In 1977, a classical concert was held at the Convention Hall of IIT Delhi for the first time. Well, this was the time when there weren't rappers like Honey Singh or Badshah, drawing thousands of youngsters to the college fests or socials. Still, the concert had only 10 people in the audience in a hall that could easily accommodate at least 1,200 guests. This, however, was only the humble beginning of a magnificent movement involving students to promote Indian classical music and dance forms. This movement, SPIC MACAY (Society for Promotion of Indian Classical Music and Culture Amongst Youth) was brought to the campuses across the country by renowned academician Padma Shri Kiran Seth in the same year. And, since then the numbers in auditoriums and halls, hosting classical shows, have been increasing. This pan-India movement has an Odisha chapter too.
However, this non-profit association was formed much later in Bhubaneswar. City-based academician Dhanada Kanta Mishra formed the Odisha branch of SPIC MACAY in 2003 with an aim to popularise the classical art forms among school children and college students. He came to know about the movement while pursuing his higher education at NIT Trichy. He had also been a part of the movement in Australia. After returning to Bhubaneswar, he launched the forum here.
Currently, there are 25 active volunteers from various colleges in the city who endorse classical art forms out of sheer passion. At least 30 institutes have associated themselves with the movement, including Vikash Residential School, SAI International, KIIT, NISER, IIT, ITER, Institute of Physics, Centurion University and others. So, what do the student volunteers do at SPIC MACAY? Well, they believe the ancient art forms can't be popularised by books alone! The volunteers work round the year to organise classical concerts in schools and colleges and also conducts workshops. These concerts are class apart as they feature artistes who are national awardees.
"There are small things here and there which set a SPIC MACAY concert apart. For starters, in any music performance, students are always encouraged to go sit on the stage. There is a difference between sitting in a comfortable chair in an auditorium or even a plastic chair, and on stage within 2 feet of the artist. At the 2007 national convention of IIT Kanpur, a friend of mine dragged me onto the stage to watch Koodiyattam, a form of ancient Sanskrit theatre from Kerala. The first half passed with me trying to keep my eyes open. But then a piece of the story came, where the artiste did one great ‘DHAM’ sound by stomping his foot, and that ‘dham’ took away all my sleep. For the rest of the performance, I watched with rapt attention a recital which I would never forget," writes one of the volunteers, Anish.
The volunteers conduct a meeting every Saturday at the Institute of Physics to decide on their plan of action. The Odisha chapter of SPIC MACAY conducts an annual overnight musical concert called Yamini. Students walk into the venue at 8 pm and leave the place as the concert wraps up at 6am. In 2015, SAI International School hosted the event. For 2016 and 2017, Unit 9 Boy's High School and Institute of Physics were the respective venues. This year, it will be held in October. The volunteers of Odisha have managed to bring famed artistes like Hari Prasad Chaurasia, Rajan-Sajan Mishra, Nisad Khan, Manjusha Kulkarni-Patil, Gundecha Brothers and others to various institutes in the city.
What encourages the students to take this movement forward? "It helps us in knowing our country better. It's a non-profit initiative. So, you just need to invest a little time into it," said Arghyadeep of IIIT, Bhubaneswar. For Jyotriaditya Singh, a former student of NISER, SPIC MACAY was a life-changing experience. While conducting a classical art workshop for tribal students in Koraput, he was moved by their miseries. Later, he decided to change his stream of education from Mathematics to Economics so as to be able to work for the development of the tribal villages. The forum is now being headed by academician Babita Mishra in the city.
Rural connect
In 2014, SPIC MACAY Odisha conducted a rural school internship programme for children of government schools from across various backward districts of the State.
In 2016, they conducted a seven-day workshop with eminent artistes for children of Eklavya Model School, a government school, in Koraput. It was attended by 500 tribal students.
