If you ever missed a few history classes, if you sometimes confuse the ancient Greeks with the Romans and can’t seem to remember who discovered America, Chitkara International School’s 4th Annual Function: Long, Long Ago on Saturday, November 20th was the perfect refresher course. After two years of rigorous research, preparations and few rehearsals, it took the students of CIS just four hours to take their audience through 5000 years of world history.

The function started with Ganesh Vandana. The Chief Guest for the evening was Mr. Ripan Murgai, Field General Manager, UCO Bank, Chandigarh. Dr. Ashok Chitkara, President, Chitkara Educational Trust and Ms. Niyati Chitkara, Principal Chitkara International School welcomed the parents and guests. She also spoke about the theme of the annual function i.e. World History and assured the parents that the staff and the students have put in a lot of efforts to show world history in an interesting way. The comparers for the event were students of grade 4 and 5 who were dressed as Aladdin, Jasmine and the Genie and they discussed about the World History. The Genie took Aladdin and Jasmine back in time, beginning in India with scenes from the Harappan civilization, moving on to the famous epics The Ramayana and The Mahabharata. From there, they moved quickly around the world, with students from Nestling (nursery) to Grade 6 performing plays and dances from different eras including the famous belly dance from the era of Ancient Egypt. This dance was performed on a pyramid and was a highlight. The students also performed the traditional dance from the Islamic Empire, and the Sonata dance from the Byzantine Empire.,

The students showcased various inventions and their use during the era of Industrial Revolution in the form of a song. There were also plays on how Columbus discovered America in the age of European exploration and the discoveries of various famous personalities during the era of Reformation.

The performances then turned to the plays talking about the two World Wars accompanied by a traditional Russian dance which depicted the time of peace after the wars. Finally, Aladdin, Jasmine and the Genie returned to the present times and discussed about the Mumbai terrorist attacks, followed by a song and a plea for world peace. The evening concluded with the National Anthem and an awards ceremony. The turnout for the event was huge, with the Rabindranath Tagore Theatre packed almost to capacity.

Dr. (Mrs.)Madhu Chitkara, Chairperson Chitkara International School appreciated the efforts of the students and the staff . Overall, the entire theme was revolving around the world history staring from the costumes to the main backdrop which showed ‘The Great Alexander’, ‘Statue of Liberty’’ Seals from the Indus Valley Civilization’ and so on. The event was a huge success.