By Ritu Jha-
BITSians in the Bay Area celebrated the 12th BITSians’ Day and 60 years of BITS Pilani with the 6th edition of Music Nite, presented by CriticalRiver Inc. and powered by InstaService Inc. on August 4 at JCC, Palo Alto, California.
BITSians’ Day 2024 also celebrated 2 milestones: BITS Pilani completing 60 years and 25 years of BITSAA Silicon Valley Chapter.
The Bay Area event was attended by over 450 BITSians and their families, who came together to enjoy the melodies of B-Cubed, the BITSian alumni band in the Bay Area.
BITSians’ Day is the annual celebration of being a BITSian for 180,000 BITS Pilani alumni across the globe. The Bay Area has a special celebration in the form of Music Nite, where BITSians for decades perform dance and music along with food and refreshments. BITSAA International, a registered non-profit, helps local BITSAA chapters across the globe to organize local meetups.
“The theme of Music Nite was 60 years of BITS Pilani. The Birla Institute of Engineering became BITS Pilani in 1964. It was also a celebration year for the BITSAA Silicon Valley Chapter as the chapter completed 25 years. We saw an attendance of 450+, including friends, spouses, and kids of BITSians,” Aditya Bansal, President & CEO of BITSAA Silicon Valley chapter told indica.
“Music Nite is the celebration of BITSians’ Day which is celebrated on the first Friday of August and Alumni across the globe organize meetups at their workplaces and local cities to meet fellow BITSians, who wear BITS Pilani t-shirts.
“BITSAA SVC celebrates BITSians’ Day in the form of Music Nite, a night full of dance, music, food, networking, and celebration of the BITSian spirit. This year was the 6th edition of Music Nite. A local BITSian band called B-cubed with 30 plus BITSians from 1973 to 2020, performed 20 plus songs live, while the BITSian Dance Troupe of 15 BITSians from the 80s to 2017 batch performed on 2 medleys.
“This is my third time attending the Music Nite and first time as the president of BITSAA Silicon Valley. In 2022 and 2023, I used to lead marketing for the BITSAA Silicon Valley chapter.
“Music Nite saw BITSians across 6 decades (ages ranging from 20s to 80s) from CEOs, and leaders to young fresh grads come together to organize, perform, and attend the event. It is amazing to see how the BITSian bond brings such alumni across decades from 4 different campuses together.
“Everything at the event, from finalizing the venue, food, emceeing, and logistics, is done by BITSian volunteers. The performers are also all BITSians and not celebrity artists. The performers and volunteers worked hard for more than 3 months at each other’s places balancing their day jobs, families, and other priorities. It is a testament to the BITSian spirit that even in a foreign land we can see such huge participation and amazing performances,” he said.
