the podium at the event. An array of industrialists and social innovators including Anshu Gupta, Onir and Hasit Joshipura will be present at ‘Horizon’, the platform where top industrialists meet with the IIM students.