EFFECTIVENESS AND EVALUATION OF INDIAN ART AND CULTURE IN STUDENT'S LIFE

Indian art and culture play a significant role in shaping the lives of students by providing them with a sense of identity, creativity, and understanding of their heritage. Here are some ways to evaluate the effectiveness of incorporating Indian art and culture in a student's life:

1. Academic Performance:

   • Assess if students show improved academic performance when studying Indian art and culture.

   • Examine if there is a correlation between understanding cultural heritage and academic success.

2. Social and Emotional Development:

   • Observe how students interact with peers and express themselves after engaging with Indian art and culture.

   • Evaluate if there is an increase in empathy, tolerance, and respect for diversity among students.

3. Cultural Awareness:

   • Measure the level of cultural awareness and appreciation students demonstrate towards Indian art and culture.

   • Assess if students can connect their learning to real-life experiences and events.

4. Creative Expression:

   • Encourage students to create their own art inspired by Indian culture and evaluate their creativity and originality.

   • Assess if students can express themselves better through various art forms.

MEENAKSHI MEDHI

PC and in Pic: Meenakshi Medhi, Sattriya danseuse

In the development of any nation, culture plays an effective role. India, in particular is a diverse nation consisting of various ethnic groups and cultural pluralism. We can see that India’s language and literature, dance, music, architect, religion, belief system, cuisine, clothing and traditional customs varies every 100 odd kilometres. We see a confluence of several cultures within the country, which gets its influence from the period of Indus valley civilization. Indian art and culture play a significant role in the life of students. Introducing the vast ocean of art and culture in student’s life will build a sense of responsibility and confidence in them, which in turn will help in contributing to the overall development of an effective society.

There is art in nature, in animals, in people, in thoughts, in actions, in communication; and to make an effective use of it one must be introduce to self-introspection. A student does not have to become an artist to appreciate art and culture but deep down one must be taught to appreciate their own culture and pay respect to various arts either be it visual arts, performing arts, literary arts. There is a tendency in today’s youth being captivated to Bollywood dancing, hip-pop, jazz, belly dancing etc. and ignoring their own soil. By this, I do not dogmatize that we should not respect other’s culture but I meant that one must value the things, which they have rather than looking the best in others. It is like when someone has self-respect only then he/she will be able to respect others in society.

Dancing per se helps students to evaluate their own mental and physical changes. It will keep students fit and will make them more aware about their surroundings. Its like paying close attention to a small plant in an earthen pot as it grows, observing the stems grow and leaves sprout out, it gives a sense of belonging and happiness without any noise. This type of observations will help students in concentrating on their studies and would not require additional meditation class.

When we talk of culture, it covers religions, beliefs, faith, customs, values, ethics etc. When a student is aware of their culture, they will be able to relate to others culture and thus will be able to appreciate it. With proper mutual understanding, students can appreciate arts through the medium of writing, holding events, performing, photography etc. A scientist while coming up with an invention needs to be creative with his thoughts which also requires them to move out the establish thought boundaries. Every student must indulge in the practice of arts and culture, as it prepares them to face the world, be creative in their endeavours and helps them to achieve their goal. Students who are in turmoil should indulge themselves in co-curricular activities of their interest, which will help them to reinvent themselves.

DREAMLY GOGOI

I as a practitioner of both Assamese classical dance (Sattriya) and folk dance (Bihu) forms, till date has a wide range of experience, observance, perseverance and realisation about the importance and realistic value of music and dance in the overall growth of self being.

Our rich ethnic Indian art and culture is incomparable. India's geographical regional diversity has influenced and widened the scope of giving different colours and flavours to music originating in different regions which has the power to get soulful attachment to the divine being. If any of the traditional art is taught to a child right from its early stage, it can help tremendously in the overall mental and physical growth of a child.

I, as a teacher of Social Science and dance (Sattriya Nritya & Bihu) can rightly prove that by introducing a child into the world of music can help a child to face life challenges in every stage every way possible. Our classical music is basically related to 'Bhakti Rasa' (devotional) along with other Rasas and also celebrating nature through folk music can help us respect, understand our surroundings and mother earth. How blessed we are! Music also help us in understanding the identity of our original being.

Every classical art has its own prescribed set of grammars as like 'Mati Akharas' in Sattriya Nritya art of those scintifically and technically framed grammars used in the form of dance and exercise helps to have its yogic qualities of balancing body, mind and soul. It also leads to the path of understanding spiritual cult.

As said by noted Bharatanatyam dancer Geeta Chandran "Dance is the best form of concentration." If a conscious parent truly want to train their child in the path of wisdom, then along with the formal education it is equally very important to introduce a child into any of the traditional Indian art.

A child's compulsory training into such type of skilled art form can definitely help him build up in the ways -

• Definite Goal: Physical and mental exercise through learning of music can help youngsters to take up one idea, think of it, dream of it and live on with that idea and achieve their goal. He/she can have a clear - cut goal and a one - pointed concentration alone can help a child to manifest tremendous confidence.

• Concentration: "Concentration is the essence of all knowledge nothing can be done without it." - Swami Vivekananda. Music helps us to focus and concentrate with repeated riyaz (practice). Concentration leads to perfection, perfection to confidence, confidence to success and success finally leads to happiness. Creativity, talents, originality, scientific discoveries and investions, fine arts and even spiritual truths discovered by the sages are the product of a concentrated mind.

• Communication: "It is only a few that understand the language of the brain, but everyone understands that language that comes from the heart." - Swami Vivekananda. The soul of Indian music has the power to communicate. Learning an art form with utmost dedication and interest and delivering in public can also help a child built up his communicative ability. This will help find a place in the hearts of many building up affection, confidence and lead to success.

• Self Respect: A man of hard work, knowledge, wisdom and perfection are always honoured and respected everywhere. the set ragas and tales in music, the rhythmic dance creations may help a child to search for love with dignity and honour and help them to manifest hidden confidence within themselves and prove their mettle by accepting challenges in life.

• Strength: Today our youth are becoming so sensitive that for petty things they feel depressed and commit suicide. Success and failure are inevitable in life. Such a rare human birth is not meant for committing suicide. Constant touch with music can develop a child's mental strength and courage to face problems of life, relax their minds and be blissful.

• Discipline and Human Values: The human body is a combination of matter and spirit. Spirit is always superior to matter. Matter drags us down whereas spirit lifts us up. The education which does not provide equal opportunities to develop both matter and spirit is no education at all. In ancient times, under the guidance of a Guru, students used to learn both the secular and the spiritual aspects of the human personality. Vedic Sanskar system help them to assimilate lofty ideas. By leading a self - disciplined life they could develop wonderful character. Today, unfortunately, only the matter is being attended to and the spirit is completely neglected. The result is all round decline of human values.

Therefore, it is of utmost importance that we all work together to inculcate those long cherished Indian values among our children and youth to make India a glorious country - a place where people will live in peace, harmony and happiness. And it can be through learning and respecting our Indian art and culture that the true human values can be nurtured and inculcated into the young minds and be responsible citizens of the nations.

PRANAAME BHAGAWATI

PC and in Pic: Pranaame Bhagawati, Kathak Danseuse

Dance is to move rhythmically. It fascinates all and is a subject that is dear to many of us, having it's bit alive in everybody’s life. Its emergence could be dated back from a very early time; when seasonal change stimulated the feelings of the beings when the beings realized the beauty in nature and in them when they felt that they are into this world with a mission – a mission to glorify and beautify their thoughts and feelings through movements, sounds, symbols and gestures. They tried to beautify their surroundings including themselves. And from there, dance took its form. It is a universal art form that is an embodiment of movements, joy, romance, beauty, intellect, feelings, concept and message.

Dance not only enhances the physical grace and beauty of an individual but also delivers one with adequate confidence, public speaking ability and communication skills. It is a medium considered by many researchers and scientists to be a potential element to develop Body Smartness and Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence. Dance reacts to the body, mind and soul as medicine does to an ill. In ancient Indian scriptures, dance finds its place in a very high state. The classical dances are a practice of solemnity and devotion, especially for those who learn, practice and perform it. Dance was believed to be performed by celestial beings and nymphs in Heaven and then it was spread to earth.

Later, such dances were meant to perform in the temple shrine as an offering to the Lord. It would be wrong to consider it just as entertainment only. Even though there were phases in our history, when the temple dance art tradition was brought to the royal courts involving the essence of pleasure and entertainment, but, its strong relation with spiritualism and traditional myths has made it able to retain its core value and dignity besides all sorts of external influences. This is the reason why till today, dance practitioners worship their Lord to bless them with knowledge and ability and they generally start their performance by invoking a Lord through compositions like ‘Vandana’ or ‘Stuti’ to seek blessings for a flawless performance.

Learning and practicing dance from childhood deals with and is responsible for different types of developments in a person. It as a performing art is completely based on physical movements that simultaneously enhances flexibility and co-ordination. Moshe Feldenkrais, an Israeli scientist believes that, body and mind are not just mere parts but an objective reality. According to him, a brain without a body could not think. He also developed a therapeutic method called the Feldenkrais Method.

The Feldenkrais Method is intended to give a greater functional awareness of the self. The method uses body movement as the primary vehicle for learning. Similarly, through dance while moving the muscles and the limbs to various directions, the dancer develops good physic and natural bodily grace. Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence is an important aspect that a dancer possesses by which the individual has a clear sense of timing and becomes goal-oriented and can also find a high degree of fine motor control. Gardner defines that, Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence makes a person body smart whilst using different parts of the body (hands, fingers, arms) to solve a problem or to make or produce something through activity.

There are three central cognitive skills in Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence: Motor Logic, Kinesthetic Memory and Kinesthetic Awareness that are important components of dance. Motor Logic comprises the learner’s neuro-muscular skill with regard to the articulation and ordering of movement. Kinesthetic Memory enables the learner to think in terms of movement by mentally reconstructing muscular effort, movement, and position in space. This component also shares the “procedural knowledge” i.e. knowledge of how to do something. The Kinesthetic Awareness provides the learner with information on the extent, direction, and weight of movement. The kinesthetic sense operates through the body that relay information to the brain with regard to pressure, position and stretch of muscles. This information provides a conscious appreciation of posture, movement and changes in bodily equilibrium, as well as knowledge of resistance, position, and weight of objects.

Dance culminates infinite development in the mind that masters the brain to think in a better way. A dancer while performing displays kinesthetic skills in coordination of movements, balance, synchronization, dexterity, strength, speed, and flexibility, interpersonal intelligence in communicating with an audience; intra-personal intelligence in feeling the emotions of the performance; logical-mathematical skills in analyzing musical structure upon which he/she is performing and creating an imaginary object that practically does not exist. The individual develops an ability to manipulate objects skillfully, using both fine and gross motor movements.

The developments mentioned are not only beneficial for oneself during his student life, but it leaves an everlasting mark and identity in his whole life as a balanced person and multitasker. Development of creative as well as aesthetic essence is an utmost requirement in all fields in one's professional life. Inclusion of artistic subjects in a student's life is a necessity and educational boards should have a dynamic committee to curate such syllabus from time to time.

The beauty of dance could only be purely felt when one is into dancing. It has a lot more to contribute if pursued with sincerity and proper training. No dance form can be fully accumulated within a period of a few years. I would like to encourage the young developing minds and beginners to sincerely learn their dance art form and with enthusiasm and devotion making their presence available in various mass participatory dance programs and feel the difference that takes place in them.