The wave of globalisation indeed ushered exchange of ideas, cultures and commodities but its magnificence to a great extent washed away the footprints of heritage that have long preserved us as a community. Owing to the waning interest in art and heritage of India, Dr. Sudha Gopalakrishnan and the Sahapedia team took the lead in guiding India a step closer to its ‘self’. After its resounding success in the first edition in 2018, India Heritage Walk Festival, a month long, pan-India event, is set for its second edition from 2nd to 8th February, in collaboration with UNESCO.
Dr. Sudha Gopalakrishnan, Founder and Executive Director, Sahapedia maintains, “One of India’s key strengths lies in its myriad and diverse culture that has helped it find a unique position on the world map. There are, for instance, 36 World Heritage Sites recognised by UNESCO in India.It was the need to celebrate this vast cultural heritage and make it accessible to everyone that led to the inception of India Heritage Walk Festival last year. It also laid the ground to identify and form a network of cultural practitioners across India who have continued to support us in realising this mission since the first edition. This not only allows regional engagements that we seek but addresses the special needs of varied target groups, including the differently-abled.”
Expanding its presence from 25 to 37 cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Varanasi, Puducherry, Chennai to name a few, over 87 heritage walks and 100 outreach events have been planned to explore, unravel and celebrate the historically significant monuments and markets, natural landscapes and rich local art and cuisines. The parallel heritage walks across India will trace the Sacred Route (Ahmedabad), Victoria Memorial (Kolkata), Sajjangarh Fort (Udaipur), Khari Baoli (Delhi) and Dargah Yousufain Sharifain (Hyderabad) among others. Apart from the walk, multiple outreach events will be, inter alia, in the form of photography, social media based instameets, informal and multi-disciplinary baithaks and a number of workshops. The baithaks will see the discussions centred on the history of cities, educational prospects for heritage management and the future of sustainable tourism and participatory heritage conservation led by academics, design and architecture professionals, historians and general public.
Inclusive approach
“Sahapedia has also made special arrangements of sign interpreters, tactical representations, Braille books etc. for users with special needs through their partnership with NGOs and experts. Sites for special walks include Bhubaneshwar’s Mukteswara Temple, Mumbai’s ancient Gilbert Hill and Kolkata’s Nehru Children’s Museum,” says Mr. Vaibhav Chauhan, Festival Director and Secretary, Sahapedia.
He further informs, “The registration and participation in the event is free to make the programme inclusive and interactive and that this festival would be a quintessential to sustainable tourism in its underlying aims and approach towards art, heritage and community development.” The walk leaders (students and enthusiasts with expert knowledge of the art, culture and heritage) will ensure community engagement (in vernacular languages besides Hindi and English), sensitisation on gender-related issues and importance of the indigenous art facilitating promotion of local craftsmanship, insights into the diverse ideologies and lifestyles of rustic and tribal countrymen. Priya Poddar, the walk leader to Khari Baoli, reveals, “As a child, I have been to Khari Baoli with my dad who used to trade in spices in the market. I have learnt about one of the largest markets of spices, herbs, incense and dry fruits. Over my conversations with the traders, I discovered some striking facts about the exotic spices traded during the colonial era and the aroma therapy derived from sandalwood and cloves among other varieties.”
Towards the agenda of democratisation of knowledge and decision-making pertaining to the preservation of Indian culture and heritage, the award-winning festival is poised to host a social movement for a sustained realisation of the essence of our culture and identity.
