Tete a tete with Ashok Kapoor.

President of Kala Prakash, NGO, Varanasi.

By: Ashaz Daud, Student, Author and Poet from Delhi Public School Varanasi.

“The artist sees what others only catch a glimpse of”, says Leonardo Da Vinci. An imperative quote it is, undoubtedly. ‘Art’ is a heavy word, imbued with gravity and solemnity. The word ‘Artist’ is even heavier, a word that encloses hundreds of untold stories, struggles, hardships and lessons.

When Art is bejewelled with Culture, it metamorphoses into a waking dream. Our generation is fortunate to be the receptacle of remarkably talented youth. ‘The younger generation is much more responsive, much more intelligent, and it understands what it wants to achieve’, Mr Ashok Kapoor, President of Kala Prakash said.

Kala Prakash is a registered NGO dedicated to the promotion of Indian Classical Music & Dance. It was initially devoted to the conduction of music workshops for students. Subsequently, the need for significant recognition was perceived by the founders and they gradually started organizing music programmes for citizens with the help of music students and research scholars simultaneously. As the word of mouth paved its path, the organization received incumbent appreciation and fame.

‘The biggest challenge that we face is the arrangement of finance’ Mr Kapoor added, ‘Anything of this scale which requires the arrangements of artists, venue, demands finance’ he says about the challenges the organization has to contend with. The most prodigious challenge, he discerns, is to make the programmes ‘Interesting, informative and useful for the audience’. Glimmering with sanguinity and dedication towards his cause, Mr Kapoor articulated that though coping with these challenges might be painstaking, their efforts amplify their resilience and define their professionalism.

Kala Prakash is a platform which zealously wishes to advocate younger talent and aims to superintends today’s youngsters to deduce their calibre and talent. These, in addition to attracting a wider audience through their constant efforts and by conducting online programmes during the pandemic, have been some of the most productive achievements of Kala Prakash. Furthermore, regularly conducting creative and interactive programmes which highlight the integration of art forms and academic subjects is one of the long-term objectives of Kala Prakash that Mr Kapoor wishes to bring into action. The art integration series was inaugurated on 21^st July at Seth M R Jaipuriya School Babatpur in Varanasi. The event titled Natya-metry brought several lessons in geometry through dance.

Mr Kapoor had scheduled “Natya -metry” in eight schools in Varanasi and was overwhelmed with the response he received from the principals, staff and students.