KAIRAV: National Conference 2026 – More than a conference
When I first enrolled myself as a volunteer in SICASA, I had no idea that it would eventually become one of the most memorable experiences of my CA journey.
Initially, it was just another opportunity to contribute. Looking back now, it became an opportunity to understand people, understand myself, perform on stage after years, and most importantly, realize how much room I still have to grow.
Before the Conference
Long before the conference began, volunteers started working behind the scenes.
We visited the SICASA branch multiple times, shot promotional content, planned social media reels, and helped spread awareness about the event. One of those promotional reels even featured me as the main lead, something I never expected when I first signed up as a volunteer.
More importantly, volunteering introduced me to people from completely different backgrounds. Every conversation was different. Some shared how they cleared CA exams, some explained why they chose Chartered Accountancy, while others simply spoke about life. Listening to their journeys made me reflect on my own.
They were a bunch of small realizations, but ones that stay with me.
Campaigning: Learning Beyond Promotion
As volunteers, we visited coaching institutions and CA firms to physically campaign for the conference. While the purpose was to promote the event, I had a personal objective – I wanted to become more comfortable speaking in front of groups.
Every institution became an opportunity to improve public communication, interact with students, answer questions, and learn how to hold people’s attention. The campaigning wasn’t just promoting an event.
It was quietly building confidence.
Dancing After Eight Years
The conference also gave me something I had missed for almost eight years. A chance to perform dance on stage again. I entered practice with excitement. I left practice with humility.
Watching our rehearsal videos made me realize something I never noticed while dancing. In my mind, I believed I danced well. On camera, I looked completely different. I was nowhere close to where I thought I was. Surprisingly, that realization didn’t discourage me. It motivated me. I practiced harder than before, but even after the performance,
I knew I still had a long way to go.
The Guitar Performance That Changed My Perspective
Dance wasn’t the only performance. A few volunteers, along with incredibly talented singers and a keyboard player, decided to perform a live mashup during the conference. I was on guitar. I’ve been playing guitar for years. Naturally, I believed I was decent.
Until I started practicing alongside musicians who were genuinely exceptional. One volunteer, especially the keyboard player, completely changed my perception of my own skill level. Comparing myself with him was uncomfortable. That performance taught me something valuable.
Comparison becomes dangerous only when it stops you.
Day-1 [24th June, 2026]
The first day arrived with excitement and nervousness. Not because I was volunteering. Because my guitar performance was scheduled during the very first hour.
Walking into the venue, the atmosphere felt electric. Students networking.
Volunteers running around. New conversations beginning every minute.
Some students even recognized me from the promotional reel we had filmed weeks earlier.
Then came the performance.
As our band walked onto the stage, the audience welcomed us with incredible energy.
During the songs, students switched on their phone flashlights and moved along with the music.
Whenever musicians say they perform because of their audience, I always assumed it was simply something artists say.
Standing on that stage changed my opinion. There is something surreal about hundreds of people enjoying the same music together.
Later that day came our dance performance. The audience’s energy became so loud that we could barely hear our own music.
For those few moments, it genuinely felt magical.
Day Two
We thought all the excitement had ended on the first day. We were wrong.
The second day brought more students, more volunteering, and even more unforgettable moments.
Registrations increased. The venue became busier.
Helping students throughout the day somehow never felt exhausting.
Towards the end, the schedule moved faster than expected, leaving the stage open.
Our band performed once again. So did our dance team.
This time, something different happened. A few students in the audience were dancing along with us as they knew our dance moves from the previous day.
Small memories. Yet big happiness.
The Greatest Learning
Looking back, this conference was officially a professional event. But personally, it felt like a college fest with lessons hidden inside every activity.
Volunteering taught me responsibility. Campaigning improved my confidence. Dance exposed my weaknesses. Music humbled my ego.
People helped me understand myself. And perhaps the most memorable moment of all…
Among the audience, one student came up and met me, asked for a photograph, and became the first person who had ever approached me that way. I never expected that to happen.
This conference wasn’t memorable because of the stage, the performances, or the photographs.
It was memorable because every experience gave me a reason to become a slightly better version of myself.
And if another opportunity like this comes tomorrow… I’ll volunteer again.
Not because I know everything now. But because I know how much more there is still left to learn.