Apex body for the arts

The Kala Academy, Goa, was established by the Government of Goa in 1970. Approved by the Ministry of Art and Culture, Government of India, the Kala Academy is an apex body to develop music, dance, drama, fine arts and literature to promote the State’s cultural unity. Housed in an integrated complex in Panaji designed by Charles Correa, the Academy has departments of Indian music and dance, Western music, a school of drama and an art complex. Fully funded by the Government of Goa, the Kala Academy hosts festivals, workshops, camps, exhibitions and competitions all through the year.

The Kala Academy’s rural music centres are in six locations across Goa and train up to 450 students annually. The School of Drama has trained 154 students since its inception in 1987 and nearly 15 of them have been employed as drama teachers in various government schools of Goa. The Kala Academy also gives away literary awards every year, apart from conducting national festivals of dance and music. It has an annual festival dedicated to Western classical music and Jazz.

Among its most prestigious festivals is the one in memory of ‘Surashree’ Kesarbai Kerkar, who captured the country’s musical imagination for decades. A genius who cast a spell on her listeners she had an admirer in Rabindranth Tagore, too. The festival is in its 37th year.

Deepa Ganesh