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AIU Inter-University Youth Festival (UNIFEST) — A National Inter-University Youth Festival, 26 Items Across Music, Dance, Literary, Theatre and Fine Arts, Plus a Cultural Procession

AIU Inter-University Youth Festival (UNIFEST): The Association of Indian Universities' national inter-university youth festival rulebook (39th edition,...

e By Luke Justin October 21, 2026 4 min read

New here? Start with the basicsAge groups, competition categories and how to set up your event.

Youth Festival · University

The Association of Indian Universities’ national inter-university youth festival rulebook (39th edition, 2025-26): 26 items across Music, Dance, Literary, Theatre and Fine Arts plus the Cultural Procession, with the official 9-7-5 and 5-3-1 placing points.

Sets up an Indian inter-university youth festival for students under 25: 26 items covering music, dance, quiz, elocution, debate, theatre, on-the-spot fine arts and a cultural procession, with solo and team groups and the printed 9-7-5 and 5-3-1 placing points.

This template rebuilds the rulebook of India’s national inter-university youth festival, the yearly cultural meet in which university teams qualify at zonal festivals and then meet at a national festival. The 2025-26 edition it follows is the 39th. A coordinator opens an event that already carries two groups, twenty-six items and the official placing points, instead of typing a long programme in by hand before registrations open.

The programme spans five areas. Music has classical vocal, two classical instrumental solos (percussion and non-percussion), light vocal, Western vocal, Western instrumental, group song in the Indian and Western styles, and folk orchestra. Dance has folk or tribal dance, classical dance and creative choreography. The literary area has a general quiz, elocution and debate, the last two in English and in Hindi. Theatre has one act play, skit, mime and mimicry. Fine arts has on-the-spot painting, collage, poster making, clay modelling, cartooning and rangoli, each given 150 minutes. A cultural procession is added as a further event.

Entrants are full-time students on a degree, postgraduate or diploma course who are under 25 on 1 July of the academic year, with no minimum age. The rulebook states only that upper limit, so the 17 to 24 span is a working band used to build the groups, called Students Solo and Students Team. Boys and girls compete together. Every item is scored out of 100, and the printed times are maximums: 10 minutes for the classical items and group song, 6 for light and Western vocal, 8 for Western instrumental, 5 for elocution, debate, mime and mimicry, 10 for skit and 30 for the one act play.

Placings carry points toward the overall and category trophies: 9, 7 and 5 for first, second and third in a group event, and 5, 3 and 1 in a solo event. The rulebook lists judging factors for each item, such as the grasp of taal and raga in music or the theme and acting in theatre, but prints no marks for them, so no criteria are installed and the panel agrees its own weights. The one entry per university, the contingent cap, participant limits per item, grace times, fees and the protest procedure are also not modelled; apply them at registration. Check the current rulebook for each year’s changes.

Where this event comes from

The festival is run each year by India’s apex body of universities, with zonal festivals feeding a national festival. This template follows the 39th edition, 2025-26.

Where this event is run

India, among university and college students, as a ladder from zonal festivals to a national festival. The structure suits any organiser staging a university or college cultural fest that mixes classical and folk performance, quiz and debate, theatre and on-the-spot fine arts, and wants solo and team entries ranked with the same placing points. It is less suited to a school festival or to one that needs printed per-criterion marks.

India (national inter-university youth festival, zonal and national rounds)

Key facts

Two groups: Students Solo (one student) and Students Team, both working-banded at 17 to 24 and open to boys and girls
26 items across music, dance, quiz, elocution, debate, theatre and fine arts, plus a cultural procession
Every item is marked out of 100; no per-criterion marks are printed, so the panel sets its own weights
Printed placing points: 9, 7 and 5 for a team event and 5, 3 and 1 for a solo event
Fine arts items run 150 minutes; the one act play 30 minutes; the quiz and the procession carry no time limit in this template

Age groups: 2
Competition items: 26
Competitions: 28
Grade bands: 0
Rank awards: 6

Age groups

Every candidate is placed into one of these groups by age, and competitions are run per group.

Students Solo

17From

–

24To

Candidates aged 17 to 24 compete in this group

Students Team

17From

–

24To

Candidates aged 17 to 24 compete in this group

Competitions by group

The full schedule matrix, sectioned by age group then category — which item runs for whom, and for how long.

Item	Type	Gender	Language	Max score	Time limit
Students Solo
Music
Item	Type	Gender	Language	Max score	Time limit
Classical Vocal Solo	Individual	—	—	100	10 min
Classical Instrumental Solo (Percussion)	Individual	—	—	100	10 min
Classical Instrumental Solo (Non-Percussion)	Individual	—	—	100	10 min
Light Vocal (Indian)	Individual	—	—	100	6 min
Western Vocal Solo	Individual	—	English	100	6 min
Western Instrumental Solo	Individual	—	—	100	8 min
Classical Dance
Item	Type	Gender	Language	Max score	Time limit
Classical Dance	Individual	—	—	100	10 min
Literary
Item	Type	Gender	Language	Max score	Time limit
Elocution	Individual	—	English	100	5 min
Elocution	Individual	—	Hindi	100	5 min
Action
Item	Type	Gender	Language	Max score	Time limit
Mimicry	Individual	—	—	100	5 min
Art
Item	Type	Gender	Language	Max score	Time limit
On the Spot Painting	Individual	—	—	100	150 min
Collage	Individual	—	—	100	150 min
Poster Making	Individual	—	—	100	150 min
Clay Modelling	Individual	—	—	100	150 min
Cartooning	Individual	—	—	100	150 min
Rangoli	Individual	—	—	100	150 min
Students Team
Music
Item	Type	Gender	Language	Max score	Time limit
Group Song (Indian)	Team	—	—	100	10 min
Group Song (Western)	Team	—	English	100	10 min
Folk Orchestra	Team	—	—	100	10 min
Dance
Item	Type	Gender	Language	Max score	Time limit
Folk / Tribal Dance	Team	—	—	100	10 min
Creative Choreography	Team	—	—	100	10 min
Literary
Item	Type	Gender	Language	Max score	Time limit
General Quiz	Team	—	—	100	—
Debate	Team	—	English	100	5 min
Debate	Team	—	Hindi	100	5 min
Action
Item	Type	Gender	Language	Max score	Time limit
One Act Play	Team	—	—	100	30 min
Skit	Team	—	—	100	10 min
Mime	Team	—	—	100	5 min
Special
Item	Type	Gender	Language	Max score	Time limit
Cultural Procession	Team	—	—	100	—

Grades and ranks

How scores turn into grade bands, and how many points each placing is worth.

Rank	For	Points
First	Individual	5
Second	Individual	3
Third	Individual	1
First	Team	9
Second	Team	7
Third	Team	5

Frequently asked questions

Can I change this template after installing it?

Yes — installing it creates a fully configured, live event, not a locked package. Every age group, competition item, rule and scoring setting can be edited afterwards to match exactly what your event actually needs.