Kiran Seth believes the State government could do a lot more to promote the rich cultural heritage of the country among the youth.
“I hope that my recent meeting with the Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy at Thiruvananthapuram would have some positive results,” Dr. Seth, the founder of SPIC MACAY (Society for Promotion of Indian Classical Music and Culture Amongst Youth), told The Hindu here on Monday. “I have requested him for a grant so that we could take our top artistes to more schools and colleges in Kerala,” he said.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Dr. Seth, who was in the city for the State convention of SPIC MACAY, said the organisation, or a movement as he prefers to call it, he had founded in 1977 to promote Indian classical arts among the youth, needed as much support as possible. “We require more volunteers too,” said the retired IIT professor. “Last year we had 7,000 events in 850 cities. But we have only scratched the surface. Our aim is reach out to every educational institute in the country; and there are 18 lakh of them.”
He is happy that his organisation had been able to take India’s finest artistes to remote parts of the country. “The artistes have been extremely accommodating,” he said. “They perform for us without thinking of monetary benefits,” he said.
Dr. Seth said he was hoping to get more people involved with SPIC MACAY in Kerala. “I am glad that the three-day convention went off very well,” he said. “There were participants from all over Kerala.”
ADVERTISEMENT
The convention, held at the IIM-K, featured performances from outstanding artistes such as musicians Viswa Mohan Bhatt and L. Subramaniam and Odissi dancer Sujata Mohopatra.