Going back and folk

Lokotsav, an explosion of performance arts and creativity, is proof of the efforts of the Department of Art and Culture and Kala Academy to revive folk art in Goa

Kishore Amati/The Goan | JANUARY 26, 2013, 07:54 AM IST

The recently concluded Lokotsav 2013 was nothing like thepeople of Goa had ever seen before. No logical reason could be established, asto why the audiences here could connect to a riveting performance by a folktroupe from Sri Lanka and relish it, considering that there is no practicalconnection between the respective cultures. Chairman of Kala Academy, VishnuWagh seems to have the answer – “This year we enjoyed participation by troupesfrom Sri Lanka and Vietnam and they have left us with some wonderful memoriesof their performance. What we realised is that folk art is the sameuniversally, apart from little differences across cultures and the beats. Ithelps dissolve boundaries.” The past few days saw different folk artists fromIndia and abroad, perform and exhibit their colourful folk art all across thestate, thereby re-emphasising on the richness of the Indian culture and itsdiversity. It also showed how new steps are being taken for the revival of folkart in Goa. The future seems bright. 

Wagh adds, “There at least five or six major eventshappening in the state at the same time it is becoming very saturated. Insteadof showing Goan folk art to Goan people, we should venture to other places likeMaharashtra, Gujarat and Karnataka, etc. But, what is crucial here is to have aconcentrated effort and streamline it. Two years ago we had a Goa Festival inNagpur which evoked a stupendous response and as a result, went on for sevendays. There were discussions, film shows, plays done by troupes from Goa andNagpur, folk dance and singing performances - it was almost perfect. It was anexperiment that proved to be very successful.”

Also, plans to give a definite status to the folk art andmake it a bread earning module, are underway. According to Wagh, a Maand inevery village, along with the local handicraft and food stalls, should bedeveloped and the tourists should be shown the environment the local peoplelive in. They should be given a hint of their social life and the original folkart. He adds, “Since, mining has been stopped in the state, we will have tofind new avenues for revenue generation. The revival of folk art, taking avillage as a unit, seems like the best option.” It is also notable to see thatthis will serve as an excellent economic impetus to the folk artists and ifimplemented, the folk artists can enjoy permanent income from it. In this way,folk art can be passed on from one generation to the other. 

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