Honoured to Be a Chief Guest and Judge at the National Level 24-Hour Codecraft Hackathon — Sri Sairam Engineering College

 

When the invitation arrived, I smiled and then did a quick double-take. A 24-hour hackathon is intense. A national-level one? That’s a whole different kind of energy. From Shanthi IT Solution, and being asked to be Chief Guest and a judge at Sri Sairam Engineering College’s Codecraft felt more like a privilege than a responsibility.

To be fair, I love events like this. They’re noisy, messy, and full of promise. Students arrive with sleep schedules already compromised, laptops that look like old friends, and ideas that are sometimes half-baked and sometimes genius. Watching those ideas take shape in real time never gets old.

What stood out not just the code

Here’s what I noticed in the first few hours:

• Raw curiosity: Teams asked the kind of questions you don’t see in assignments “what if we tried this?” or “can we make this accessible to older users?”
• Resourcefulness: People used whatever they had: free APIs, secondhand components, and clever UX hacks.
• Team dynamics: The best projects weren’t from the most experienced coders. They were from teams that listened to each other and shifted roles when needed.

 

A polished demo is great, but collaboration matters more than perfection in a 24-hour sprint.

Judging  how I looked at projects

I judged with a mix of empathy and practicality. Here were the main things on my checklist:

• Problem clarity: Did they actually solve a real problem or just build something shiny?
• User thinking: Was there thought about the person using the app, not just the developer?
• Feasibility: Is this demoable now and scalable later?
• Polish under pressure: Small details  error handling, clear messages, usable UI  mattered.
• Team story: Did the team clearly explain what they did and why?

You might not realize this, but sometimes the simplest project with a clear user focus beats a flashy one that’s hard to use.

Advice I shared with participants

I kept my comments practical and human:

• Build for one real user first. If that person can use it without instructions, you’re onto something.
• Don't chase complexity for its own sake. Extra features make demos fragile under time pressure.
• Tell a story. A demo without a user story feels like a classroom exercise  useful, but forgettable.
• Rest a little. A clear head at hour 18 beats frantic coding at hour 23.

These are small things, but they change outcomes.

Why events like Codecraft matter

Hackathons are a pressure test and a playground at once. They teach rapid decision-making, real teamwork, and how to ship under constraints. For institutions like Sri Sairam, they’re a chance to show students a side of tech that grades don’t capture: messy creativity and persistence. For sponsors and industry folks, it’s a peek at raw talent ready to be mentored.

A final personal note

Walking out of the judging hall, I felt energized  and oddly optimistic. Not because every project was perfect, but because every team tried. They risked embarrassment, stayed up too late, and learned in very public ways. That’s how careers start.

If you were there and built something, well done. If you’re planning the next event, count me in  I’ll bring the coffee and the brutally honest feedback.