 "We want to make art a part of the nation-building process, says Sunil Kant Munjal")
Set against the picturesque backdrop of the Mandovi river in Goa, the first edition of the Serendipity Arts Festival seeks to create a dialogue between different art forms — from music and theatre to dance and photography to craft and culinary art. Avantika Bhuyan speaks with SUNIL KANT MUNJAL, chairman, Hero Corporate Service, about the decision to start an interdisciplinary festival and how conversation around arts can be kept alive beyond the duration of the festival. Edited excerpts:
What inspired you to launch the Serendipity Arts Trust and the subsequent festival?
As a family, we were fortunate to be exposed to various forms of art at a very early stage. All big events and celebrations included a music or a dance performance, besides a prayer service. Pandit Ravi Shankar and Ustad Alla Rakha performed at home decades ago. I was always passionate about the arts. So 18 years ago, I started the Ludhiana Sanskritik Samagam as an experiment to bring culture back to the entrepreneurial city.
A successful civilisation doesn’t just have a thriving economy or military but is also in touch with its softer side — with its art and culture. With the Samagam having grown in strength over time, I thought of creating a pan-Indian platform for dialogue between various art forms, which have worked in silos in the past. And that’s how Serendipity Arts Trust came about a few years ago.
A successful civilisation doesn’t just have a thriving economy or military but is also in touch with its softer side — with its art and culture. With the Samagam having grown in strength over time, I thought of creating a pan-Indian platform for dialogue between various art forms, which have worked in silos in the past. And that’s how Serendipity Arts Trust came about a few years ago.
What is the underlying aim of the festival?
We didn’t want to do a one-off arts festival. Many countries have festivals on a global scale. In India, the community needs to play a far more active role. We, as a trust, want to collaborate with the government, corporations and citizens to open a platform for dialogue around art. We want to forge cultural partnerships and make art a part of the nation-building process. The first edition of Serendipity Arts Festival seeks to do that. New exposure to art forms could create new opportunities.
Each segment has its own set of curators — Manu Chandra, Riyas Komu, Prashant Panjiar, Shubha Mudgal, to name a few. How did they receive the idea?
Initially, there was hesitation among artists and curators, but then as they engaged in a dialogue with one another, they got excited about the process.
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How have you tried to make the festival accessible to all, including the visually impaired and the differently abled?
We have created wheelchair access. Tactile maps of the eight venues have been created (by access consultant Siddhant Shah), along with Braille books for all programmes and signages. Tactile reproductions of some prints, craft and artwork, and photographs have also been created. There is also utmost focus on crisis management. We hope to incorporate learnings from this event in the future editions.
Usually, festivals have a short-term impact, limited to the duration of the event. How do you plan to take the dialogue beyond the festival?
We want to create a community between this edition and the next. Education is an important vehicle to take this dialogue further. The trust will be starting programmes on art curation and preservation. We are creating a platform for craftsmen as well.
The Serendipity Arts Festival will be held across eight venues in Goa till December 23. You can view the calendar of events at serendipityartsfestival.com