BENGALURU: Trees have been buzz words of late, with citizens opposing government projects that involve axing trees. So a festival that celebrates trees couldn’t have come at a better time.
The first day of Neralu, an annual tree festival which consists of events centred around trees, was held on Saturday. The festival will carry on into its second and final day on Sunday.
The festival consists of various events - street walks, workshops, performances, art installations, games, exhibits and many more -- all aimed to create more awareness on the importance of trees. Among the events on Saturday was a street play performed by the group Kaleido, which uses creative ways to create awareness on issues.
In this play performed at Cubbon Park, the group brought up the ongoing issue of the 112 trees planned to be cut on Jayamahal Road for widening the road, and satirised the people’s protests, or lack of them. By infusing humour, they conveyed the message that the citizens themselves had to take up initiatives and efforts to save trees. The play was watched by around 100 people who stood in a circle around the performers. It was followed by a story-telling event which was attended by many kids accompanied by their parents.
Poornima Kannan, one of the organisers, said the participation seemed to be more this time than in the previous two editions. She said, “We involved more schools and as a result we saw a lot of students this time. Many college students too participated-- about 100 from Mount Carmel and 50 from St Joseph’s. And as we had the events near the Metro station, a lot of metro commuters joined.”She said their 250-odd volunteers are the lifeline of the event. The festival is financed mainly by crowdfunding. Abhi Ram, a volunteer for the event, said, “All events are themed on spreading awareness and knowledge on trees and it has started off with a bang.”
The events on Sunday will be held at the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) and will begin at 9 am. The entire schedule can be found on the website neralu.in.