The First ever International Kala Mela was inaugurated by the Vice President of India, M. Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi today. The Minister of State for Culture (I/C) and Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Dr. Mahesh Sharma, the Administrator of Lalit Kala Akademi, C.S. Krishna Setty and other dignitaries were present on the occasion. The International Kala Mela has been organised by the Lalit Kala Akademi in partnership with IGNCA of the Ministry of Culture. More than 800 artists from across the world are taking part in the Festival.Addressing the gathering, the Vice President said that Culture is like the heartbeat of a civilization and it is an expression of its world view, a symbol of its value system. He further said that it represents the hopes and aspirations of its people and it chronicles the saga of their lives. It springs from the depths of their hearts and touches the inner core of humanity and is truly the barometer of the quality of life, he added.The Vice President said that as the world is becoming increasingly globalized, we should preserve and propagate the best facets of our individual cultures. We should bring out the best traditions, noble ideals and the finest expressions of human excellence in all art forms, he added.The Vice President congratulated the Lalit Kala Akademi for fostering cultural contacts within the country and also with other countries, through art exhibition and such Art Festivals.
The Culture Minister , Dr Mahesh Sharma said that the essence of Indian culture is Unity in Diversity. “This has been the vision of our Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi i.e. Unity in Diversity and what he has been talking about in the form of Ek Bharat Shresta Bharat”. The Government has taken a large number of measures to promote this unity in diversity through its Ek Bharat Shresta Bharat programme . The Ministry of Culture has also taken up the ambitious project of Cultural Mapping of India by registering artists across the country on a portal and 1.17 crore such artists have already been registered, the Culture Minister disclosed. Dr Mahesh Sharma welcomed the artists from the country and from across the globe for their participation in the first ever International Kala Mela organised by the Ministry of Culture.Shri C.S. Krishna Setty, Administrator, Lalit Kala Academy, in his welcome address, said, “This is for the first time that the Akademi has planned the International Kala Mela at such a large scale. It is going to prove a boon to especially those artists who cannot afford to exhibit their works of art in the Art Galleries.
With a firm commitment to the art fraternity, the Kala Mela will be a great delight to observe the paradigms of the contemporary nuances of the modernistic trends in art. All in all it is intended to be first of its kind and a great milestone event”!Dr. Sachchidanand Joshi, Member Secretory, IGNCA in his thanking note, paid gratitude to all the participants. He concluded his words by saying, “ This International Art Mela is not just a fair, it is a pilgrimage for artists.”A catalogue on the International Kala Mela was also released on the occasion.The inauguration ceremony was followed by folk dance presentation by Karunadasa Olaboduwa Dance Troupe, Srilanka and ‘Sargam’ Kathak Recital by Pandit Harish Gangani’s Team, India.With a total of 325 exhibition stalls, it has more than 800 participants from across the globe. These participants are from countries such as China, Venezuela, Peru, Portugal, Srilanka, Poland, Tunisia, Mexico, Bangladesh, Trinidad, Tobago, Fiji, France, Papua New Guinea, Czechia, UK, Spain and Brazil. The Festival is being organized from February 4th, 2018 to February 17th, 2018 at the IGNCA, New Delhi.