rea 1es or Swan Festival of Lights

A not-for-profit organisation promoting music and dance will take bring its creative expression alive during Deepawali

-::ti' 1

BY - l SAi NARAYAN

When it con'.es co prese nang the best of Ind ian fi ne arcs to Perth audiences, che Temple of Fine J\rrs (TFA) is a welJ - known name The TFA organises and manages the Swan Festival of Lights, a n annual Deepavali event w hich puts up a r ich feast of multicultural dance, music and ar tistic performances. Their m any production achievements include Indian dance -drama adaptations of A Mids1111111m· Night's Dream, S1/la11 T_L/ke, and the Chin ese mytbology tale B,ttterfl.y Lovers, along with a number of Indian epics inc luding the Ra!IN!)Wla and Shak1111ta/a Estab lis hed in l 981, the organi sation has centres in Malaysia, India, USA, Singapore and in Perth, Australia. fodi,111 Link caught up with Sukh.i Sbetty-Krishnan, Director/ Artistic Director of TFA, to get an inside v iew of the o rganisation a n d che visio n behind it. There are a few international d irectors and she is one of them.

How did it all start?

Sukhi explains that the TFA start ed in 1981 w hen founder Swami Shamanand formed a little prayer group to celebrate Nt1varatri and ocher Hindu festivals.

" There were a couple of accomplis hed Katht1kaii and Bht1rol11t1!:)'t11/l dancers in the gro up," exp lains Sukhi "To promote Swami Shancanand's vis ion, tl1e group decided to teach children about Hind u m)rtl10logy tl1rough dance and music. T hough primarily focused on Indian classical fine arts, the Swam i's vis ion was much more broadmin d ed. His vision e n veloped different fo rm s of dance and m u sic, not just Indian".

"He introduced jazz as welJ, for example, and made us awa re and accepting of other forms of dance," Su kh.i reminsces. The visio n also encourages tl1e ideal of self-growth through the development of discipline, humility and love as part of learning the art form.

]n 2004, the Swam i developed a plan specifically for Pertl1, res Lilting in the creation of the Saraswati Mahavidhyalaya (SMV), where he srnted tha t 64 arts would be caught in various genres including v isual arts, poetry, m usic, dance etc. The educational and learning aspect of the dance forms come under the ambit of SMv, and T FA is its performing wing. TFA allo,,1s students and teachers to perform and exhi bit their r..'liencs co the ,vider community.

There are about 200 students of SMV learning various dance forms like Odissi, lvithok and Bbamt11t1!)•a111. A Bt1la V iht1ra is also conducted where children can learn m ythology thro ugh dance a nd music. Bollywood danc ing, didge ridoo and African percussi on, tablt1, uema, guitar, Auce and keyboard arc all part of the rich variety of programs on offer at SJ\{V. The p rograms are for children and adults, but age is no bar, explains Sukh i

What plans does TFA have for the future?

"One of the short- term goals i s to get another schooling centre open in the ciLy which would be ab le to cater for the community that is n o r th of the river," states Sukhi. "Bes ides mis, mere is the Swan Festival of Lights scheduled later tlus year during Deepavali, fo r w h ich local and imernational talent would need to be o rgan ised and managed".

A lo n g term a nd ambitious dream project for the TFA, Si\1N and its affiliate bodies i s co create an Arc Sanctua r y to be located at Ke lmscort o n 15 acres of land. 1t is en visioned that the Sancmary would be a centre m odelJed on the Indian Gurukul system, providing education and workshop s ia holistic heal th, art, da nc e, music and yoga

As the TFA is a not -for- profit organisation, what motivates the members of the organisation to keep going and growing?

" The Swami's teaching is co love, serve and give When we see students enjoyin g their performances and the delight of the audiences tl1at's the satisfactio n th at motivates u s," reveals Sukhi. She relates au i nteresting anecdote from tl1e Swan Festival of Lights (SFOL) conduc ted lase year.

"During tl1e Ramayana performance, on o n e of the days, we had dis rup tions and performance cancellation due to rain," she recounts "The students were upset, especially the little ones who were enacting th e monkey b attalion. We decided co do the enactment on the grass, instead of the stage. The enthusiasm of the kids was amazing as they slipped and danced o n die grass an d in tl1e rain. It was better than on the stage, because there was closer interaction with the audience, many of whom expressed their appreciation".

With a growing interest in Indian art form and various dance schools coming up all over the city, how does she see TFA as being distinct from the others?

"Though die SMV teac hes various dance forms li.ke Bharat11a!')l(IJI/ or Odissi in separate categori es, the TFA brings these different arc fo rm s together in its productions \Xlhatever m ovement best conveys tl1e message is utilised," reveal s Suklu. "As Swami Shamaoanda's vision envisioned the unity of vario u s disparate art forms, TFA seeks to implement tl1at vision in its productions. This i s not always the case in oche r schoo ls," she claims. Having said tl1at, she points om tl1at far from being competitive, she would encourage every sch ool that seeks co educate the community in the richness of our classic al arc forms.

How does Sukhi see the work ofTFA affecting the wider Australian community?

"India n fine arts are increasingly b eing seen as a .link which can bring India and Indians closer to tl1e wider Australian com m unity. The Swa n Festival of Lights sees a w ide spectrum of people attending tbe shows, and significant numbers of them are local Australians w ho appreciate tbe d ances, tlie music and t he food," she exp lains.

There are currently at least 10 local Australian studen ts le arning at the SMV Many Au stralian ministe r s see the o ppornmi ty fo r arts co create a stro n ger link between the two commmiities and countries. There i s eve n some interest from die local commuoit:y to cel ebrate the Deepavali festival togetl1er. She jestingly r emarks that the time might come when Deepav ali could even be a public holiday!

''"Indian fine arts are increasingly being seen as a link which can bring India and Indians closer to the wider Australian community. The Swan Festival of Lights sees a wide spectrum of people attending the shows"

Sukhi ShettyKrishnan

"Though the SMV teaches various dance forms like Bharatnatyam or Odissi in separate categories, the TFA brings these different art forms together in its productions"

Sukhi ShettyKrishnan