VIVUM – A Student-led Charity Event

This year’s TISB VIVUM, a completely student-led event, saw great success in organising and carrying out the event, participation and in fundraising. VIVUM is not only a sports and cultural event – by students, for students – but also one of the largest student-led charity event in India. All the funds are made through hard and creative work by the students, and go to causes and organisations acting within the fields of social- and economic development, and animal welfare. We got in touch with TISB’s Charity & Social Service Prefects, Amogh and Sarvesh in Grade 12, to hear more about this years VIVUM and the fundraising process.

The event was a great success that certainly achieved the aims at the core of its operations: social service and bringing together students from across the nation – Amogh and Sarvesh, Grade 12

When many of us hear about VIVUM, we immediately think about all the fun, food, shows and other events that take place. But the event is not only a chance for students to enjoy themselves and to showcase their talents. VIVUM is also, perhaps most importantly, an event created to fundraise for good causes. This year saw TISB’s Grade 12 students host the first ever online VIVUM, revealing a new side to the event and solidifying it as one of the nation's most popular student-led charity initiatives. “VIVUM XX brought with it several novel organisational challenges, but our Batch of 2021 managed to defy the odds, garnering more than 1,000 participants, 10,000 viewers, and raising nearly 11 lakh INR that will now be used to aid a variety of charitable organisations”, says Amogh and Sarvesh. 

Funds from the event, which took place over the course of a week, were partially raised through sponsors, such as Yulu and Mandovi Motors. Amogh and Sarvesh, who were deeply involved in the committee that ran the event says: “Given the nature of these unprecedented times, it was clear than sponsorship would not come easily. Struggles to obtain funding were aplenty as a result of the financial burden than many companies now faced. Nevertheless, close to 4 lakh INR was raised from sponsors, much to the batch's elation”. 

Funds were gathered through the sale of the popular line of VIVUM XX merchandise to students and TISB staff. Although the creation and sale of VIVUM Merchandise presented a sheer number of setbacks and challenges for the student organisers, it ended up being the largest contributor to the funds raised. “The sale of hoodies, T-shirts, masks and more resulted in a profit of close to 6.5 lakh INR that will now be used to fund causes ranging from education, disabilities and animal welfare”, says Amogh and Sarvesh. 

With the year being one of volatile opportunities and uncertainty regarding most things, the VIVUM organisers are proud to have raised such great amounts, which went beyond their initial expectations. “The funds will now go through the rigorous selection process of the TISB Charity Fund, to be donated to carefully selected organisations across the state that are in most need of them”, explains Amogh and Sarvesh, who in their roles as Charity & Social Service Prefects are on the TISB Charity Committee that will ensure that the money raised will fund the right causes, and being utilised in a correct and proper manner.