India should be proud of its cultural heritage and storytelling is part of Indian tradition: Meenakshi Lekhi
M
inister of State for External Affairs and Culture Meenakshi Lekhi on Saturday attended the state-level Vade Bharatam finals in Delhi and the 15th edition of Kathakar at Central Vista, India Gate and said that India should be proud of its cultural heritage and storytelling is part of Indian tradition.
The Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, in which Kathakar collaborated with the Ministry of Culture this year, was held at the Amphitheatre Central Vista India Gate from 4 pm to 730 pm as Kalanjali, informed the Ministry of Culture through a release.
The festival Kathakar featured incredible tales and music performed by Indian and foreign storytellers from several nations, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Mongolia, Sierra Leone, and India.
25 walk-ins were among the 165 competitors in the Vande Bharatam state-level finals in Delhi. Dancers chosen at the state level for the Vande Bhartam Nritya Utsav-2023 come from Meerut, Noida, and Ghaziabad. There were 18 dancing groups and 19 solos with the contestants. The tournament was viewed by a sizable audience, who enjoyed the performances.
Meenakshi Lekhi, speaking at the event, stated that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision, the selection procedure for dance groups for the Republic Day National Celebrations has been made more open and inclusive of Jan Bhagidari. Additionally, she stated that India should be proud of its cultural past and that storytelling is a legacy that is honoured by Kathakar, as per the Ministry of Culture's release.
She added that Vande Bharatam strives to improve Jan Bhagidari while 'Sabka Saath' and 'Sabka Pryas' will help India become a developed nation.
Under the auspices of the Republic Day Celebration-2023, the Ministry of Culture is organising the dancing competition event "Vande Bharatam" on behalf of the Ministry of Defense.
It has been decided in consultation with the Ministry of Defence that the theme for the Vande Bharatam Event to be showcased on 26th January 2023 at Kartavya Path, New Delhi will be 'Naari Shakti' which is one of the themes for the Republic Day Parade-2023, as per Ministry's release.
The Vande Bharatam Nritya Utsav is being organized by the Ministry of Culture to select around 500 participants from all across the country who would be part of a special choreographed presentation during the Republic Day Celebration, 2023 on the above theme.
The target dates for submission of entries by the participating individuals/ groups were prescribed between 15th October to 10th November 2022. The entries were required to be submitted on MyGov.in Portal in the age group of 17 to 30 years in the genres of folk/ tribal, classical and contemporary fusion art forms. A total of 1201 entries (consisting of a total of 4,112 groups/ individual artists) have been received during the prescribed period. It has also been decided to allow the walk-in performances during the State finals, informed the Ministry of Culture through a release.
State-level finals for Tripura; Bihar and Jharkhand; Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh have been completed. The state-level final competition for Andhra Pradesh and Telangana will be held at Hyderabad on Sunday in which 197 participants from the States of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana would perform. Union Culture Minister G.K Reddy will grace the occasion as Chief Guest.
The art of storytelling in India has many forms and utilizes many mediums. Despite differences in settings, genres, or cultures, all stories ultimately aim to convey something universal. They serve both educational and entertainment purposes for audiences.
It's clear that different sections of India's culture have their own distinct approach to storytelling. Puppets, dance, or even musical instruments are used as props to help the narrator make storytelling more impactful. Hence, Kathakar, the sole celebration of India's rich oral storytelling tradition, which was started under the umbrella of the Ghummakkad Narain Travelling Literature Festival was launched in 2010.
Kathakar 2022--a marquee event to revive the traditional style of storytelling in a world dominated by hi-tech gizmos and gadgets--will thus feature professional and passionate storytellers from the country and abroad who will showcase their mesmerizing craft to underscore the fact that storytelling cuts across all boundaries of language and culture.
Since its inception, the festival so far has been addressed by prominent personalities including former President of India Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, Sadhguru Vasudev Jaggi, Dr Shashi Tharoor, Manoj Bajpayee, Vishal Bhardwaj, Pankaj Tripathi, Shantanu Moitra, Imtiaz Ali, Margaret Alva, Sunil Shastri, Nandita Das, Sushma Seth, among others.
✔️ India should be proud of its cultural heritage and storytelling is part of Indian tradition: Meenakshi Lekhi
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