JSPL FOUNDATION ORGANISES ‘SWAYAMSHILP’ --AN INITIATIVE TO PROMOTE TRIBAL ART AND CRAFTS OF INDIA – IN HYDERABAD

JSPL FOUNDATION ORGANISES ‘SWAYAMSHILP’ --AN INITIATIVE TO PROMOTE TRIBAL ART AND CRAFTS OF INDIA – IN HYDERABAD

¥     The aim of SwayamShilp is to provide artists from the tribal hinterland of the country a national platform to promote, preserve and propagate their art forms.

¥     The Dhokraworkshop at Hyderabad is being conducted by award winning artisan, Mr. Purnachanda Pradhan, who was awarded the Best Artisan by the Ministry of Rural Development, GOI in 2009.

¥     The workshop at JNAFAU will be held from November 30-December 9, 2015.

JSPL Foundation, which spearheads the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives of Jindal Steel and Power Limited (JSPL), launched an initiative to promote, preserve and propagate tribal art and crafts of India by organizing a workshop in Dhokra(bell-metal) art at the prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru Architecture and Fine Arts University (JNAFAU) here today.

Christened SwayamShilp(My Art), the initiative will see a series of workshops being organizedthroughout the country on different forms of tribal arts and crafts from across India. The initiative will bring the art and the artists of these varied genres onto the national platform and give them an opportunity to showcase their craft nationally and a bigger market for their products.

The workshop at JNAFAU will be held from November 30-December 9, 2015 and is being conducted by noted Dhokra artist from Ektaal village in Raigarh district of Chhattisgarh, Mr. Purnachanda Pradhan. Mr. Pradhan has been engaged in the craft since childhood and was felicitated by the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India as Best Artisan in 2009.

A total of 25 students and faculty are participating in the workshop.

Says Ms. Shallu Jindal, President, JSPL Foundation,“Most art forms in the tribal hinterland of India are facing tough times and are near extinction. SwayamShilp is an effort by the JSPL Foundation to revive, promote and preserve these art forms. We are commencing SwayamShilp with a series of workshops wherein keen art lovers across India can learn the age old art and craft of tribal India. We chose Dhokra as it is the most visible and famous craft from Chhattisgarh.

I am very pleased that JSPL Foundation is organizing the SwayamShilp workshop in Hyderabad after Delhi and am sure the studentsat the prestigious JNAFAU will benefit a lot from this and be able to hone their skills by learning an age old craft till now restricted to the tribal artisans of Chhattisgarh.”

Talking about the workshop, Dr. P. Padmavathi, Vice-Chancellor, JNAFA University said, “Tribal Arts and Crafts of India have immense aesthetic value and are sought after pieces by not only art lovers of India but the entire world. Their sense of shapes, forms, emotions, colour and texture are par excellence. I on behalf of the university thank the JSPL Foundation for choosing Jawaharlal Nehru Architecture and Fine Arts University (JNAFAU) as the venue for conducting the event in the university premises.”

The first workshop was organised in August this year at the National Crafts Museum in New Delhi, wherein 20 students from the College of Arts, Delhi University and Triveni Kala Sangam participated.

Workshops will be held once in three months and next in line are art forms from Odisha and Jharkhand, states that have a sizeable tribal population.Other activities that SwayamShilp will undertake in the future are conducting symposiums on tribal art as well as finding ways to promote artists and provide them with a level playing field on the national stage. 

About JSPL Foundation

Jindal Steel & Power Ltd (JSPL) has always strived to be a globally admired organization that enhances the quality of life of people in and around the areas of its operations through sustainable industrial development. The cornerstone of its business strategy is to achieve sustainable and profitable growth, creating in its wake prospering eco-systems around all its businesses. CSR initiatives of JSPL are carried out by the organization in order to give an impetus and align the existing programme with those of government and other development agencies. JSPL Foundation is an expression of the company’s vision towards sustainable growth in India.

JSPL Foundation works with some of the most vulnerable and marginalized communities around the operational areas of the company, with the objective of bringing about a radical transformation in their lives and integrating them into the mainstream development process of the country through positive intervention in social upliftment programs. The Foundation focuses its efforts in key areas of Health, Education, Vocational Training, Women Empowerment, Livelihood, Livestock Care, Drinking Water and Sanitation, Youth and Sports and Infrastructure Development among others.

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