Art transcends artistes and will continue to exist while artistes are mortal, violinist Shreya Devnath said. She was speaking at a debate on ‘Should we separate the art from the artiste?’ organised by Prajnya Trust, a Chennai-based non-profit organisation.
“It is possible to like a song and not like the rendition of an artiste and also, love the version of one artiste and dislike that of another. Artistes change the way they sing the same song and it is not constant. Artistes can be separated from the art and art is greater than the artistes,” she said.
Vocalist K. S. Vishnu said there should be zero tolerance to harassment and a person must continue learning the art form from another guru .
Carnatic vocalist Sikkil Gurucharan said there is a responsibility on the part of the student’s family to create a safe bubble so that she or he can safely feel comfortable to discuss any issue. Artistes have a lot to contribute to art and the world; there is immense scope to present music that is gender neutral, he said.
“We have to be responsible enough to create the right kind of art which is socially correct and relevant in the current social context in which we are practising the art form. The artist who is also a guru must realise what he brings to the classroom is not art alone but also his behaviour and other aspects and everything gets imbibed by the student,” he said.
Mridangam exponent Akshay Anantpadmanabhan, musicians Vidya Kalyanaraman and Roopa Mahadevan also spoke at the event.
This debate was curated by 'Saha' — an initiative started by musicians and music aficionados to help raise awareness and facilitate conversations related to sexual harassment and gender issues in the Indian arts.
