Jyotirmay Annual Celebration – Connecting Through Culture

The annual function at Jyotirmay has grown bigger along with the stage which allows our students to display their talent under the limelight; they have adapted with great ease and confidence, which added a sparkle to the event. This year’s theme ‘Mile Sur Mera Tumhara’ reflects the synergy experienced daily at our school by children, teachers, admin and even the support staff while connecting through culture to form one identity. 

Tableau by Jyotirmay Support Staff

Having watched and cheered the children’s performances from the sidelines so far, this year our superbly talented support staff made their own contribution with an opening act for the annual day celebration. They presented to us a glimpse of village life in Maharashtra where everyone has a role to play, giving the entire community a holistic identity with creative props.

A joyous Bihu dance performance by the tiny tots from Jasmine and Daffodils wove together yet another thread, from Assam. 

A little later, encouraged by their teachers Sonali di, Tejal di and Anjali di from the wings the little ones gave another peppy performance to the English song Everybody Dance Now. 







Guided by Shital di and Aarti di, the children of Marigold and Ivy danced to a delightful Marathi song ‘DeteKon, DeteKon’ which threw up questions about the origins of Nature’s abundance.

Another stellar performance of the evening was a dance performance to the English song ‘Try Everything’. Titled Zootopia: I want to try everything, it showed young children’s sunny disposition and youthful enthusiasm. Choreographed by Sagar da, and guided by Shrutee di and Priyanka di, this dance was performed by children from Amber, Basil, and older girls from Iris and Coral.

Fusion Dance

Carrying the dance theme forward children from Clover, Iris, Coral and Saffron presented a fusion of Indian classical, bollywood and contemporary dance forms, which was the essence of the theme Mile Sur Mera Tumhara.

Punjabi Jhumar Dance

The boys from the groups Clover, Iris, Coral and Saffron brought to this stage a Punjabi dance form seen rarely – the Jhumar which is performed only by men during weddings and celebrations like Baisakhi. This graceful dance was choreographed by the teachers Kulvinder di, Lata di and Rasika di. 

Salsa by some of the Seniors

Some of our seniors also had a couple of sparkling performances add to this day even as they are focused on their upcoming IGCSE Board exams. The popular Latin American Salsa dance choreographed by Sagar da, was performed by Rhea, Ziad, Jinisha, Sundeep, Janhavee and Parth.

In another meaningful performance, the senior girls Janhavee, Sanika, Rhea and Jinisha rendered the beautiful and meaningful song ‘Believer’. The lyrics spoke of their faith and self-confidence as they stood there facing the potential of their future. 

Younger students from the groups Marigold, Ivy, Basil and Amber singing the song Socha Hai from the Hindi film ‘Rock On’ had all kinds of questions to ask. We believe these questions are the best nutrition for a healthy brain/mind development!

The song Manjha from the Hindi film ‘Kai PoChe’ reflected the resilience of the human spirit which stands up to any challenges; taught by Sandhya di and Nikhil da, children from the groups Clover, Iris, Coral and Saffron made this melody their own.

We also had a delightful rendition of an amusing old children’s song called Father’s Whiskers which made playful digs at fathers. Conceptualized by Freny di and sung by children from the Marigold, Ivy, Basil and Amber groups. 

This year we had a variety of play acts which also included a musical and a mime. Choreographed by Sonali di, Rasika di and Tejal di, the musical titled School Chale Hum was performed by children from groups Jasmine and Daffodils and it beautifully portrayed what school means for our youngest members. 

Ek Boondh Jal - a Hindi Play

The Hindi play 'Ek Boondh Jal' performed by Ivy, Basil and Amber took us into a futuristic world with people suffering from extreme water shortage. 

Rain plays a very important part in our culture including classical, folk as well as film music, and a special dance performance by Marigold on the song 'Kale Megha', lightened the mood even as parents absorbed this powerful message. This dance was aesthetically embedded within the play 'Ek Boondh Jal'.

Techie Trouble - an English Play

An English play titled ‘Techie Trouble’ picked on the confusion caused by ordinary English words commonly used in computer lingo. It also humorously brought out how we have become addicted to our gadgets. Adapted from a funny short skit Hipster Hobo by Betty di, Freny di contributed the music and students from groups Clover, Iris, Coral, Saffron and Aster brought out quite a few laughs from the audience.

Mime is one of the most difficult theatrical techniques in which artistes act out an entire story through body movements and gestures, without using any speech. While Charlie Chaplin is the best known mime in history, we find these techniques used in all classical Indian dance forms. 

Our students Varad, Aryan, Samarth, Ruchika and Suresh, guided by Anisha di brought this subtle performance to the Jyotirmay stage for the first time with the act ‘Love your Parents’, which was very well received by the audience.

Marathi Dhol Tasha

For the grand finale of the 2017 Annual Day function, teachers and students of Jyotirmay International School stood shoulder to shoulder across the stage giving a stunning performance of the traditional Marathi Dhol Tasha which forms a vital part of Pune’s Ganesh Utsav. 

This musical ensemble came as a complete surprise for everyone in the audience who gave it a standing ovation and repeated calls for Encores! The resounding beats brought the evening to a thundering close, making it a memorable event which was signed off by our principal Farida di with thanks to the event head Rasika di and coordinator Priyanka di.