PANJIM: Fed up with the issues with Kala Academy, which have been badly affecting their programmes, the artistes of the State on the eve of Goa Revolution Day, demanded a white paper on the state of the Kala Academy.
They further demanded the resignation of Art and Culture Minister Govind Gaude if he is unable to manage it, even as the minister was present at the programme.
Annoyed with the demand of the participants, Gaude, who was surprisingly present, left the venue in a huff a few minutes before the end.
A large number of artistes from across the State gathered at Shram Shakti Bhavan, Patto-Panjim, to raise their voice against the alleged shoddy work and illegalities in the renovation of Kala Academy.
The artistes, who questioned the government about the shoddy work, warned of a mass agitation if the Kala Academy was not restored and made available to them for holding programmes.
Govind Shirodkar said, “Till now around Rs 70 crore has been spent on the renovation work of Kala Academy. When Manohar Parrikar was chief minister he brought GSIDC, belittling the importance of PWD. But the same PWD has been given the renovation work of Kala Academy. There was no concept of a consultant earlier, but after GSIDC came into being the role of consultant became important and it became a mediator between government and the contractor.”
Poet Prakash Naik said, “Whether it is Govind Gaude or someone else if he is unable to manage then he must resign from the post and give the opportunity to someone else.”
Renowned theatre artiste Rajdeep Naik said, “Recently we held a programme and for that we had to hire a sound system from outside as the sound system of Kala Academy is not good. When people come to watch our shows, they do not ask the government about the quality of the systems. They ask us.”
Actor Meenacshi Martins said, “Question is who supervised the deterioration of Kala Academy? There is a need to have the eminent artistes who are interested and who are well known with integrity in the council of Kala Academy so that the work being done is supervised. We are not going to spare now. Enough is enough.”
Former Speaker and tiatrist Tomazinho Cardozo warned that the agitation against the degradation of Kala Academy will strengthen further. He demanded that the Kala Academy be given back to artistes in the glory that it held in the past.
Artiste Kanta Gaude equated Kala Academy as ‘Pandhari’ of Goan artistes. He also demanded that the Kala Academy be restored to its old glory.
Sai Panandikar threatened that he will hold a sit-in protest posing semi-nude, in Kala Academy precincts if the Art and Culture Minister doesn't resign and restore the iconic building to its original glory. He expressed utter displeasure over the disowning of Charles Correia Foundation to undertake the restoration work.
Dilip Prabhudesai requested the gathering to start an agitation, while Sanket Bhandari, a lighting operator, said, “The renovation in the Kala Academy smacks of corruption right from the carpet that we walk on.” He called upon the artistes to rise and put more pressure on the government.
Devidas Amonkar expressed his disgust over the fact that it was the artistes that in a way elevated Art and Culture Minister Govind Gaude to the chair. Referring to the gathering, he said that this is the class and soon masses will join the movement to demand restoration of the Kala Academy that the artistes desire.
The meeting resolved to demand a white paper on Kala Academy repairs with all updates and also demanded a meeting with Art and Culture Minister Govind Gaude and Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, who also holds the PWD portfolio, to put forth demands and issues.
The meeting also constituted a State-level body of artistes with presence in all talukas to raise the issues concerning artistes in Goa.