NEW DELHI: Hundreds of beggars gifted with a euphonious voice seeking alms in buses and trains have grabbed the attention of parliamentarians. They want the culture ministry and its affiliated institutions promoting various art forms to identify and nurture those talents and also make provisions for their financial aid.
Taking note of vagrants using their musical skills, the 31-member Parliamentary Standing Committee on transport, tourism and culture in its 351st report submitted in the Rajya Sabha as well as the Lok Sabha has recommended that the ministry and institutions like Sangeet Natak Akademi help them monetarily and make arrangements for their jigs.
The academy functions as the apex body of the performing arts in India to preserve and promote the vast cultural heritage of India expressed in music, dance and drama. It also works with governments and art academies in states and Union territories of the country.
“Some people beg for money in trains and buses in exchange of a devotional song, a qawwali or Bollywood numbers. While most of them are physically challenged, some take to it out of sheer poverty. However, many of these beggars are also musically trained or belong to families that have been practising music for generations together. The ministry/akademis must take measures to identify such artists and provide them a platform to showcase their talent and also provide monetary support,” reads a report titled ‘Functioning of National Akademis and Other Cultural Institutions’.
On recommendations of the panel, experts and activists said that the government needs to do groundwork and skill mapping with cultural geographical context before making strategies for the growth of those street performers.
“Besides cultural skill mapping, we need to understand the root cause for their state. There is constant conflict with the police. People who are connected to the ground realities should be involved and then strategies should be made,” said Navina Jafa, vice president at Centre for New Perspectives, which has been working on heritage skill mapping and executing programmes for street performers.
Ramesh Negi, former chairman of Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights, said, “It is good that we are recognising their skill and potential. We can further improve their ability to make them more economically productive. The NGOs and government departments need to work together.”
‘Make art inclusive’
The Parliamentary panel has also opined that the Akademis need to enhance their outreach in urban and rural regions to make the arts more ‘accessible and inclusive.’ Without effective outreach programmes, Akademis may struggle to reach a broader audience, beyond their immediate surroundings, noted the committee headed by Rajya Sabha MP V Vijayasai Reddy.