| Protima’s vision for Nrityagram
was an idyllic dance village with idealistic, hardworking, extremely talented
and dedicated young dancers. She passed away in a landslide in August 1998
when on a trip to Manasarovar in Tibet. Even before the tragic accident,
Protima had handed over the reins of administration legally on June 14th
1997 saying it was a pre-birthday gift for July 10th for her friend Lynne
Fernandez who had been managing the affairs of Nrityagram for over two
years when Protima was recovering from a mild stroke.
How did Lynne, who is not a dancer
but a Delhi based psychologist who took to stage lighting because of an
interest in the performing arts, get involved in Nrityagram?
“I first came in February 1993 to
see Vasantahabba - was totally bowled over; it was the most extraordinary
thing I had ever seen! I returned in July 1993 to start working with the
Ensemble as Lighting Director. From that point on she got me to keep returning
under some pretext or the other - her words - so that I may one day decide
to stay on permanently - this was without my knowledge, she told me much
later that this was the plan. I started living permanently at Nrityagram
in January 1995. So, I was here when she had her TIA (Transient Ischemic
Attack) - that was when I realized that I did not want to leave!”
With the dedicated efforts of Protima’s
disciple Surupa Sen as artistic director and Lynne as the managing trustee,
Nrityagram continues to flourish. With the exception of year 2000, Nrityagram
has hosted the annual all night dance and music festival Vasantahabba,
which falls on the first Saturday of every February. Dancers and musicians
perform to a cosmopolitan audience, the number of which has risen phenomenally
from an audience of 3,000 in 1990 to nearly 40,000 now.
Nrityagram, Photo: Lalitha Venkat
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The Nrityagram Dance Ensemble, Photo: Abinav Munshi
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Congratulations to you and your
team on the successful organization of such a colossal show. It was a fabulous
experience and I enjoyed it immensely. I have never seen such a huge crowd
ever.
Thank you! I love it when people
write back about Vasantahabba - specially good things!!!
From when do you start preparations
for the Vasantahabba?
We start programming/planning etc
in May.
What do you think is the number
who turned up this year? I was there by 3pm and got the last of the lovely
mattresses with a bolster!
At a rough estimate we have put
the figure at just under 40,000, which was the number last year.
What are the selection procedures
for artistes to perform at the Vasantahabba - is it by word of mouth or
do you insist on CDs of their work?
We have to have seen/heard work
by the person, else we insist on a CD or VHS Cassette.
By inviting world music bands,
is Vasantahabba deviating from a festival originally dedicated to classical
dance and music?
Actually, we deviated from our original
plan many years ago - when Protima started Vasantahabba she wanted it to
cover dance, music, theatre and handicrafts!!! A few years later we decided
that it would be wonderful to focus on dance and music - classical, folk
and experimental/fusion. The main focus remains classical dance and music.
How would you respond to the criticism
that Vasantahabba is now becoming a hotspot for idle partygoers and not
real art enthusiasts?
I imagine that there are some people
who come for Vasantahabba who could be defined as "idle partygoers". However,
the aim is to get the classical arts out to people and if an "idle partygoer"
goes on to become an enthusiast (as has happened several times over the
years) then more power to Vasantahabba! If we (dancers and musicians) restrict
ourselves only to real art enthusiasts (who already exist) then how does
this body/ audience grow? And, we all know that an audience is needed by
all performers - without an audience there will be no performance - its
time we snapped out of this mindset that classical arts must/can only be
enjoyed by the educated elite - the successful performance is one that
can excite even uninitiated laypeople and bring them back to explore further.
Having said that, I will add: If
however "idle party goers" cause discomfort to others who have an interest
(as happened at Vasantahabba 2004) then that’s an issue that needs to be
taken care of and we do plan to find a way around it.
Do you think charging some nominal
entry fee will help you screen the crowd – to keep out some unruly elements?
I don't think so. Because some of
the unruliness was because people were pushing to get inside the amphitheatre
and this problem will be solved only once we figure out how to keep the
crush down. Charging a fee will not help because, 1) a lot of the unruly
elements are young kids who can afford it; 2) The problem with charging
a fee is that everyone who pays even 10Rs will demand a seat INSIDE the
amphitheatre (as happened some years ago when Protima decided to charge
a fee) and you can imagine the problem that will cause. 3) Most importantly,
even a nominal fee will be beyond the scope of the villagers - and Vasantahabba
was begun to bring Dance and Music to them, since they don't have access
to it.
A solution has to be found - what
it will be, I do not know at the moment, but we will find it.
How easy has it been to balance
budgets?
It’s been a struggle sometimes -
even through the years when Protima was around. But as time passes, the
task has become easier - I guess maybe it has to do with the fact that
the "product" is now there for people to see!
How do you juggle corporate sponsor
demands, vis a vis the festival’s own spirit and identity? Would you allow
branding of the Vasantahabba with a corporate?
There are some things that we are
not willing to do and we have to be sure that sponsors/potential sponsors
know this in advance. It makes it difficult because, as you know, for most
sponsors it’s the total mileage that matters but we've held out and so
far we're ok.
Yes, we would consider the branding
of Vasantahabba with a corporate as long as it’s someone we find acceptable
to be associated with. Vasantahabba has almost become a brand on its own
and most everyone know that Nrityagram is behind it- it won't matter whether
someone else's name gets connected with it - it will always be clear that
they are the sponsors.
Your marketing and publicity of
the Vasantahabba has always been different. Do you hire a professional
company, or do volunteers pitch in and do the designing, etc.
We have a professional design company
- ESIGN - that handles all our design/publicity related work. But, there's
a lovely story to it. It’s headed by a very talented woman called Sonia
Manchanda who met me in 1998 and said that she was interested in being
involved with Nrityagram. We welcomed her on board and I am not sure that
she knew exactly what she was getting into because we've pretty much taken
over her life!! She does our photographs, brochures, flyers, media strategy,
website work.... everything!! Actually she and her company are some of
the most dedicated volunteers anyone could ever have. And the best part
is, we never feel that we are second to anyone just because it’s done free
- in fact she treats our work like her own and lots of times ends up firing
me because I mess up on some publicity/PR issue!!
Bangalore now seems to have so
many arts festivals. Do you think Vasantahabba has been a trigger? Will
it dilute your festival’s impact?
I think Vasantahabba has definitely
been a trigger and I think it’s very heartening to have so much art and
culture happening here. The more that happens, the greater likelihood there
is that audiences will continue to grow and become more 'educated'. I do
believe that there is no such thing as too much dance and music - it will
always be good dance and music or bad dance and music.
What are the challenges that you
have faced after Protima - in the context of Nrityagram as well as Vasantahabba?
Protima's passing has been a deep
personal loss for us. Luckily a lot of the handing over was complete, well
before she went, so administratively we were left more or less ok.
The biggest challenge has been to
find the strength to match the magnitude of her dreams!
Which Vasantahabba has given you
an emotional high and why?
Vasantahabba 1999 - it was the first
Vasantahabba after Protima left us and it was the lowest point in our lives.
We were in pain and since the festival was dedicated to her, there were
constant reminders of her absence. The big question was, will we get through
it? Will artists be as supportive? Will the audience come? The surge of
goodwill we felt from everyone kept us afloat for months and truly gave
us courage to keep going. It was like a blaze of hope and light in our
darkest hour!
What are your comments on this
year’s festival, your feelings, your hopes?
The festival was a great success
because we were able to implement further changes in the planning and execution
of it. But there is still a way to go - unfortunately the huge jump in
the number of people means we have to think about how to control the crowds
in a far more disciplined manner so as to avoid overcrowding as happened
at Vasantahabba 2004. This is something that will be a priority next year.
As always, I am pleased that we have
made it through another successful festival and I hope that over the years
Vasantahabba will become a benchmark of sorts for how popular classical
events can become without compromising on content.
Some youngsters in Bangalore want
to be volunteers next year. According to one of them, Vasantahabba is the
ultimate and if he does not attend, he feels he has lost out on something
wonderful.
I am delighted to hear this. It’s
specially fulfilling when young people become charged up about Vasantahabba!
Please do tell him to email or call me.
Apart from own conveyance, or
taxis, how does one get to Nrityagram for Vasantahabba?
Here are the details for those
who wish to attend next year.
Buses are run by the BMTC through
the night.
Bus numbers: 253, 253d, 253E,
253J, 253K and 266.
Timings:
From Bangalore City Market to
Nrityagram: 1500Hrs, 1530 Hrs, 1600 Hrs, 1630 Hrs, 1700 Hrs, 1730 Hrs,
1830 Hrs and 1930 Hrs.
From Nrityagram to City Market:
Midnight, 0100 Hrs, 0200 Hrs, 0300 Hrs, 0400 Hrs, 0500 Hrs, 0600 Hrs, 0700
Hrs, 0730 Hrs, 0800 Hrs and 0830 Hrs.
Contact:
Lynne Fernandez
Managing Trustee, Nrityagram
Hessaraghatta
Bangalore 560088
Ph: (91 – 80) - 28466313 / 28466314
Fax: (91 – 80 - 28466312
e-mail: nrityagram@vsnl.com
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