Jalgaon: SPIC MACAY Autumn Convention Begins Today, 400 Students To Participate

Jalgaon: The SPIC MACAY Autumn Convention, a four-day cultural conference, begins today and will be held from October 1 to 4 through the joint efforts of the Kanh Lalit Kala Kendra and national-level organisation SPIC MACAY.

Dr Mrunalini Fadnavis, Academic Director of Khandesh College Education Society, said at a press conference that 400 students from four states, along with renowned artists of international repute, will participate in the event and receive guidance in various art forms.

Dr Fadnavis said the Society was proud to host the cultural conference in Jalgaon, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of SPIC MACAY, a national organisation established to introduce India's diverse art forms to students.

For the convention, 400 students aged 13 to 25 from Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh will participate and receive guidance from expert mentors in various art forms.

The convention will be inaugurated today by renowned sitar maestro and Padma Shri awardee Ustad Shahid Parvez. Suresh Bhole and District Collector Rohan Ghuge, along with members of the KCE Society's Management Council, will be present. An evening sitar recital by Ustad Shahid Parvez will also be held.

On October 2, to mark Gandhi Jayanti, the acclaimed film The Making of the Mahatma will be screened. The evening session will feature a classical vocal recital by renowned singer Kalapini Komkali. Vidushi Kapila Venu, recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Yuva Puraskar, will also present a performance of Koodiyattam, a traditional dance form.

On October 3, the first session will feature a Sundari recital by Bhimanna Jadhav, followed by a vocal performance by Padma Shri Kaluram Bamaniya in the second session. The evening will feature a violin recital by Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi, followed by a classical vocal performance by singer Ustad Raja Miya.

Students will receive guidance in various art forms during the four-day workshop. The art pavilions at the venue have been named after Pandit Birju Maharaj, Pandit Paluskar, Pandit Bhatkhande, Pandit Zakir Hussain and K.K. Moos.

Those present on the occasion included KCE Society Management Council members Adv. Pravin Jangle, Bhalchandra Patil and Dr Shilpa Bendale, along with Shashikant Vadodkar, Director of the Kanh Lalit Kala Kendra, and Dr Jayendra Lekurwale.