Bhopal: The artistes in the city demanded rehearsal space, hall concession, house, medical facilities, pension, state awards from the new government in the state. They told Free Press that they should also get the same facilities which other professionals received as they have also dedicated their lives to the art. They also said a good institution for art should be set up in the city to create art understanding among students at a primary level. They said organising lot of events should not be the priority. The government should pay attention towards producing quality and not quantity of events.
Free Press spoke to a cross-section of artistes…
excerpts
Saroj Sharma
We don’t do theatre for business or commercial purposes. So, we want genuine artistes of theatre groups whose livelihood depends on the arts to get the same facilities like accredited journalists etc. We should be given medical benefits and colonies to live in. A rehearsal space should be allotted to us. There is no ticket culture in the city and halls are very expensive which most artistes cannot afford. Some concession should be given to us.
Sanjay Mehta
We demand an artist quota. We should be allotted houses under the quota and also get medical facilities. A 350-seater auditorium should be set up to connect people. A state award should be instituted for the fraternity. Earlier, the state government had the ‘Sikhar Samman,’ but for the past 10 years, it has not been given to anyone. We need candidates with clean images who are capable of executing projects for the aam aadmi.
Smita Nagdev
At present, there is no music college in the city. Also, arts should be a part of the school curriculum to create art understanding among the students from the primary level. Organising lots of events is not required. We need to have fewer and better events. If we talk about development in the field of art, we are very disappointed. There is no fair judgement towards arts and artists. Nowadays, people see on popularity not quality.
Sunil Shukraware
I think, the government should make some schemes for artiste’s family to make them financially independent. After the death of an artiste, what will happen to their family? Who will take care of their parents, wife and children? So, such schemes should be made in which artiste’s family should get job. Currently, the living standards and the social security of artistes especially lesser known ones is worse than the labourer or someone living in the BPL category. Like the labourer card, an artist should be entitled to the same facility.
Shruti Kriti Barik
I think, the government should think about the welfare of artistes who have dedicated their lives for the cause. I think, the government should also provide house, pension and medical facilities to artistes to secure their future. Also, the government should have an award to promote our work.
Alpana Vajpeyi
Nowadays, it is not possible to learn art through Guru-Shishya Parampara due to lack of time and space. We need an independent institute for arts with all the facilities. Veteran in this field should be allowed to train aspiring youngsters and the hone the skills of the existing artistes. Degrees are important, but practical knowledge is a must in this field to excel.
Rajesh Kambalkar
No doubt, the government has done lot of work to promote folk and tribal art. And for this, they made museums. But the contemporary artiste is not getting that much promotion. There are no art galleries in the city where contemporary arts can preserved or showcased. There are no galleries in the city for installation work.
