The Hindu : Karnataka News : Theatre must seek private sponsorship, says Karnad

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 11, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka

Theatre must seek private sponsorship, says Karnad

By Our Staff Correspondent

MYSORE, APRIL 10. Girish Karnad, Jnanpith Award winner and well-known theatre personality, today stressed the need for private participation in the development of theatre.

Addressing presspersons here, he said theatre should seek private sponsorship as many drama companies are facing financial problems.

The Government has several responsibilities and may not be able to shoulder the responsibility of protecting theatre.

There are a few examples of successful partnerships between theatre companies and private sponsors, he said.

The sick drama companies can go in for such partnerships.

He said Kannada drama troupes have not approached private enterprises for sponsorships.

He said that there are many corporate houses that are willing to sponsor theatre related events in the State. Barring a few, theatre is surviving on sponsorships world over.

Multinational companies in the State can support the theatre movement through sponsorships, Mr. Karnad said.

The Rockefeller Foundation and the Ford Foundation are involved in the development and protection of art and culture of their region, Mr. Karnad said.

Threats

On the threats to the theatre movement, Mr. Karnad said lack of infrastructure is the biggest threat as people in bigger cities find it difficult to reach the venue.

In the next 20 years, theatre will not grow in cities such as Bangalore.

The growth will be witnessed in smaller cities such as Mysore and Dharwad, he said.

He said though the advent of television and cinema has affected the theatre movement, they have also been successful in expanding the audience.

Theatre provides a different experience to the audience because the same play could be different on each day, Mr. Karnad said.

Experiment

Experiment is the hallmark and the stage evolves every day, which itself is a mystery. Stressing the need to protect various art forms of the country, Mr. Karnad said India was never rich in music and dance as much as it is today.

With merit, anybody can excel in performing arts that transcend barriers such as religion, caste and sex, he added.

Acknowledging the need for financial assistance to the theatre movement, the Chairman of the Kannada Nataka Academy, Kuppanna Srinivas, said that it is the responsibility of corporate houses to promote and support Kannada art and culture.

Mr. Kuppanna said that there are only 12 professional theatre companies in the State of which only nine are active.

Problems, including issue of licence and the high cost to obtain it, continue to plague theatre companies, Mr. Kuppanna said.

Efforts will be made to secure sponsorships for theatre companies in rural areas, he said.

Identity crisis

Highlighting the importance of protecting the folk theatre movement, he said the movement suffers from an identity crisis.

He will convene a meeting of representatives of professional theatre companies to discuss the problems being faced by them.

An action plan can be prepared after ascertaining the problems, he added.

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