Of the 916 points secured by Kozhikode to retain the Gold Cup at the State School Arts Festival, 263 were contributed by one school. Silver Hills HSS has been the mainstay of Kozhikode district at the school festival for a few years now.
This year, it won the title for the best-performing school at the HSS section, besides finishing second in the HS category. The school has dominated the festival not just because it boasts a large number of talented children. It is the result of hard work and proper planning.
“We begin our practices in June, for the State festival in January of the following year,” says Fr. Johny Kanhirathinkal, school Principal. “We get the best trainers from across the State for our students in every event.”
Uma Bhattathiripad, who won the first prize in Mohiniyattam and third in Group Dance, says the school supports artistic students in every possible way.
“The school even takes care of the expenses for group events,” she says. “We are given enough time and space for our practice.”
Fathima Henna, who won the first prize in Mappila Pattu, nods in agreement. “I joined the school only last year, from the ICSE stream, because I wanted to compete at the State festival,” she says. “My research had found that this was the best school as far as encouraging art was concerned.”
Fr. Johny says he has been focussing on the school’s artistic talents for a long time. “I have always believed that taking part in extra-curricular activities would make a child a better individual,” he says. “When I took over as Principal seven years ago, we used to take part in just a few events at the State festival. This year, we had 120 students competing in 45 events.”
The school has a dedicated programme coordinator for the festival. P.K. Sasilal has been doing that job for the last few years. “The school ensures that the talented students, including those coming from poor financial backgrounds, get opportunities,” he says.
P.K. Ajith Kumar
Silver Hills became the dominant school at the State School Arts Festival through planning and hard work.
