Balwant receives standing ovation in National Seminar

Excelsior Correspondent
page5-5NEW DELHI, Feb 18: Natrang Director Padamshree Balwant Thakur received standing ovation for his presentation on Actor-Director relations in the National Theatre Seminar organised by National School of Drama, New Delhi as a part of 19th International Theatre festival of India which has a record participation of 94 plays, representing thirteen major countries of the world.
The 19th chapter of the festival will feature groups and eminent theatre practitioners from England, Russia, Italy, Israel, Turkey, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Romania, Malasiya, Sri Lanka, Nepal Bangladesh, besides India.
Narrating his creative experiences, the long journey of 35 years and having travelled to over 90 major cities of the world with the mission of intellectual exchange, Balwant Thakur spoke at length on the lack of professional approaches in devising a vision for the growth and development of Indian theatre. In the post India Independence period, the political hierarchy which has been ruling the roost, failed bitterly to undermine the importance of arts in the society. Neither they have taste, nor that intellectual level which could prompt them to understand and appreciate, arts and creativity.
Coming heavily on the State support, he said that nowhere in India stage actors are being promoted to take up theatre as their full-time profession. Unless or until, we promote and support the actors, the theatre movement in India will never survive.
He cited the examples of Europe and USA, and said that in the developed world the State has the top priority for the preservation and promotion of arts particularly theatre. In India we have no mechanism to support artists to take-up arts as a full-time profession. It remained as a hobby and continued to be a hobby which never allowed arts in India to prosper.

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