The Hindu : Kerala News : Kavalam panel did little to promote culture: Jos

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Dec 20, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

Kavalam panel did little to promote culture: Jos

By K. Santhosh

C. L. Jos

THRISSUR, DEC. 19. The previous executive committee of the Kerala Sangeeta Nataka Akademi, chaired by Kavalam Narayana Panicker, did not do enough to promote culture, the veteran playwright and newly-appointed chairman of the Akademi, C. L. Jos, has said.

Mr. Jos was responding to a question, after taking charge of the institution on December 16.

``No disrespect to Mr. Panicker, but I feel the functioning of the previous committee left much to be desired. I do not know the reasons. My comment is that of an observer. I don't want it to trigger a controversy,'' Mr. Jos said.

No political interference

Mr. Jos countered Mr. Panicker's reported statement that political interference was vitiating the functioning of Government-run cultural institutions in the State.

``The situation is not so bad. Earlier, when I was vice-chairman of the Akademi, I did not come across any political interference. There was absolutely no influence from T.M. Jacob, the then Cultural Affairs Minister, even in the grant of awards and fellowships. The Akademi, I believe, enjoys certain autonomy,'' Mr. Jos said.

The term of the previous executive committee ended on October 18, and the new one was constituted only last week.

Delay not deliberate

Asked if the delay indicated that cultural affairs were not a priority of the United Democratic Front (UDF) Government, Mr. Jos said that the ``delay could not have been deliberate.''

``The Ministry perhaps needed time to select the members. I spoke to the Cultural Affairs Minister, A. P. Anil Kumar, over telephone and found him to be very positive,'' Mr. Jos said.

The chairman said that the Akademi was planning a series of projects to promote Malayalam theatre.

Meet on Wednesday

``The executive committee will meet on Wednesday to discuss the activities. The amateur and mainstream segments of Malayalam theatre are going through a bad patch. People are moving away from watching drama. Newer forms of entertainment have swallowed theatre. We should also examine whether unjustifiable and ponderous experimentation has put viewers off. To counter the trend, theatre festivals, seminars and amateur drama competitions are being planned,'' Mr. Jos said.

The chairman said that similar projects in the fields of music, dance and folk arts were also being planned.

Lack of funds was the major problem facing the Akademi. ``We want to have more funds. Nevertheless, we will do all that is possible within the limited resources,'' he said.

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