Awesummer, now in its fourth year, was back with a bang in the offline mode much to relief of participants and instructors alike. Held across multiple venues in Bandra, it offered courses from the stables of St. Paul’s Institute of Communication Education (SPICE), St. Andrew’s Centre of Philosophy and Performing Arts (SAPP) and St. Andrew’s Educational Foundation itself. This year, Awesummer was thrown open to people of all ages not just the youth as was the case previously.

Some old favourites were back – Basics of Graphic Design, Basic Photography, Write Your Own Play, Electronic Music Production and Basic Audio Engineering – alongside some newbies like Film Appreciation and World Cinema and Corporate Conduct.

Students were highly appreciative of the instructors and the efforts each of them put in. In Basic Photography with Mr. Eric Rego, students were thrilled to learn to use the manual mode on their DSLR cameras rather than relying on the automatic mode. Eric’s pleasant personality shone through as he simplified complex camera jargon and patiently answered all his students’ questions. In the Basics of Graphic Design course with Ms. Marie Moopanar students got to use the expensive Adobe software and experiment with it much to their delight.

Dr. Omkar Bhatkar’s creative genius dazzled the participants in Write Your Own Play as he opened their eyes to “a world of endless possibilities where writing is concerned”. His in-depth knowledge of world cinema ensured that Film Appreciation and World Cinema kept participants hooked throughout. A participant said that “the films shown were very interesting, gripping, incredibly educative and awesome. I look forward to watching more such beautiful classic films and discussing more about the finer aspects of filmmaking.”

Of Personality Development plus Etiquette conducted by Ms. Anna Bredemeyer, a student said that “the course was very different from other courses attended. Anna Ma’am explained how important it is to carry oneself well. The course took more of a practical approach where we had to demonstrate what was taught so Ma’am could correct us then and there itself.” Ms. Bredemeyer’s years of experience as brand ambassador came to the fore as she took her students through the intricacies of Corporate Conduct leaving them confident that they could face the corporate world fearlessly.

In An Introduction to Opera, tenor Daryl Arambhan not only introduced participants to the genre of opera but also gave them an in-depth understanding of the history and evolution of this art form. From time to time, they were treated to Daryl’s wonderful renditions of a few of his favourite pieces. All in all, it was “extremely informative, educative, entertaining, interesting and creatively satisfying.”

Awesummer 2022 wound up with Electronic Music Production and Basic Audio Engineering  where Mr. Saniv Xulfi gave the students a taste of how professionals compose their music. They even had sessions in the audio studio where they were allowed to make beats and music.

At the end of each course, students who had attended all hours of the course received a certificate of excellence from their respective instructors.