TUESDAY, MAY 21, 2024
Team Herald
In response to the so-called renovation of Kala Academy, Artist Rajdeep Naik unmasked the sorry state of Kala Academy which is in a deteriorating position. Not only the infrastructure but the acoustic theatre where the Tiart artists perform has been replaced with a cheaper version of all the equipment. This has made the audience unable to enjoy the performance as the artists struggle to perform due to poor theatre equipment.
On Monday late evening, Artist Rajdeep Naik popped his bottle of frustration towards the corruption taking place at Kala Academy in the name of renovation and development. He highlighted how Charles Correa with great efforts and intelligence built the Kala Academy to provide a platform for all the Goan artists to have a career. Now the same platform has become prey to the corrupt ministers and contractors.
“For the past three years, the government has done some sort of scheming in the name of renovation. Earlier even if a pin drops in the stage, the sound could be heard at the back of the room clearly. According to our Art and Culture Minister Govind Gaude, the government has spent around 70-75 crore of money on renovation. My question is, if the government has spent around 70-75 crore of money for the renovation then why do we artists have to rent out all the sound systems including the speakers and the microphones? The situation which the government has made of the academy will not be forgiven easily by my fellow artists and Goans,” expressed Rajdeep Naik.
Furthermore, Rajdeep went to show the problems of the acoustic theatre to the audience. He pointed out that the spotlights which are used by the artists are being replaced a cheap LED lights. The spotlights cost around Rs. 1000 but the government has replaced them with cheaper ones that cost around Rs. 100. Sometimes the audiences complain that the actors are not clearly visible during a play that is because the lighting is bad. The curtains that used to operate automatically are now being operated manually. The sound system is a mess with no proper audio emission.
Artist Rajdeep Naik has demanded that the Art and Culture Minister Govind Gaude use the funds properly for renovating the Kala Academy. As the funds are none other than the public’s money. Failing to do so, he stated that the artists would be compelled to protest on the streets.
