Manish Kumar
Post News Network
Bhubaneswar: Jatin Das has brought honour to the state with contributions to visual art. He spoke with Orissa POST on issues facing art in the state and his future plans. Excerpts:
You have been organising film festivals in Orissa every year since 2006. What drives you?
The Almighty has been the driving force. Every year we try to collate films based on arts and craft from all over the world. Nandita (actor-daughter) and I organise this festival annually to promote films and awareness about films among people.
What is the response of
film-makers from the state to this festival?
There is a dearth of films being made in Orissa, which is unfortunate. One would be wrong to believe that the majority of films and documentaries in India are made only in metros such as Delhi and Mumbai.
States such as Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand are producing a good number of documentary films. Orissa, however, is lagging behind in this case.
What is the status of art forms in Orissa?
Orissa has many unique art forms and craftsmen. But many of these are on the decline and artists are abandoning them. This is unfortunate. Factors such as commercialisation are causing this.
Are tribal areas in Orissa still a repository of traditional art forms?
They are, to some extent. They are richer than urban areas in terms of living art forms but art is facing a decline in such areas too. For instance,
Ganjam district was known for Sura wall paintings. Now one finds only bare concrete walls there. How can we expect art to be passed on from one generation to the next if such things occur?
You had said the media and youths did not give adequate attention to the demise of
modeler of the state museum Harish Singh Babu. What was your stand?
I was aghast to see the limited media coverage. Many youths were ignorant of the contribution of the great artist. How can people of the state forget someone who has contributed so much to preserving the culture of the state?
What would you propose to immortalise works of such personalities?
One way could be to introduce information about them in school textbooks. Another would be to conduct discussions about such personalities frequently. The society needs to take collective action to create awareness about the contributions of such luminaries.
What are your future plans?
I am working on a memoir on Mayurbhanj, a culturally vibrant part of the state, in which I will also include information garnered from British Archives and reputed libraries. I also plan to create a ‘repository’ of certain unique art forms of the state to make information on them available for the future generations.
