Drawing a stark contrast between the effort and energy that goes into preserving art forms at home and abroad, acclaimed director, screenwriter and producer Adoor Gopalakrishnan said that it is only when people pay to enjoy the arts that artistes can thrive.
At a panel discussion on ‘Creative Approaches to Sustainability’ at IIM Bangalore on January 22 , he said: “Why must we only depend on government patronage? In our country, arts and culture are given last priority – they come after sports in every budget. So it is important to educate people on their responsibility to provide sustenance to the performing arts, be it koodiyattam or kathakali .”
Building on the theme of sustenance, Sanjna Kapoor, director of Junoon — the travelling theatre company — spoke of the crying need for professional management in the field of the arts. “Although there is a rich variety of the arts in India, we are not doing anything to value them or make them flourish. When we urbanise, if we don’t think of spaces for the arts, it is going to be detrimental to the health of the country. Our role as artistes is to claim our spaces, explore terrifying and new areas and shout out our needs.”
On the subject of technology, while Adoor, the minimalist, observed that technology often diminishes palpability but can be harnessed by better technique, Sanjna chose the middle ground, suggesting that technology can help the artiste if used well. “The arts should not be static; they should evolve and adapt. Opportunities, be it from technology or from the corporate world, need to be grabbed and managed well.”
Responding to the role of an artiste in society, Odissi, Chau and Manipuri danseuse Sharon Lowen said an artiste must be a risk taker. “Creativity is the opportunity to keep exploring and learning, and to keep taking risks.” Indian classical dancer and choreographer Alarmel Valli spoke about the process of creating art. “Art becomes a cliché when the artiste becomes too secure. Vibrant tradition can fall prey to straitjackets. As artistes, we need to understand traditions, practice and internalise them and come up with something new. We should take the ‘then and there’ and make it our ‘here and now’,” she explained.
Award-winning film maker and screenwriter Vipin Vijay struck a different note when he confessed that contemporary artistes need to speak their mind more often. “As a filmmaker, I see myself more as an artisan and less as an artiste.” Actor, director and screenwriter Pawan Kumar, whose films Lucia and U-turn have seen commercial and critical success, spoke of sustenance in the context of his own creative journey from dropping out of engineering college, to staging plays in an almost-empty theatre, to enjoying box office success. “Rewards and marketing are important for sustainability in the arts. As an artiste, I want people to listen to me. To have an audience is vital for sustainability. It is all about finding the right balance between making money and getting work acclaimed critically. Managerial competence and finance are also important for good art to thrive,” he explained.
The workshop — led by Prof A Damodaran, the IPR Chair at IIM-B — brought together film directors, leading performing artistes and thought leaders for a day of stimulating discussions on how innovative creative organizations can make a transformative difference.
Earlier in the day, while welcoming participants to the round table, Prof Damodaran said the forum was not a lit fest or a film fest, but a platform to explore whether simple can be beautiful, in the context of minimalism. IIM-B’s Dean Faculty Prof Ishwar Murthy pointed out that IIM-B strives to create a platform for exchange of ideas. “You can plant seeds of thought here today and things will happen. You can create the dots in a way that we all connect them,” he said.
Other highlights of the day included the screening of the 70-minute film, A Door to Adoor: Images/ Reflections , by filmmaker Girish Kasaravalli on imagery in Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s films. “There’s a huge difference between both our styles of film making. I use imagery to embellish my offerings, he uses imagery to heighten the minimalistic effect in his films,” said Kasaravalli. Divided into five segments — all named after the master’s works — Kasarvalli’s film explored the use of minimalism in Adoor’s films through his choice of music, lighting and imagery.
This was followed by a masterclass on ‘Spinning Creative Ventures: The Junoon Saga’ by Sanjna Kapoor. There was a mesmerising kathakali performance by Margi, an organisation dedicated to the revival of kathakali and koodiyattam , through the Gurukula system of training.