Kerala bagged its sole first position in Mrindangam. Nearly 4,000 people from different states had participated in the festival.

The organisers also gave away ‘special prizes’ to the grandson of Punjab Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs, Gulzar Singh Ranike, and his two friends at the valedictory function held at the Guru Nanak Dev University. The special prizes were given to — Sanjam, Vijay and Tanya — for participating in a non-competitive event. The three had performed bhangra on the inaugural day of the festival, which, Director, Youth Affairs, Hridaypal Kaur, said, had “enthralled” the audience. This caused some resentment among other participants. “It shows that those in power can dole out awards to whoever they please, while the deserving are left trying to get noticed,” said Sonali, a participant. The minister, who was on stage when the prizes were given, claimed he was not even aware of the episode.