Marghazhi is the festival to promote talents in music. However there is a large NRI contingent who more often do not get a platform to display their potential.
But for more than two decades Hamsadhwani, an Adyar-based sabha has been giving a platform exclusively for them.
On Wednesday, the 24th NRI Music and Dance festival 2018 – Sangita-Natya Utsav’ was inaugurated. The event was dedicated to senior veena player and vocalist Geetha Bennett.
The programme was inaugurated by director of Kalakshetra, Revathi Ramachandran and the chief guest was Independent Director ONGC and former Independent Director RINL and Charted Accountant K M Padmanabhan.
Speaking at the event, Revathi appreciated the idea behind the programme, which was the brain child of R Ramachandran, the founder-secretary of Hamsadhwani.
“It is organisations like Hamsadhwani which is striving a lot to prevent the society from getting into garish and loud creations and bring them back to something that is classical. Every person has got three qualities in them – one is Boktha (the experiencer), a Jnatha (the knowledge-seeker) and Kartha is the doer. The present education system glorifies the Boktha, because it tells you the more wealthier a person is, the more successful he is. But our scripture tells you that that we must be more of a Jnatha and Kartha as these people contribute to society while boktha is just a consumer.”
Speaking about the NRI talents, she said, “They are structuring themselves and proving a point by working hard to be on par with others. They are serious pursuers, they want to know more about it. This tells us that for any person the roots are more important. The roots are in these art forms. There is so much value to where you come from.”
Following the inauguration, dance-drama ‘Srinivasa Kalyanam’ was performed by Guru Sheela Unnikrishnanās Sridevi Nrithyalaya.