Toon-i-esta 2019: ITM, Nerul – A Gala of Glamour, Talent, and Fun:

We are pleased to state that the 'The Tooniesta 2019' on the 18th and 19th December 2020 at the ITM Nerul campus was a blockbuster.

Toon-i-esta 2019 is an iNurture initiative to have our own annual Animation film festival to recognise and celebrate young, budding professionals in the field of Animation.

The first day witnessed Cricket and Football in the Dominos ground behind Haware Centurion Mall where teams of different colleges participated and competed. There were 7 teams for Cricket and 5 teams for football. The winners for Cricket were team ‘Star Seawoods’. The ITM - HM team won the football trophy.

Day 2 was dedicated to the arts. There was face painting, digital poster making, photography, T-shirt painting, best out of waste, shoe painting, and more. These activities took place in the morning – from 9.30 a.m. to 12.00 p.m. on the 5th floor of the Nerul campus.

In the second half, the event started with the lamp-lighting ceremony by chief guest Shri. Vijay Patkar, acclaimed Director and Actor; Ms. Maureen Lobo, Dean, ITM School of Design and Media; faculty of Toonskool (iNurture Education Solutions), Nerul campus, Ms. Anvita Thakker, Fashion Designer; and the panel of judges for the event.

The event saw the felicitation of Shri. Vijay Patkar, followed by a presentation by Mr. Bhaumik Mehta on the Animation industry and the technological growth the industry has witnessed.

Around 150 students from as far as Surat, Mira Road, Bhayandar, Ulhasnagar, Badlapur from central Mumbai, and the rest from Vashi, Panvel, and other parts of Navi Mumbai participated in various events – dance (group and solo), song (solo), fashion show, stand-up, rapping, beat-boxing, and poetry.

Eminent senior animators and movie-makers Mr. Sanskar Desai, Ms. Pallavi Patil and Ms. Geeta Bapat graced the event with their presence and were judges for the performances.

The films nominated in the 2D, 3D, Stop Motion, Live-action, and Documentary categories were played. The winning films were felicitated by the senior animators and well-known TV celebrity Mr. Farooq Khan and Ms. Maureen Lobo.

The winners of the short films (category-wise) are as follows:

• Live Action -
  • And Then I Stood Up – Poornima University, Rajasthan
• Stop Motion
  • Lets Pixalate - Srinivas University, Mangalore
• 3D Animation
  • Arise - Poornima University, Rajasthan
• Documentary
  • Pathragitthi - Srinivas University, Mangalore

The theme highlights for the winners of the Fashion show was 'She Power' and it definitely was power-packed.

The winner for the solo singing category saw 12-year Arhan Khan performing an impressive medley. Poetry recitation, rapping, and beat-boxing were followed by the Unstoppable group from Mira Road winning the group dance category. The solo dance was won by Ms. Riddhi Trivedi from Mira Road.

All these performances got huge applause and added to the glamour of the event.

The event ended with the prize distribution to the sports, fine arts and the performing arts category.

We thank Mr. Nitin, Mr. Anupam, Ms. Maureen, and the entire ITM staff in helping us make this event a super success.

Toon-i-esta, 2019: 4 Days of Fun and Glamour :

We are pleased to state that ‘The Toon-i-esta 2019’ by Toonskool, Thakur College, held on 4th–6th December, was once again a roaring success. This was the 6th successful year for Toon-i-esta.

December 4th witnessed various competitions in the Fine Arts category—Face painting, Tattoo art, Nail art, Best out of Waste, Abstract painting, T- Shirt painting, and Photography—in the quadrangle of Thakur College.

At the same time, the Thakur Turf had 20 teams for Box Cricket and 15 teams for Rink Football playing their way towards the finale.

On the 5th, the event took off with the lamp-lighting by Mr. Raju Bhosale, Director of the Marathi Movie, ‘Beriz Vazaa Baaki’, Principal of R.K. College - Mr. Ram Kewal, and faculties of Toonskool (iNurture Education Solutions Pvt Ltd) in the Thakur College Auditorium.

The event began with the promotion of the Marathi Film ‘Beriz Vazaa Baaki’. Along with the Director, Mr. Raju Bhosale, the Producer, Mr. Rohan Deep Singh, and the star cast of the movie were also present during the promotion. The movie trailer, which was played during the promotions, was greatly praised.

Toonskool faculty, Mr. Bhaumik Mehta, made a presentation on the Animation Industry and the Current Technological Growth.

This was followed by Performing arts—Dance (Group and Solo) and Singing (Solo) competitions.

The films nominated for the 2D, 3D, Stop Motion, Live Action, and Documentary categories were played, and the winners were announced.

The category-wise winners for the Short Film are as follows:

• Live Action (Tie)
  • LET'S PIXALATE (Srinivas University)
  • AND THEN I STOOD.. (Poornima University)
• 2D /Stop Motion
  • LET'S PIXALATE (Srinivas University)
• DOCUMENTARY (Tie)
  • PATHARAGITTHI (Srinivas University)
  • FRIENDLY INVADER (Techno India University)

Eminent Bollywood choreographers Savio, Kunjan & Danny, Jeet Sir, and Urvashi Chauhan judged the performing arts in the dance category (both solo and group).

The movie Mudda 370, starring Zarina Wahab, Hiten Tejwani, and Anjali Pandey, and directed by Mr. Rakesh Sawant, was promoted in the event. Songs and sequences of the film portraying the condition of Kashmiri Pundits were played.

The legendary actor Zarina Wahab was felicitated in the event. Toonskool students dedicated a film for her, which showcased her contribution to Indian Cinema. She expressed her gratitude for the honour.

We also played tribute to Mr. Hiten Tejwani (fondly called the Bachchan of Hindi Television) and wished him luck on his journey into the Industry.

This was followed by stand-up comedy and singing competitions.

Mr. Lakshya Bhatnagar of Saregama fame and Mr. Pranav Chandran judged the performances in the singing category.

Our special guests Mr. Amardeep (of Robotica dance fame) and Mr. Yash Wadali (Punjabi singer) drove the crowd crazy with their performances.

December 6th witnessed the Finale for all the Performing Arts and Short Film contests.

Out of 45 performances by students from different colleges, 18 were shortlisted to perform in the Finale.

The Judges for the final round of Dance category were Parag and Prayas (Flying Twins) and Urvashi Chauhan (Belly Dancer).

The Awards were presented to the Short Film winners.

The movies ‘AE KAASH KE HUM’—directed by Vishal Mishra, starring Vivaan Shah (son of Naseruddin Shah) and Priya Singh—and 'UNFRIENDS'—directed by Ashfaque Sheikh, produced by Himayat Ali, and starring Mousumi Biswas—were also promoted in the event. ‘UNFRIENDS’ spreads awareness among college students against accepting friend requests from strangers in social media.

The event continued with a fabulous fashion show showcasing the protest on human trafficking and abuse, particularly on women. Students of different colleges participated in the show.

Sonali Jain, the well-known designer, judged the Fashion Show.

Every ramp walk had a message to deliver and was massively applauded.

The end of the day saw the prize distribution ceremony. The Best College Trophy was given to Lala Lajpatrai College, Mahalakshmi.

Toon-i-esta, 2018—Four days of Fun, Frolic and Cinema

Thakur ToonSkool, Mumbai, successfully organized its 5th Toon-i-esta fest on 17 December 2018. The event was a grand 4-day-long extravaganza, with more than 100 participants across 25 different institutions. Movies were showcased in 2D, 3D, motion picture, live-action, documentary and VFX categories and winners in every category were felicitated.

The fest also saw the participants engaging in several creative, intellectual and sports activities like poster making, glass painting, nail art, rink football, box cricket, dance, beatboxing and much more. Eminent personalities like Urvi Shetty, Manpreet Kochhar, Jagat Rawal, Urvashi Chauhan, Yash Bhai Vadalli, Lokesh Gandharv, Swapnil Bombad, Parag and Prayas, and the beatboxer group 'Saat Bantye' graced the occasion with their presence and also judged various competitions.

The Toon-i-esta 2018—4 Days of Fun, Films and Fiesta

With the year 2018 nearing its end, Thakur Toonskool, Thakur College of Science and Commerce, decided to bid a grand adieu to it by organizing its 5th Toon-i-esta fest—a celebration of talent, glamour and cinema. So, December 17 saw the beginning of this 4-day-long extravaganza. Needless to say, the event was a huge success!
Days 1 and 2 (17–18 December)
The fiesta began with a bang!
Even the piercing cold could not stop the college ground from being fully occupied by an overenthusiastic crowd, who have come down to participate in various competitions. Box Cricket and Rink Football matches were highlights of both the days. Besides these, various Fine Arts competitions, such as Glass painting, tattoo art, nail art, poster making, shoe painting, creating best out of waste and face painting, kept the crowd well engrossed till the end. With more than 100 participants from 25 different colleges across Mumbai, the students had to fight tooth and nail to win the contests.
Day 3 (19 December)
Day 3 was rather frenetic for the Toonskool students. They got busy in checking all the arrangements, giving the final touch to every single detail. Celeb escorts; Hospitality, PR, Marketing, Admin, and Security teams; 4 ACLs; and a CL helped them in running the program smoothly. At 11 am, students from other colleges started swarming in, making the 7th floor auditorium jam-packed in no time!
The faculties of Thakur Toonskool and some other colleges inaugurated the event by lighting the lamp. And then the Anchor welcomed the crowd with a great speech, stating the purpose of Toon-i-esta and how great a platform it is. This was followed by an animated presentation on the latest trends in Augmented and Virtual reality.
The day was eventually livened up by Semi-finale performances for various categories like Song, Dance, Beat boxing and Rap. The panel of Judges who graced the occasion comprised Lokesh Gandharv, the renowned musician; Swapnil Bombad, the Super Dancer participant; and Parag and Prayas, the Flying Twins. They had a tough time deciding who should be nominated for the Finale. After around 28 performances, the event finally came to an end at 6 pm.
Toward the end of the evening, Nominees for different categories of film that will be going to the Finale were also announced.
Day 4 (20 December)
Day 4 kicked off with the announcement of the winners for various competitions and film categories. The award distribution ceremony was held shortly, and the winners were bestowed with certificates and cash prizes.
The host for the evening was Anchor Neil Chakrabarty, who brought the house down with his jigs, witty comments and Shaayaris.
The Finale for Dance and Song categories soon began. The belly dancers, Jagat Rawal and Urvashi Chauhan, and Yash Bhai Vadalli of Salaam Rocky Bhai fame graced the event and also judged the show.
All the nominated and awarded films were showcased in parallel to the other performances. The Marathi Film 'Sargam', starring Rutvik Kendre, Girish Karnad, Yatin Karyekar, was also promoted in the event. The trailer received a huge applause from the audience.
The winners of all the Film categories have been mentioned below:

In the midst of the performances, the beat boxers’ group 'Saat Bantye' arrived to judge the beat boxing competition. What’s more, they performed their signature steps, inviting volunteers to join them on the stage and perform with them. The musician, filmmaker and owner of A&M studio—Mr. Manpreet Kochhar—also graced the event with his presence.
The evening further jazzed up when Urvi Shetty—the winner of India’s Top Model 2018—turned up for the event. The crowd went crazy with excitement, and the event grew more glamorous than ever.
The whole event was covered by India TV and Discovery Channel, who were so spellbound by the event that they offered to make a Documentary on it.
What better ways of ending the evening than a DJ nite? The auditorium was throbbing with joy as the young crowd swayed to the dance numbers played by the DJ, promising each other that they will be back for more fun the next year.
Toonskool thanks everyone for making the event a grand success!   

The Toon-i-esta 2018 at ITM, Nerul – An Evening of Fun, Films, And Fiesta

We are pleased to announce that 'The Toon-i-esta 2018' at ITM, Nerul was a resounding success. The event was covered by the Marathi daily, Saamna, India TV, and Discovery India.

The event started with the lighting of the ceremonial lamp by Shri. Satish Nikam (BJP Head for Navi Mumbai), Ms. Maureen Lobo (Dean – ITM School of Design and Media), and the faculty of Toonskool (iNurture Education Solutions Pvt Ltd). This was followed by a delightful welcome song and dance performance by students of the Animation course at ITM, Nerul. Post the performance, Mr. Bhaumik Mehta gave a presentation on the Animation industry.

This year’s Toon-i-esta was graced by eminent senior Animators, Mr. Dashrath Tharali and Filmmaker and Jury Mr. Sanskar Desai graced the event with their presence. Around 275 students were audience to the various events in performing arts – dance (group and solo), singing (solo), and fashion show.

The performances were followed by the promotion for the Marathi movie “SARGAM” starring Mr. Rutvik Kendre, Mr. Yatin Karyekar, and Mr. Girish Karnad and produced by Mr. Prasad Pusavle.

The films nominated in the 2D, 3D, Stop Motion, Live Action, and Documentary categories were played after. The winners were felicitated by Mr. Prasad Pusavle and the senior Animators.

The winning films in each category are as follows,

The event concluded with the prize distribution ceremony for the Sports, Fine Arts, Gaming, and Performing Arts categories, which were presented by our celebrity guests.

Toon-i-esta 2017 – 4 days of glitz, glamour, and entertainment

Continuing with the tradition, Thakur Toonskool Advanced Animation Academy, held its 4th edition of the animation film festival – Tooniesta 2017 on the 8th, 9th, 11th and 12th of December 2017. The event was a grand affair with many celebrities gracing the occasion.

The theme for this year’s event was Marvel Vs DC (Diamond Comics) the characters of which reflected in the decorations in the campus in the form of 3D models, props, posters, certificates and tickets.

The first day of the event (8th December) kick-started with Box Cricket and Rink Football tournament comprising of 28 teams from different colleges. The matches were held at the Thakur Stadium. The winners and the runner-ups were awarded with cash prizes and certificates.

Fine Arts and Gaming were the highlights of the second day of the event held on the 9th of December 2017. The Fine Arts segment saw face painting, abstract painting, tattoo art and shoe-painting while in the gaming category NFS and FIFA with PS4 adorned the day.

Day three of Tooniesta 2017 commenced with celebrities and the faculty of Toonskool lighting the lamp followed by a brief history of Toonskool and the animation programs. The crowd also saw some of the works produced by our students through a video that was played on the screen. The anchor then welcomed everyone and took the crowd through the list of performances scheduled for the day. The cultural event opened with a song that was performed by the students of Toonskool. Entries of the 2D movie category were then played one by one. The category also featured entries from individuals of different colleges.

The third day of the event also saw a competition in the song and dance category, both solo and group. There were a total of 10 dance participants and 10 in the song category. 5 finalists were selected for the last day of the event to be held on the 12th of December 2017. Parag and Prayas of ABCD fame were the judges for the talent competition.

The winners of the talent competition and film category was announced on the final day of the event. It was a star-studded affair with celebrities like Nikhil Anand (Bollywood Choreographer), Siddharth , Harshit Chauhan and Tuttix crew of Dance plus season 3 fame and Vivek Gupta (fashion show), gracing the occasion. The final day of the event also saw the promotion of the upcoming Marathi movie “Hero” starring Uday Tikekar, Bhushan Patil, Vijay Patkar and the Director Mr. N. Siddiqui. The media coverage was provided by the International magazine Cine Busters that circulates in India, Dubai, Singapore, USA, Hong Kong, and Austria. The entire event will be featured in the New Year edition of their magazine.

The winners in the “Film Awards” category are given below:

The fashion show by the students of Thakur College, NL College, Dahanukar and some other colleges, added a lot of glitz and glamour on the final day of the event. The event concluded with the felicitation of the winners and participants and a thanksgiving speech by the anchor.

The 4 day event was worth applauding and both Toonskool and Thakur College wishes to thank everyone who made this event cherish worthy.

Toon-i-esta 2016 – 3 Days of Fun, Films and Frolic from Thakur ToonSkool

Toon-i-esta 2016, the 3rd edition of the animation film festival from Thakur ToonSkool Advanced Animation Academy, was a roaring success with more competitions and participants and much greater degree of fun and frolic! The ‘Harry Potter’ theme and adaptation of technology added to the magic quotient and made it a unique experience for the participants.

The event was organised over three days to accommodate more competitions, including sporting events, which were introduced for the first time. There were 5 different competitions in all – Short Film, Fine Arts, Gaming, Performing Arts and Sports. The event got kicked-off with Fine arts, Sports and Gaming on 28th Nov. It continued with Performing Arts (Round 1) and Short Films on 29th Nov. and culminated with Performing Arts (Final) and Prize Distribution on 30th Nov.

Every student who participated was given the Toon-i-esta app and shown the augmented certificates and stickers, at the registration counter. Student volunteers at the desk forwarded the app and showcased the poster. This created an avalanche effect with the participants subsequently showcasing it to their friends and teachers in their colleges.

The following films received the Awards for student film production:

Mr. Yatin Karyekar of Munna Bhai MBBS and Bajirao Mastaani fame was impressed at the student work on posters and the event.

Bollywood Choreographers Vaibhav, Ghuughe, Yo highness, Famous crew and Mannan Sachdeva judged the dances while Kunal Pandit and Prachi Papaiya judged the singing competition.

The event was promoted using attractive Posters, Winner's and participation certificates and Tickets, designed by Thakur Toonskool Advanced Animation Academy. Using the theme ‘Harry Potter’, the collaterals were augmented with the messages 'Welcome to another year at Tooniesta', ‘Goodluck’, and ‘Congratulations’, from the Movie.

The event received an overwhelming response with over 2500 students from 16 colleges across Mumbai, including TP Bhatia and Shailendra Education Society, attending it. Registrations for most of the competitions had to be closed as they crossed the intake capacity.

The fashion show by Thakur College students in the end gave the event an even more exciting end.

Toon-i-esta 2015 – Two Days of Fun and Talent!

The 2nd edition of Toon-i-esta was a two-day event of prolific fun, celebration, and showcase of talent. The Toon-i-esta 2015 fest, organized by Thakur-ToonSkool Advanced Animation Academy in Thakur College of Science and Commerce on 27th and 28th November 2015, turned out to be an event to remember.

The Toon-i-esta fest succeeded in revealing budding talent in various fields such as animation, film production, fine arts, and performing arts. The presence of popular celebrities as judges for the events and promos added the glitz quotient to the event.

The event began with a lamp lighting ceremony, with the HOD of BMM, the Vice Principal of Thakur College, and various faculty members from ToonSkool doing the honors. This was followed by a presentation on current and future trends in Animation and VFX technology. It showcased breathtaking visuals on the use of Holography and Augmented and Virtual reality in various sectors of medicine, gaming, feature films, and TV programs. It also emphasized the presence of ToonSkool from 2005 in Thakur and its contribution to various realms of student learning and development.

A lot of preparation went behind the successful organization of the event. ToonSkool students were divided into teams in-charge of creative conceptualization, administration, hospitality, escort, security, PR and marketing. Posters of the event were distributed to around 15 colleges present in the region.

The crowd at the fest was an enthusiastic one and comprised students from various colleges such as Patkar, Thakur, Balbharati, KES, and R. K. College. There were participants from suburbs as far as Mulund in the north east of Mumbai and Virar in the west.

Day 1 drew a crowd of about 1000 people. The main highlights of the first day were the dance events in the solo and group categories. The events were judged by famous choreographers from Bollywood such as Jeet Singh (of ABCD 2 fame), Amardeep (of Robotica fame), and Vaibhav (Dance India Dance winner).

This year’s event drew entries for ‘Live Action’ and ‘Stop Motion’ categories from colleges in Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Bangalore, and Mumbai, apart from those from Thakur ToonSkool Advanced Animation Academy. The nominated clips were played on the first day of the event, and the winners were announced the next day.

Day 2 drew an even larger crowd of about 3000 people. The finale of the dance events was conducted in the morning in front of a cheering crowd that kept asking for more.

The second half brought a star ensemble on stage. The cast of Hate Story 3 and famous speed painter Rabin Bar were present, much to the excitement of the students. Rabin Bar painted on different canvases in his customary superfast style, and they were presented to the actors. This was followed by announcement of winners in different competitions and prize distribution.

Overall, the event was a grand success with coverage from about 14 television and print publications. The level of reach and reception among the students too was high.

ToonSkool is a premiere award-winning animation academy that introduced the first-ever B.Sc Animation course in India. It offers UG, PG and diploma programs in streams such as animation, visual effects and digital filmmaking, in partnership with various universities and autonomous institutes across the country. ToonSkool is an initiative of iNurture Education Solutions, Bangalore.

Toon-i-esta 2014 Animation Festival at Toonskool Thakur College of Advanced Animation, Mumbai

Toon-i-esta, an initiative to have an annual Animation Film Festival from ToonSkool, the pioneering in formal higher education in the field of Animation in India, to recognize and celebrate the young, budding professionals in the field of Animation in the streams of 2D, 3D, Stop Motion, Live action and Documentary.

The first edition of this event was successfully conducted on Thursday, 27th November 2014 at Toonskool Thakur College of Advanced Animation, Mumbai.

The awards are decided by a panel of academic experts who have been Industry Stalwarts. Four awards were presented in the categories 2D, 3D, Stop Motion and Live action categories. Veterans in the Indian Film Industry Shri Ashok Kaul , Shri Makarand Joshi and Shi Anshuman Chaudhary graced the event and gave away the awards.

Anchor - Neel from the BMM - Thakur rocked the audience right from start to finish. The event began with him warming up an initial crowd of 800 who were boisterous and curious to know about Toon-i-esta.

The day begun with a short speech on iNurture - Toonskool – Thakur (The organisation, association with Thakur and the career ready programs) by iNurture. This was followed by the Animation History - Past - Present - Future, Mr. Bhaumik Mehta Guest Faculty who spoke about the growth of the Industry and the Industry responsive program offered by Toonskool. The celebs( Shri Ashok Kaul, Shri Makrand Joshi, Shri Anshuman Choudhary) Intro followed with a short clip on their Individual contributions to the Animation Industry.

The Celebs were felicitated with Bouquets and this was followed by lighting of lamp, further to which the celebs declared the Toon-i-esta Festival 2014 open.

Then followed song and dance performances by Dazzle group and the cheering crowd of over 1000 students was on its feet dancing to the tunes and beats.

The nominations of the 1st category were announced - Live action movies and bits of the clips played and the winning clip was played after announcement.

Each of the nominations were filled with bollywood song and dance fillers and the crowd by now was 1500 .The Creative celebs spoke high of the Toonskool Students and their work.

The winning clips were awarded with cash prizes and certificates.

The dancing sensation Amardeep Singh of India's Got Talent came in and the crowd squealed and what followed was sheer magic.

Thakur Management Trustee Shri. Manoj Singh graced the event and witnessed the cultural extravaganza.

The Bollywood celebs came in at 3.00 to Promote the Movie LUV PHIR KABHI and the hall was packed to a standing crowd of 3000 and the movie trailer and music was launched with the stars addressing the crowd amidst all the applause.

There was fashion show on Go Green which was eye catching and meanwhile the fine arts( Abstract painting, Shoe painting and monster make up) events were being conducted in Toonskool 4th Flr.

The winners of each of these events were awarded cash prizes with a participation Certificate.

After the movie promotions and prizes all the students rushed to a waiting DJ that rocked from 5pm to 7 pm.