For the Kalakriti 15th edition, I was a part of the hosting team for my venue, where I planned and wrote the event script with my partner, deciding the flow of performances and how the event would run. On the event day, I delivered the hosting speech, made announcements, guided performances, and helped keep everything smooth and organised. I interacted with students from different schools who came for drama performances, creating a friendly and enjoyable atmosphere for everyone.

LO1 – Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth
During the Kalakriti event, I identified many of my strengths. It began with the group meetings in school, where I contributed my ideas and collaborated openly with everyone. I was given the responsibility for writing the hosting script, which included the introduction, welcoming the judges, smooth transitions between performances, and small fun elements like riddles and tongue twisters to keep the audience engaged. I handled this task diligently, and the script was approved immediately by the teacher. Adding on, communication was also one of my strong points during the event. I worked closely with teachers from different schools and coordinated well with my co-host to keep the event running smoothly. From the beginning till the end, I was actively involved in making sure that the participants from different schools enjoyed themselves and stayed energised. Towards the end, I stayed back to help teachers distribute certificates and made sure that every student received one for their participation. I also helped guide students after their performances, directed them to the right places as they were new to the school, and assisted them in finding their teachers around the school. In terms of growth, I would also like to improve my confidence while speaking on stage, especially in front of larger audiences as I sometimes felt nervous while looking at great speakers, however I handled the situation patiently, and overall, the event was a success.

LO2 – Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process

During the event, many unexpected challenges came up. Since, the hosts of our assigned venue canceled their presence at the last moment, which meant that the hosting script my partner and I had already printed needed to be changed immediately at that moment. I had to make corrections at the last minute, coordinate about the new hosts, make corrections in the script and had to add the separate information about the new hosts in the script on the spot so that the flow of the event would not be affected. In addition, the performance order that was previously mapped out needed to be also interchanged because some schools requested to perform earlier, thus it required us to cancel out the original sequence and create a new order of performances from the beginning. Despite these sudden changes, I remained calm and adaptable to the situation, focusing on coordinating with my partner and teachers fluently.

LO4 – Show perseverance and commitment
I showed perseverance while preparing for and hosting the Kalakriti event. Before the event, I made sure nothing important was missed and practiced the speech multiple times so it felt comfortable and natural. I also practiced with my co-host to match our timing, tone, and transitions, so we would not face problems on the final day. During the event, I remained active and involved, despite the extremely long hours under intense heat in our venue, which made the experience physically draining and challenging. I was also constantly managing different parts of the program while staying in touch with performers and the organizing team. In these conditions, I stayed composed and focused, adjusted when things did not go exactly as planned, and kept the program moving. By staying confident on stage and attentive to what was happening around me, I helped ensure the event continued without major disruptions.

LO5 – Demonstrate skills and benefits of working collaboratively
I worked with the teachers, judges and volunteers of the Kalakriti event and coordinated closely with my co-host while creating the speech, planning the programme flow, and supporting each other throughout the event. We exchanged ideas openly and worked efficiently to present our best on the day and both of us remained helpful, open-minded, and equally involved in our roles. On the day of Kalakriti, my partner and I presented our hosting skills on stage productively while guiding each other whenever needed. Since hosting was new for her, I supported her in building confidence and improving her delivery. We enjoyed working together and successfully achieved our goal of conducting a smooth and engaging programme.

To conclude, Kalakriti was a really good experience for me. I learned a lot about how events actually work and what goes on behind the stage. I realised what I am comfortable doing, like communicating, collaborating and hosting, while also understanding what I need to work on. There were many unexpected situations during the event, but handling them taught me how to stay calm and manage things better. Overall, this CAS experience helped me gain confidence and made me more comfortable taking responsibility in such events in the future.