North South University Communications Club brought back "Masquerade Medley and Annual Public Speaking Competition" for the fifth time, after its last appearance in 2015. This year, the programme was held between November 17 to 21, at the university premises.

On the first day of the event, the Annual Public Speaking Competition began and took place up to the semifinals. The competition's tagline this year was, "Exhibit. Empower. Express". The day ended with the selection of five finalists.

The Masquerade Medley took place on November 21, and the theme chosen was, "The Perfect Villain". The venue was decorated with skulls, dementors, demogorgons and other villainous objects. The participants cosplayed as characters from the Anime, DC and also the Marvel Universe. "This is a new form of art that has been introduced amongst our generation not too long ago. It is very encouraging to see top educational institutes following the trend as well," says Kazi M Noor, one of the cosplay judges.

After the performances of all the cosplayers, the Grand Finale of the Annual Public Speaking Competition was initiated. The final round's topic was, "Let your voice make a difference". The judges of the public speaking finale were Naveed Islam, Faculty Advisor of NSU Communications Club; Dr Katherine Li, North South University's Honorary Faculty; and special guest Naushad Ali, who is well-known for his dedication towards the Dhaka Lit Fest.

Everyone was blown away by the performances of all the participants. "We all know public speaking is a very nerve-racking task, but, the public speaking contestants made it seem so easy," says Naveed Islam. After all the final performances by the Masquerade Medley and Public Speaking participants, it was time for the award giving ceremony. Kazi Ayesha Rahman won the first position of the Public Speaking Competition and Tanvir Islam was the first prize winner of Masquerade Medley, who cosplayed as "Chung" from Elsworld.

The function ended with a grand feast. Even though there were only a few winners, everyone went home with smiles on their faces.