19th November, 2020

On 19th November 2020, Heritage Education and Communication Service in collaboration with Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II Museum organised a Teacher Training Webinar on the Multifaceted Heritage of Jaipur and Heritage Awareness in Schools. The webinar was attended by 100 teachers from Jaipur as well as some other cities.

The introduction to the programme was given by Mr. Abhishek Das, Sr. Programme Coordinator, HECS. Ms. Dharmendra Kanwar, Convenor INTACH Jaipur Chapter gave the welcome address and expressed her happiness about the large number of teachers who had participated from across the country. Ms. Kanwar said that the theme of the workshop - multifaceted heritage of Jaipur was apt as on 18th November, Jaipur celebrated its 293rd Foundation Day. Since its founding in 1727, the city has come a long way but its connection with its heritage and culture is still the same and now has also been recognised as a World Heritage City by UNESCO. Ms. Kanwar welcomed all participants and also thanked HECS Division for organising the workshop.

Mr Sandeep Sethi, Director of Education, MSMS II Museum welcomed all participants and shared some educational initiatives of the Museum.Mr. Sethi thanked all participants for being part of the workshop.

The first session was by Ms.Purnima Datt on the topic - An overview and introduction to Heritage and Kinds of Heritage. The session focused on heritage education and ways to introduce it in classrooms. Ms. Datt spoke about heritage education as an approach to learning about the tangible and intangible heritage. Ms. Datt explained about different kinds of heritage through an illustrated presentation. The second session was by Dr. Rima Hooja, eminent historian and Director of MSMS II Museum on the topic of Jaipur’s Tangible and Intangible Heritage. Dr. Hooja highlighting the tangible and intangible history of Jaipur discussed the evolution of the city from the 18th century onwards and traced the story of its growth and expansion across the centuries, her talk highlighted the key changes that the city has witnessed over the years and the ramification of such changes on the socio – cultural life of its inhabitants over the years. She also spoke to the participants the current problems the city is facing and how an active group of young citizens can come together to remedy the situation or even raise awareness about such things. She suggested various activities that students could take with their teachers and professors on the city’s heritage and aid organizations like the City Palace etc.

The third session was on Heritage awareness in schools by HECS team. Ms. Purnima Datt spoke about the importance of heritage awareness amongst students and spoke about the various initiatives taken up by the division such as teacher training workshops, college volunteer programmes etc. The process of setting up of heritage clubs and the activities that could be organised for them were also discussed. Mr. Abhishek Das spoke about experiential learning methods such as Heritage Walks and Museum visits and their benefit for students. Ms. Christina Shangne and Ms. Sanjoli Mathur spoke about the online resources made available by HECS. Ms. Shangne shared about the Young INTACH website featuring numerous activities,worksheets,games and more for students while Ms. Mathur spoke about the social media initiatives. Ms. Teresa Walter gave a brief introduction to the national programmes such as essay and painting competitions, India Heritage Quiz etc.

Ms. Datt shared the HECS pledge which was followed by an interactive Q&A session. The programme concluded with a Vote of Thanks by Ms. Geetika Gunjan and a commemorative group photograph.

Nagpur, 20th November 2020

The Nagpur Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organized a College Heritage Volunteer Workshop for the students of Manoramabai Mundle College of Architecture.The workshop was conducted as a webinar, with faculty members of the college, students and office bearers of the INTACH Nagpur Chapter. The webinar commenced with Ms. Madhura Rathod, welcoming all participants, faculty members and the Principal of the college to the workshop. Dr. Ujwala Chakradeo, Principal S.M.M.C.A, in her address to the participants, congratulated the efforts of Ms. Rathod and HECS, INTACH for giving students an opportunity to attend such a workshop, she further added that the importance of built environment which forms the core of an architect’s work needs to be seen in conjunction with other heritage aspects too.Ms. Purnima Datt (Principal Director, HECS INTACH) welcomed all participants. She commenced with her presentation on the Heritage of India, explaining to the students the meaning and the ambit of the word “heritage” in the Indian context. This session on understanding heritage was mainly focused on appreciating the varied types of heritage found in our country and making young students comprehend the idea of uniqueness and diversity inherent in Indian heritage.

The second session by Ms. Datt and HECS team discussed the importance and meaning of volunteerism for young students and its relation with the domain of heritage. She gave a detailed presentation on the College Heritage Volunteer Programme and Heritage of HECS, since its inception in 2012. Ms. Teresa Walter (HECS Representative) addressing the students, elaborated on the type of activities which can be taken up by student volunteers, the speaker discussed the importance of Heritage Walks. Ms. Christina Shangne (HECS Representative) spoke to the students about the activities that can be taken up by volunteers in their institute and how as a volunteer can help spreading understanding about the rich culture of the country. Ms. Sanjoli Mathur (HECS Representative) shared about the Young INTACH Website; she also shared the various heritage activities conducted on Young INTACH social media pages such as Facebook and Instagram for students.

A Session on Nagpur’s History and Heritage Spaces was taken by Ms. Nitika Ramani, Additional Co-convener, INTACH Nagpur Chapter. . Her topic of discussion for the session was the evolution of Nagpur City. She took the participant on a journey of how the city of Nagpur evolved. The speaker took the participants through the various important built heritage of the city such as Sonegaon, Telnaked, Induli Bagh, Binaki, Sitabuldi fort etc. She spoke about the various excavations and the documentation work that has been done. Concluding her session she added that she is hoping that her presentation has given some insights into the rich heritage of the city and inspired all the students to go explore the city.

The session ended with group photographs of the organising team from MMCA and Ms. Purnima Datt and HECS Team from New Delhi. Ms. Vaijayanti Yadav, Faculty Member of MMCA, extended the Vote of Thanks on behalf of the chapter and the college and thanked all participants for supporting the workshop and speakers for their inputs.

World Heritage Week Celebrated by Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) at Big Temple, Thanjavur on 19/11/2020

On the occasion of World Heritage Week, the Archaeological Survey of India, Trichy Circle organised a week-long celebration starting from 19th- 25th of November, 2020. The chief guest for the occasion was Shri M. Govinda Rao I. A. S. The District Collector, Thanjavur has inaugurated the heritage Walk around the Brihadeshwara temple, Thanjavur. The Guests of Honour for the occasion are Shri Deshmukh Shekar Sanjay I. P. S (Superintendent of Police, Thanjavur), Smt. P. JanakiRaveendran, Msc. B.ed. (Commissioner, Thanjavur Corporation) and Sri. S. Babaji Rajah Bhonsle (Hereditary Trustee, Palace, Thanjavur). A special talk on the Heritage of Thanjavur was presented by Dr. Kudavayil Balasubramaniam, (Curator Retd., Saraswathi Mahal Library, Thanjavur), Convenor, INTACH Thanjavur Chapter. He appreciated the INTACH Chapter activities & Regional Winner Trophy for Gandhi 150 program. District Collector, Superintendent of Police, Dr. T. Arunraj, Superintending Archaeologist, A.S.I., Trichy Circle, INTACH Thanjavur Convenor, INTACH Members Mr. S. Muthukumar, K. Swaminathan, Shankar and Samsudeen participated in the celebration.

HECS was invited to speak at the ‘Making Informed Choices’ career talk at Nirmal Bhartia School on 6th November 2020. Ms. Purnima Datt spoke about Careers in Culture accompanied by Ms. Teresa Walter, Ms. Sanjoli Mathur, and Ms. Geetika Gunjan.

Ms. Datt began with a brief introduction to INTACH and its work. She mentioned that heritage is history, it is everywhere. It is our story, our legacy. It is the expression of ideas, philosophy, religion and more. She inspired the students and informed them about the relevance of history and heritage in our world. She told them that discovering our heritage starts with exploring the world we live in. History is like an adventure, or time-travel where we learn about our past and how it shapes our today, our present. Yesterday determines today. Each day we experience history being made. History is an interesting field where we study why when and how. Heritage is our core identity and many organisations are working towards protecting and preserving it.Ms. Datt then shared various kinds of career options available to students in the field of arts and culture. Some of the fields discussed were Archaeology, Museology and museum management, Art Galleries, Festival Management, journalism, law, Civil Services, Teaching, etc. She gave a description of what one must study to enter these fields.

The session was followed by an interactive Q&A session. Some of the questions asked were: What is the role of social media in preserving heritage? Along with Ms. Datt, Ms. Sanjoli Mathur spoke about the challenges that were faced during the lockdown and how social media has played a great role in connecting children with their personal heritage. Ms. Teresa Walter discussed the quizzes that we organised on Facebook. Another question was how can the youth as students contribute to the promotion of heritage, Ms. Geetika Gunjan and Ms. Sanjoli Mathur spoke about their journeys in the field of heritage that started as student volunteers. The students also enquired about the difference between tangible and intangible heritage and how one can protect the latter. Ms. Walter and Ms. Gunjan gave examples to explain the difference and the importance of practicing and documenting traditional customs and practices to keep them alive. Lastly, the students also asked questions such as what is the difference in the fields of history, archaeology, and anthropology. Ms. Walter and Ms. Mathur explained the technical differences between the three. The session ended with a thank you note by the students.

Dear Ms. Purnima

Thank you for speaking to our students on 'Careers in Culture - A heart for Heritage . Your research, your depth of understanding and your ability to present the subject in such an interesting way produced one of the most memorable sessions of MIC-2020.It was an eye opener for me as well to know about the range of careers that exist in this field .We are grateful for the time and effort you took to share your thoughts and experiences with our students.

Thanks and regards
NIDHI AGARWAL
CAREER COUNSELOR
Senior School
Nirmal Bhartia School
SEC 14, DWARKA, NEW DELHI 110078 | 011 45609702-06 |
[email protected]

Delhi – NCR Round

INTACH’s Heritage Education and Communication Service Division conducts numerous programmes to enable learning about heritage education in schools. The annual Heritage Quiz is an exercise towards the same objective. This year the quiz was conducted online, due to the ongoing pandemic. The city round for Delhi and Noida Schools was conducted on 9th October, through an online exam. HECS was supported in this by the team of Cradle Solutions. Teams from 43 schools of Delhi and Noida participated in the event. This round of the quiz was followed by an Eliminator Round between 16 high scoring schools; this was conducted on 27th October. The 16 schools of this round were - Birla Vidya Niketan, Modern School, Barakhamba, DPS Mathura Road, DPS, Rohini, Bal Bharati Public School, Noida, Jain Bharati Mrigavati Vidyalaya, Cambridge School Noida, Sanskriti School, Springdales School, Pusa Road, Sardar Patel Vidyalaya, St. Columba’s School, DPS International, St. Mark’s Sen. Secondary School, Convent of Jesus and Mary, Bal Bharati Public School, Rohini and Cambridge School, Srinivaspuri. The Delhi – NCR oral final was conducted on 6th November, this round was also conducted online, with Mr. Arindam Bhattacharya of Cradle Solutions as the Quiz Master. 6 schools which had qualified in the Eliminator Round were part of this final. The programme began with Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH welcoming and congratulating all finalists and the efforts put in by their teachers. After this Mr. Arindam briefed the students about the rules of the online final and its structure and format. After 4 rounds of quizzing, Modern School, Barakhamba Road was declared the winners of the quiz, they will represent Delhi – NCR in the National Finals of the Heritage Quiz 2020. The second and third position was bagged by DPS Rohini and St. Mark’s Senior Secondary School.

A Teacher Training Webinar Workshop on ‘Delhi’s Heritage and Culture’ was organised by HECS INTACH on 28th October, 2020. The programme was attended by 61 participants comprising School teachers, College Professors, Gen. Mr. L. K. Gupta (Chairman of INTACH) and the HECS team. The resource persons for the session was Professor Menon (Advisor Delhi Chapter and Founder Member INTACH), Dr. Swapna Liddle (Convenor INTACH Delhi Chapter Architect and Historian), Dr. Narayani Gupta (Historian and Former Director INTACH Documentation Centre) and Mr. Sohail Hashmi (Heritage Expert, Documentary Filmmaker, Academic Activist and Writer).

The workshop started off with an introduction and book release “Dilli Ki Shaan” by Mrs. Purnima Datt (Principal Director, HECS INTACH). She briefed the participants about the workshop and also about the new book “Dilli Ki Shaan”. The book is based on Delhi’s heritage and culture. It was then followed by a brief note by Gen. Mr. L. K. Gupta (Chairman of INTACH). Mr. Chairman expressed his thanks to all the participants for taking their time out and joining the workshop. He talked about how the workshop will be very useful and enable them to take to the children about heritage activities. Because in their curriculum there is no space for heritage, fairness or heritage activities, so the aim of this workshop is to guide them so that the children can develop into wholesome personalities and as good citizens of India. He wished them all the best!

In the next segment Mr. Abhishek Das (HECS representative) introduced the speaker for the first session Professor Menon. It was an interactive talk where he spoke about the purpose of the workshop and also about the importance of heritage, stressing on Delhi’s heritage. He talked about how the various tangible and intangible heritage Delhi has to offer and how it is the duty of each one to protect and conserve. Heritage is our past, present and future and we need to look at our heritage holistically. It was then followed by an introduction of Dr. Swapna Liddle by Ms. Sanjoli Mathur (HECS representative). Dr. Swapna talked about the 'Historic presence of Delhi focusing on Shahjahanabad and New Delhi’. She spoke in length about the rich history and the historic sites of Delhi that are important not just as buildings to be admired, but also the meaning they hold in the lives of the people.

The third speaker for the session Dr. Narayani Gupta was introduced by Ms. Geetika Gunjan (HECS representative). Dr. Narayani spoke on ‘Historic Delhi- It’s heritage, impact of urbanization and role of students’. Talking about the topic, she stressed that the teachers should take efforts to bridge such gaps and provide students with resources on their city and its heritage. The fourth speaker for the session Mr. Sohail Hashmi was then introduced by Ms. Teresa Walter (HECS representative). He talked about ‘The Living Heritage of Delhi- food, living together, crafts and communities’. Elucidating on Delhi’s Intangible Heritage, Mr. Sohail spoke mainly of three things – the language Urdu, the celebration of Basant Panchami and the Fair of Phoolwalon ki Sair, he picked up these aspects to throw light on how each of these over numerous centuries has given shape to the composite character of the city.

The workshop was interactive and informative. It concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Christina Shangne (HECS representative), followed by a group photograph.

Release of Coffee book entitled ‘P.Jairaj’s Life, Times and Films’ 2nd October, 2020, Hyderabad

On behalf of INTACH Hyderabad Chapter, Mrs. P Anuradha Reddy (Convenor INTACH Hyderabad Chapter and Co-convenor INTACH Telangana Chapter) and Shri M. Gopalakrishna, (Convenor INTACH Telangana Chapter) released a pictorial coffee book on the life, times and films of Sri P.Jairaj Naidu on 2nd October, 2020. Sri P. Jairaj acted in more than 200 Hindi, Marathi, Punjabi, Bhojpuri and Gujarathi films as a hero and later on as a character actor for over 50 years. He received the DadaSaheb Phalke Award in 1980 at the age of 71 years. He is the nephew of Late Sarojini Naidu and hailed from Karimnagar District of Telangana State where his father was employed in the Accounts Department. Sri T. Sreekanth, a graphic designer, biographer, artist and author from Hyderabad and Additional Co-Convenor of Telangana State Chapter has produced the coffee book.

On the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti, the local city chapters of INTACH Kerala jointly conducted an online event to inspire values of good citizenship. The event primarily targeted the youth, educators and citizens with a bias for local action. Conducted over the Zoom platform, the session started at 10am and lasted till 1.30pm. Arun Narayanan and Biley Menon of Palakkad and Cochin Chapters respectively, were the hosts of the session. The event started with the module by the green advocate Shri Harish Vasudevan, a familiar face to most Keralites for his proactive engagement with ecological issues, talked on ' The Citizenship Ideals'. He also spoke about the power of public opinion, and shared stories from some of his early experiences.

The second session was by the wonderfully creative and fearless contemporary Artist Shilo Shiv Suleman, who presented on the topic 'From Dreaming to Doing'. She spoke about some of her projects that combine art and social engagement.She shared about her public space art project in Lahore- ‘Log Kya Kahenge’. A project on how we can be better citizens in the country. Then she talked about her project ‘Khoya’ which was about bringing culture and magic together on an iPad. The project came up to bring in a more contemporary sense of our rooted culture. She spoke about the various workshops and participated in campaigns involving women and young girls. She concluded her presentation sharing about how her organisation believes in working on positive affirmation as a medium for personal change.

Following Shilo's presentation was the module by Dr. V. Venu, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, Cultural Affairs. He has not only initiated far-reaching innovations in the culture sector, but is also a theatre actor. He spoke on the topic 'Why Culture Matters'. Our last speaker was Sri. P. Vijayan IPS, Inspector General, Kerala Police who has been a champion of a number of social and humanitarian projects besides anchoring the Student Police initiative in the state spoke on the topic 'Taking the first step', and shared his perspectives on volunteering. Each session was followed by very engaging Q&A sessions. In a short concluding address, Ms. Purnima Datt, Director of HECS division traced the origins of the citizenship programme and how it has evolved over time. She underscored the importance of volunteerism and urged participants to take on local issues with the help of the chapters.

The Heritage Education and Communication Service Division of INTACH, in collaboration of over 95 city based chapters had organized the Gandhi at 150- National Essay and Painting Competition across the country. HECS received over 12000 entries in English, Hindi and various other regional languages. The competition saw 105 regional winners and 10 national winners being selected in this category from various parts of the country.The national winners were felicitated through an online webinar as the current COVID situation did not allow for a physical ceremony to be organized. The webinar was organized on the eve of Gandhi Jayanti, national winner students, along with their teachers and school principals attended the online ceremony. Office bearers of various chapters of INTACH, conveners and co – conveners attended the ceremony. The ceremony was also attended by Chairman INTACH, Shri L. K. Gupta and Member Secretary, INTACH Dr. C. T. Misra our guests of honour.

The Chief Guest for the ceremony was Dr. V. R. Devika, Founder and Managing trustee of The Aseema Trust, a nonprofit organization for linking traditional performing arts and education. An expert in Gandhian studies and a cultural activist with a passion for performing arts and education. The programme began with a welcome address by Ms. Christina Shangne, Programme Coordinator, HECS INTACH. She welcomed and congratulated the winners and expressed her gratitude towards all dignitaries to the event Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH expressed her happiness on being able to meet virtually and conduct the ceremony. She congratulated the winners of the competition. The speaker gave a brief introduction of the working of the Heritage Education Division and its scope of work.
Mr. Abhishek Das, Senior Programme Coordinator, HECS INTACH and Ms. Teresa Walter, Programme Coordinator, HECS INTACH gave a presentation on ‘Gandhi at 150-Icon of Change’ National Painting and Essay Competition. The speakers briefly laid out before the participants the idea behind the competition and its achievements in terms of outreach and education. This was followed by a presentation by all the National Winners. Each student shared an excerpt about their paintings and essays and what inspired them to choose that particular idea on Gandhi's life and works.

Dr. V. R. Devika interacting with the students expressed her pleasure that young students have taken out this time and have made an effort to learn about Gandhi. She congratulated all the winners for the efforts they have put in the competition. Talking about heritage in our country, she pointed out that the most interesting intangible heritage that India has produced is Mahatma Gandhi. Through her presentation, she shared small stories of Gandhi. She emphasized that Gandhi is still speaking to us even after 150 years. Closing her comments on the Great Leader, Shri Devika remarked, that in these trying times of social media, fake propaganda and increased hate, we must look closely at our conscience and imbibe the value of the Mahatma to build a more equitable society, to honour the values of the Mahatma is also and should be one of objectives of heritage protection and preservation. Dr. C. T. Misra, Member Secretary, INTACH, addressing the audience, thanked the teachers of all the schools who participated and the 12,000 children who participated in this programme. She also welcomed all and appreciated their participation in the wonderful programme.

This was followed by a Book Release of 2 HECS Publications Ms. Purnima Datt released the publications with Chairman and Member Secretary’s blessings. The first book is on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The second book released was based on the beautiful state of Meghalaya. The book covers the story of a young child who goes to his home in Meghalaya.

The award ceremony commenced shortly after the book release, through a slide show, the winning entries, award books, trophies and certificate was showcased and announced to the attendees by Ms. Teresa. After a brief comment by attendees the ceremony concluded by a Vote of Thanks by Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Programme Coordinator, HECS INTACH followed by a group photograph.

INTACH Meghalaya Chapter organised a National Webinar on Relevance of Gandhian philosophy in the 21st century, in collaboration with Department of Arts and Culture Government of Meghalaya on 25th September, 2020. It was attended by 45 participants.

The esteemed speakers for the webinar were Ms.Sudipta Bhattacharjee, Fullbright Research Fellow, Former Resident Editor, The Telegraph, North East, Prof. Aditya Gupta, Department of Philosophy,Delhi University, Ms.Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH and Prof. M.H. Elias - School of Indian Legal Thought, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, Kerala.

The programme began with a brief introduction to the programme by Dr. Moushumi Dey, Co convenor, Meghalaya chapter followed by the welcome address by Dr. Madeline Yvonne Tham, Convenor Meghalaya Chapter.The keynote address was delivered by Mr. Wilfred, Director Art and Culture, Govt. of Meghalaya. Mr. Wilfred shared that as we celebrate 150 years of Gandhi, people have been continuously inspired by the thoughts and simplicity of Gandhi. He spoke about the local communities who are blessed with the landscape and environment and how Gandhi often reminded us that there is enough for man’s need but not enough for his greed. Therefore, nature has to be protected.

Mr. Wilfred shared about the tasks undertaken by the Department of Art and Culture to document the art and culture of the region. He shared that India has numerous different communities and diverse cultures and how Gandhiji worked for the rights of the different communities. Mr. Wilfred spoke about how we should keep the Gandhi spirit alive.

Dr. Dey then gave a brief introduction to Gandhiji. She spoke about the various tasks he undertook both abroad and in India.

The first speaker was Ms. Sudeepta Bhattacharjee who spoke on Gandhian philosophy with reference to journalism. Ms. Bhattacharjee spoke about a lesser known facet of Gandhiji’s life of being a journalist. She shared about how his journalism was rooted with Satyagraha and his articles focused on non-violence and truth. Many of the ethics propounded by Mahatma Gandhi have been lost today. To Mahatma Gandhi, being a journalist was not a way of livelihood, He believed that the primary objective of newspapers is to educate people and they shouldn’t be used for making profit. Ms. Bhattacharjee concluded by saying that Gandhian principles are still relevant today however are not followed always.

The second speaker was Prof. Aditya Gupta, who spoke on the topic Love in Gandhi – A reflection on Constructive Aspects of Ahimsa. Prof. Gupta spoke about the well known concept of Ahimsa by Gandhiji and its significance. The theory of Ahimsa was deeply connected to the concept of truth. Prof.Gupta also spoke about the different kinds of Ahimsa practices such as that in Jainism and the difference between them and Gandhi’s Ahimsa. He shared that one should love their country and work towards its betterment without any expectations. Loving our country should reflect in our actions. Gandhi’s concept of love demands not only sacrifice but work for society so that the country achieves greatness.

This was followed by the third presentation by Ms. Purnima Datt who spoke on the topic “Gandhi through young eyes”. Ms. Datt shared her experience of working with young kids and how they make a difference in the society. She spoke about how everyone has grown up learning about Gandhiji, our beloved ‘Bapu’. Gandhiji spoke on a variety of topics and there are numerous stories and anecdotes about him which have been shared amongst generations. Ms. Datt shared her favourite story on Gandhiji written by his grandson Arun Gandhi based on little pencil and the concept of wastage of resources. Through the medium of the story Ms.Datt emphasised on Gandhiji’s methods of teaching children important concepts such as non-violence.

Ms. Datt also shared about Gandhiji at 150- Icon of Change national painting and essay competition organised by HECS. Some excerpts from essays and paintings of national winners were shown. Two films made for the Filmit India project 2019-20 on the theme of Gandhiji were also shown to the participants.

This was followed by the last session by Prof. M.H. Elias who spoke on Gandhiji and secularism. Prof. Elias shared about the relevance of Gandhian philosophy in the 21st century. He spoke about the different kinds of Gandhi i.e as one seen by state institutions, Gandhi as an activist, Gandhi for Gandhians etc. He spoke about how Gandhi cannot be confined to one role or topic and which has been difficult for scholars etc. Gandhi’s philosophy has been a source of inspiration all across the world.

Dr. Tham gave the concluding remarks followed by the vote of thanks by Dr Moushumi Dey.

INTACH HECS in collaboration with INTACH East Godavari and Andhra Pradesh State Chapter conducted a teacher training workshop for various schools of Kakinada district. The workshop was attended by 70 participants and INTACH Office bearers form Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

The workshop was inaugurated by Shri Gopal Krishna, INTACH State Convener of Andhra Pradesh State Chapter. He thanked the INTACH Headquarters and the Chairman for providing support for such a crucial workshop in Kakinada district. Through his address he spoke about INTACH’s role as a national body for protecting India’s heritage and culture, he stressed the role of the teachers and also suggested activities teachers can take up such as heritage walks, discovery of personal heritage, awareness workshops etc.

Post his address, Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH invited the Chairman of INTACH, Shri L. K. Gupta to address the participants. Shri Gupta welcomed all office bearers and participants and thanked Ms. Datt for organizing the workshop. Through his address he stressed on the role of teachers as knowledge givers, he elaborated on the meaning of heritage and highlighted the diversity of cultures that exist in the country and added that teachers play a very important role in nurturing students to develop a respect for their cultural heritage.

This was followed by an address by Ms. Anuradha Reddy, Convener Telangana State Chapter who expressed her joy over getting to meet in the new format of a webinar, and stressed on the need to continue such initiatives in order to sustain the interest in heritage conservation and preservation. Ms. Sesha Kumari Lakkaraju, Co– Convener, Andhra Pradesh State Chapter, then called upon the Guest Speaker for the workshop, pioneering educationist Professor Prasanna Kumar to address the gathering, after a brief introduction of Shri Kumar, which was given by Ms. Lakkaraju. Mr. Prasanna spoke on how heritage is a vast canvas that we inherited not just the monuments and buildings. He stressed that even though we are not as developed and rich, we must be proud. Teachers should get closer to students, not just to impart knowledge, but also to keep them from darkness and help them move from the dark to the light.

The final session was presented by Principal Director, INTACH HECS, Ms. Purnima Datt who in her presentation highlighted the importance of heritage and all its dimensions with numerous examples as well as, interesting lesser known facts. The participants appreciated the knowledge acquired and ways to examine heritage.

The session concluded with a question-answer exchange facilitated by Ms. Purnima Datt, followed by a vote of thanks from East Godavari Chapter Co-Convener Sri V. Ramakrishna.

Heritage Education and Communication Service in collaboration with INTACH Chennai Chapter organized a Heritage and Citizenship Workshop through a webinar on 19th September 2020. The introductory session started with Ms. Sujatha Shankar, Convenor, Chennai Chapter welcoming the participants. She also welcomed the esteemed speakers and thanked them for their presence. Ms. Shankar spoke about how the workshop focused on heritage and everyone’s responsibilities towards it as citizens.

Ms. Nalini Thakur, Conservation Architect gave the introductory talk. Ms. Thakur emphasised on the use of the Constitution of India as a guide to preserving our heritage. She also appreciated the format of the tasks done by HECS which was also following the constitutions framework on heritage based on duties, rights and other provisions based on it.

Dr Sugato Dutt, an IFS officer gave a talk on the Conservation of Sandalwood in Southern India. His talk focused on the cultural status of sandalwood in southern India, causes for its decline and efforts to restore it and ensure the varied biodiversity of tree species in India. Ms. Purnima Datt gave a presentation on Heritage Education and Citizenship. She remarked that right to knowing about heritage is part of good education for children. On the other hand, it’s a responsibility for all of us. She spoke about the programme and its focus on heritage and good citizenship. Ms. Datt spoke about the various aspects of heritage, citizenship, fundamental rights and duties. The next session was by Dr. A Sivasthsan, an architect and urban designer and currently Exe. Director, Centre for Research and Architecture and Urbanism, CEPT. His talk focused on City Planning and Conservation. Dr. Srivathsan took the participants on a virtual tour of Tamil Nadu and showed the wide variety of heritage the city has. He talked about the scale of problems, complexity of the challenge and above all made a point that the state is not really engaged with conservation barring one or two institutions. In the second part, he laid out the institutions, schemes and grounds on how they worked for conservation. He also talked about the various schemes and funds provided by the government- Central, State, private and other institutions for the restoration and conservation of our heritage.

Dr. Jayshree Vencatesan, who works on issues of conservation and biodiversity and has authored several books and currently serving as the Trustee at Care Earth’s Managing gave a talk on the ecological heritage of Chennai. Her talk focused on building a scientific understanding of the city’s ecological character and its evolution that is required to value and conserve its heritage especially in the context of urban resilience with special reference to Chennai. She talked about the depleting wetlands and the tree heritage of the city. She discussed the plantation strategies such as field assessments, green cover assessment and stakeholder consultants and the role of citizens in conserving the city’s natural heritage. The Q & A session led by Ms. Shivaa Rawat. She thanked everyone for their reflections and shared how this workshop can help us think in more deeper ways and how we can engage in deeper ways as good citizens. The Vote of Thanks was given by Ms. Dipika Anand.

INTACH Chennai Chapter in collaboration with INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service organised a Teacher Training Webinar Workshop on 12th September, 2020, on Heritage Education for Young Minds: Objective- Responsibility of the citizen in Article 51A(F) of the Constitution- “it shall be the duty of every citizen of India to value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture” for School Teachers. The informative and insightful workshop was attended by 94 participants comprising school teachers, heritage experts and members of the INTACH Chennai Chapter.

The workshop began with a welcome address by Ms. Sujatha Shankar, Convenor of INTACH Chennai Chapter, who spoke about the importance of heritage, it's fundamental duty, the importance of preserving it for the future generations and in these difficult times how to help children connect with their culture. It was followed by a screening of INTACH Film.

The session started off by a presentation by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, who introduced the teachers about HECS and the network of heritage clubs, which work with aim to educate young students about heritage and help them become committed to their heritage. The presentation also highlighted all the important aspects of heritage- Natural, Built, Material and Living. In the next segment, resource person Ms. Divya Chakravarti, Conservation Architect, spoke about built heritage and its importance. How they are an important part of a city’s identity and also its peoples. Resource person Ms. Gita Ram also spoke on the Tamil Nadu Crafts through the ages. It was then followed by a presentation by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, INTACH HECS, who gave a detailed presentation on the formation and structures of heritage clubs and INTACH supports. Mr. Abhishek Das, Senior Programme Coordinator, INTACH HECS, then spoke about the importance of Heritage Walks, Museum Visits and interacting with resource persons. Ms. Shiva Rawat, National Coordinator, INTACH HECS, spoke about the various HECS publications and Ms. Christina Shangne, Programme Coordinator, INTACH HECS, spoke about the Young INTACH online resources such as the Young INTACH website, its various educational resources available on it, Young INTACH Facebook, Instagram and the newly launched Young INTACH Youtube which features short films made by students for the Filmit programme.

The session concluded with an interactive exchange Q&A and followed by a vote of thanks by INTACH Chennai Chapter and a commemorative workshop group photograph.

The Chennai Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organized a meeting with principals’ meet with various public and private schools of Chennai. The idea behind the meeting was widen the scope of heritage education and related activities in the city’s schools so that new heritage clubs can be set up, and be part of INTACH’S network of heritage clubs. The meeting was attended by over 25 school principals, along with Chapter members of the Chennai chapter and HECS representatives from Delhi.

The meet was held as a prelude to a teacher training workshop which was held on 12th September. The workshop began with Ms. Sujatha Shankar, Convener INTACH Chennai Chapter welcoming everyone, she thanked the Young INTACH of Chennai Chapter for organizing the meet and spoke about INTACH’s mandate for heritage preservation and conservation, she added that due to the current pandemic situation we really need to think of innovative ways to impart cultural learning to students.

Post the inaugural address, Ms. Malavika, Member of the Chennai Chapter welcomed all participants and explained briefly the rules and format of the meeting. Ms. Sushila Natraj, Chapter member from Chennai addressing the gathering, spoke in brief about the heritage club activities of the chapter from its inception till date, she also shared that the chapter was keen on expanding the network of clubs across numerous schools in the city.

A session on heritage education, focusing on the activities of the Heritage Education and Communication Service of INTACH was given by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, along with the HECS team. Ms. Datt gave an introduction as to why heritage education was needed and how the city of Chennai and its schools have contributed over the years to this and have taken this up diligently. Through a presentation, the activities of HECS was discussed across various years, which range from capacity building programmes to national level education and awareness programmes, the speaker also discussed the learning outcomes of the various programs and its outreach.

Post this, the session was opened for Question and Answers, the participants shared their experiences of working of heritage club in schools and were keen on exploring resources that could also be extended to differently abled students. Ms. Mita Venkatesh added that the New Education Policy asks us to fall back on heritage. Therefore, she suggested that was it is a good idea to start from pre-primary schools and inculcate folklore learning instead of western fairy tales. The Q and A session was followed by screening of some films made by students through the filmit project from Chennai and other cities too.The meeting concluded with a vote of thanks from a Chapter member from Chennai, she thanked the principals for enthusiastic support for this initiative and also expressed her gratitude towards HECS, INTACH.

On the 8th of September, 2020, Heritage Education and Communication Service of INTACH organised a storytelling webinar for students across various schools in Delhi for 85 students from 6 schools. The session was conducted by Ms. Rituparna Ghosh founder of Your Story Bag. The story that was read out to the students was ‘Teseng Builds a Root Bridge – Know Meghalaya – A Colouring Book’ – a HECS publication. The workshop began with Ms. Sanjoli Mathur, Programme Coordinator, HECS, giving an introduction to the workshop to all the participants. She then introduced the resource person. Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, welcomed Dr Madeline Yvonne Tham, Convenor, INTACH Meghalaya Chapter, who addressed the participants and spoke to them about the natural heritage of Meghalaya and the work INTACH is doing for their listing and preservation.

Rituparna’s session was very interactive. She brought the book alive for the students by describing all the events that took place as Teseng discovered his roots in Meghalaya. As the story went along, she asked the students interesting questions that made them think. She asked them the meaning of Meghalaya, how silk is made, what a textile designer does, about stalactites and stalagmites, etc. She even encouraged the students to make illustrations of what they were hearing. As this was an illustrated colouring book, she wanted students to imagine each scene and draw what they saw. These drawings were then shared by the students. Rituparna also taught the students a traditional local game from Meghalaya called Khalai, which the students played. With reference to the Whistling Village – Kongthong, she asked students to make whistling tunes of their own names.

Prachi Joshi, the writer and illustrator of the book then spoke to the participants about how thrilled she was to see the students’ interpretation of her book and was very happy to attend this session. Christina Shangne, Programme Coordinator, HECS, gave a vote of thanks. Dr. Madeline shared with all the participants some bamboo baskets that were around her house that are used for different purposes. She even put on her knup to show to the students what it looks like. The webinar ended with group photographs.

Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS), INTACH in collaboration with Ms. Rituparna Ghosh, founder of Delhi Storytellers’ Network organized a storytelling session for Classes 5-6. The session was based on the HECS’s publication – The Hornbill Warrior – Know Nagaland, a story based coloring book. The workshop was attended by over 90 participants from 6 schools of Delhi. The session was conducted as a webinar on Zoom.

The introduction to the workshop was given by Ms. Shivaa Rawat, (HECS Representative).Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH addressing the participants from various schools, welcomed all students and teachers to the session, she shared with the students, about the publication and added that the book is written from a child’s perspective and it unravels her journey towards understanding of her heritage.

The story telling session commenced with Ms. Rituparna Ghosh addressing the students, the session was an interactive one, in which the speaker asked students questions in order to elicit answers which were required some thought and analysis.

The session was conducted with the use of voice modulation, sound and even video to drive home the idea of imagining a story, before reading it, students were through the session asked to sketch from imagination some ideas discussed by the speaker in order to their gauge their reception of the session, the speaker built a very engaging plot to reveal the story and its message to the students in a creative yet comprehensive way.

Students were also receptive to the session, the sketches brought out their understanding really well and innovatively. The session ended with Ms. Purnima Datt, showing to the students the final book and some of its pages, she shared with the students that the book is now available for purchase. The vote of thanks was given by Ms. Teresa (HECS Representative).

INTACH Guntur Chapter in collaboration with INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service organised a Teacher Training Workshop online on Heritage Awareness and Heritage Education for School Teachers with a module on Citizenship on 3 September 2020. The informative and insightful session was attended by over 90 participants comprising of school teachers, heads of departments, heritage experts, senior government officials, convenors, co-convenors and senior INTACH Guntur, as well as, INTACH Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Chapter members.

The session began with an inaugural address by INTACH Guntur Chapter Convenor, Mr S V S Lakshmi Narayana. It was followed by an introduction to the Workshop resource persons, Mr M GopalaKrishna, IAS (Retd.) (State Convenor, INTACH Andhra Pradesh), Mr Sridhar Babu Addanki, IAS and Ms Purnima Datt (Principal Director, INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service (INTACH HECS)). The workshop began with a key note address by Mr M GopalaKrishna, IAS (Retd.) . It was followed by a short address by Ms Anuradha Reddy (Co-Convenor INTACH Telangana) and Mr Srinath Reddy (INTACH Guntur Chapter). The role of citizens in Heritage Protection was highlighted by Mr Sridhar Babu Addanki. In the next segment, a detailed presentation on understanding Heritage and Heritage Education in Classrooms was undertaken by Ms Purnima Datt (Principal Director, INTACH HECS).. It was followed by a discussion on the role of citizens and their responsibility as a collective to safeguard heritage. An outline of various activities for responsible citizens and ways to establish a heritage citizenship club was shared by Ms Shivaa Rawat (INTACH HECS). The session concluded with an exchange of question- answers by Ms Purnima Datt, receipt of positive workshop feedback and thereafter, words of encouragement were shared by Ms L. Sesha Kumari (Co-Convenor, INTACH Andhra Pradesh). It was followed by a vote of thanks by the Convenor, Mr S V S Lakshmi Narayana and a commemorative workshop group photograph.

An Interaction Meet With Mr. Anura Manatunga, Director, Centre for Heritage Studies University of Kelaniya – Sri-Lanka, 30th August, Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Jammu

Intach Jammu Chapter in association with Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Jammu organized an Interaction Meeting with Mr. Aura Manatunga, Director, Centre for Heritage Studies, University of Kelaniya, Sri-Lanka. He is also General Secretary – International Association for Asian Heritage as well as fellow – Sri-Lanka Council of Archaeologists.

Mr. S. M. Sahni, Convener, INTACH Jammu Chapter welcomed Mr. Manatunga, Mr. Anil Raina Professor Environment Sciences & Reactor, Bhaderwah Campus, Sh. R. K. Rampal H.O.D. – EVS, Dr. C. M. Seth, Co-Convener INTACH J&K State and other faculty as well as members of INTACH. He explained that the purpose of the interaction meet is to exchange the ideas towards Cultural Heritage of both the countries, the practices being followed and the administrative setup in the Government of Sri Lanka and India. He further explained the importance and benefits of such kind of cultural exchange programmes.

Dr. C. M. Seth IFS (Retd.), Environmentalist and Co-Convener INTACH J&K, briefed the house about the importance of Natural Heritage specially with reference to J&K State. He also explained the administrative setup within the Department of Forests & Environment at the Secretarial Level and various wings of the Department, such as Territorial setup of Forests Department, Wildlife Department, Environment & Remote Sensing, Pollution Control Board, Forests Protection Force, Social Conservation etc. The polices of the State Govt. to protect the Natural Wealth as Natural Heritage including Forests Wealth (Varieties of Traditional Trees) Water Bodies, Animals, Medicinal Plants etc.

Dr. R K. Rampal, Head of the Department Environmental Sciences along with other faculty members of the Department explained about the research work being done by the scholars of the department on the Natural Heritage of the State such as water analyses, plants, flora, fauna and water bodies, snow sound vegetations etc. The administrative setup and courses available in the field was also shared.

Prof. Anura Manatunga, in his brief explained the courses available in the Universities of Sri Lanka to study Cultural Heritage of their Country such as Heritage Studies, Archeology, Musicology, Conservations etc. He stated that Govt. of Sri Lanka is very touchy about the preparation of Heritage and very strong laws are there to protect forests as well as Tangible & Intangible Heritage. He also briefed about the Administrative setup of the Department of Culture and its importance from the tourism point of view – sea life and traditional coastal life to attract the tourists in the country.

Prof. Anil Raina, Reactors Bhaderwah Campus apprised the participants about the courses available in various universities of J&K to study various types of Cultural Heritage components available and to produce professionals in the respective fields. He further explained the importance of Cultural Heritage to attract & promote tourism in the state which has a vast potential to exploit the Heritage – Tangible – Intangible – Natural, for which Govt. of J&K has a full-fledged Department of Archives, Archaeology & Museums, Department of Libraries, Department of Tourism and various wings of the Forests Department.

Dr. Rajesh Sharma, Event Coordinator of INTACH Jammu Chapter, Lecturer, Department of Buddhist Studies and Mr. Nitan Sharma, member INTACH (Research Scholar, Department of Law) University of Jammu proposed a vote of thanks especially to Prof. Manatunga for sharing his valuable time to share his views / experiences on Heritage Studies & to all the Dignitaries / Participants of the meet.

Method Webinar

Date 28th August 2020

Language English and Malayalam

Target groups Close to 46 students and 11 teachers from 7 schools in Palakkad

Methodology The methodology adopted was an interactive one where students were able to experience the nuances of a virtual workshop first hand. The students were acclimatized to Filmit and its themes for this year through slideshows and a hands on session of heritage at home.

Resource persons

• Ms. Purnima Datt (Principal Director, INTACH HECS)
• Mr. Abhishek Das (Senior Programme Coordinator, INTACH HECS)
• Mr. Vinod Sreedhar (Film-maker and Musician, Tuning Fork Films)

Translation Mr. Arun Narayan (Convener, INTACH Palakkad)

Report

The Palakkad Filmit Workshop was held on 28th August 2020 through an online portal of Zoom meeting. The program was organised by the Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) division of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) with unparalleled cooperation and support from Mr. Arun Narayan, Convener of the Palakkad Chapter and Ms. Sanusha, Coordinator of the Palakkad Chapter. The online session was attended by around 46 students and 11 teachers from 7 schools in Palakkad. This is the second year of Filmit with the Palakkad Chapter, after their first year which was phenomenal. Ms. Ira Nagar, Illustrator and Programme Coordinator, HECS, greeted the audience and invited Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, and Mr. Arun Narayan, Convener, Palakkad Chapter, to say a few words.

The session started with a warm welcome by Ms. Purnima Datt, who introduced INTACH and HECS to the students. Ms. Datt talked to the students and teachers about Filmit and the Helen Hamlyn Trust in the United Kingdom that has been funding the Filmit Project through the thirteen years of its existence

Mr. Arun Narayan welcomed the students, teachers and the technical experts to the workshop in a perfect blend of English and Malayalam. Mr.Narayan and Ms. Sanusha showed a presentation to widen the perspective of the students. Mr. Narayan brought to light last year’s Filmit Trophies which were made from metal scrap.

Ms. Teresa Walter, Programme Coordinator, HECS, introduced the technical expert for the session, Mr. Vinod Sreedhar, Film-maker and Musician.

Then Ms. Datt introduced the students and teachers to the entire concept of Filmit. With the aid of a slideshow Ms. Datt led the students through the themes of Filmit for this year. . Ms. Datt conducted a fun and interactive session with the students in which the students were asked to fetch an item in their respective houses that can be called heritage.

After the session with Ms. Datt, Mr. Abhishek Das, Senior Programme Coordinator, HECS, screened two films from the past years through the screen sharing feature of Zoom meeting.

The film screening was followed by a technical session conducted by Mr. Vinod Sreedhar who guided the students through the most important elements of film-making. He also talked about sound recording and the positioning of camera to get the best results. Mr. Sreedhar also guided the students by displaying the process of editing and compiling shots and snippets to create a film. The expert also suggested softwares for editing and compiling the shots and snippets.

This was followed by a Q and A session where the queries were Mr. Sreedhar and Mr. Narayan. The vote of thanks was delivered by Ms. Sanusha. The workshop was concluded by a quick photograph clicking session by the HECS team.

Photographs of the Filmit Workshop

A Filmit online workshop was held for the city of Kochi. More than 80 participants from 13 schools participated in the workshop.

The programme began with a short introduction to the programme by Mr. Abhishek Das,Senior Programme Coordinator followed by Mr. Biley Menon, Co-Convenor INTACH Kochi Chapter who welcomed all participants and also gave a short introduction to INTACH and its work in Kochi. Mr. Menon said that difficult times result in production of beautiful artworks and encouraged students to make great movies this year as well.

Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director introduced participants to the themes for this year and held an interactive session on Personal heritage wherein students shared unique heritage objects at their home. Some of the interesting objects shared by students included their great great grandfather’s Charkha, an old coin and more.

The technical session was undertaken by Mr. Ankit Pogula and Ms.Sanjana Chopra from Tuning Fork Films. The session focused on camera handling and editing aspects of filmmaking. Students were told about the various shots and angles, how to ensure good audio, editing softwares, and much more.

The Filmit Chennai Filmit Workshop was organized by Heritage Education and Communication Service in collaboration with INTACH Chennai and Tamilnadu State Chapter on 21st August 2020 as a Zoom Webinar. It was attended by over 90 participants.

A brief introduction to the filmit project by given by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, Heritage Education and Communication Service, she shared with the students and teachers the remarkable journey of the filmit project across different cities of the country, highlighting its outreach and impact in making learning about heritage interesting and engaging through the medium of films.

Dr. Suresh, Tamilnadu State Convenor expressed his happiness and welcomed the students to a newer module on heritage learning from their homes. He shared that the tech savy students of Chennai will come up with interesting films like in the past.

Ms. Datt speaker explained to the students, how to shoot creative films this year, from their homes and neighborhood and discussed the themes for the current year, through a slide show presentation. She encouraged students to think out of the box and be at their creative best to make a good use of the pandemic shutdown.

Post this, an interactive session was initiated by the speaker and she showed to students some examples of personal heritage like a Paan – Daan, Jamdaani saree and multilingual dictionary. Students were also encouraged to look around in their homes for an heirloom which has a story of personal heritage.

The technical session was taken up by Mr. Ankit Pogula and Ms. Shreya Kakria of Tuning Fork Films, this focussed on the 3 major aspects of film making namely – planning, shooting and editing.The speakers discussed the importance of shots and angles and their use as well as relevance in film making, a session on editing was conducted which focused on the use of editing software, especially Photos and its various features, essential for short film making. The importance of sound, camera positioning, story boarding were topics extensively covered. Concluding his remarks on editing, the speakers then briefed the students about four clear steps of editing as follows- assembly, adding text and music, managing brightness and contrast, audio levels, effects and transitions and exporting with recommended settings. The technical session also saw a lot of queries from students and hence was very engaging and interactive.

The INTACH Gwalior Chapter, in collaboration with HECS, INTACH on 20th August organized an webinar workshop on idol making, through this workshop the students were shown a demonstration on how to make a clay idol of Lord Ganesha. The idea behind the workshop was to make students aware of the need of adopting eco – friendly practices in traditional celebrations. Two sessions of the workshop were held.

The workshop was attended by 100 students from 10 schools of the city. Resource Person Mr. Manoj Prajapati, who is an experienced potter, interacted with the students and taught them idol making in a step by step manner. The workshop was attended by Convener Neel Kamal Maheshwari and Co – Convener Vikas Singh of INTACH Gwalior Chapter.

Heritage Education and Communication Service organised the Filmit Workshop at Hyderabad on 18th and 19th August. The second day focused on the technical session. Around 85 participants attended the workshop including teachers and students from 14 schools of Hyderabad. The session started with a welcome note by Ms. Shivaa Rawat, HECS INTACH. Co-Convenor, INTACH Dahanu Chapter, Dhanashree Karandikar had also joined the session. She shared her experience regarding the project, when she used to be a teacher in a Mumbai school. She offered support and guidance to the students and wished them the best. The technical resource persons were Mr. Vinod Sreedhar and Ms. Sanjana Chopra.

The session started off with a brief about the FILMIT project by Mrs. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, Heritage Education and Communication Service, INTACH. She introduced the Filmit project to the participants. She thanked the teachers and as well as the students for sustaining the project for so many years and appreciated their hard work towards contributing to the Filmit project. She also thanked the Hyderabad Chapter for their support.

Ms. Rawat discussed the themes with the participants through a powerpoint presentation. She discussed the project timeline and the number of films (5 films) to be made by each school was shared with the participants. It was then followed by a brief discussion about the themes for this year that is ‘Heritage through my Home’ Two films from last year’s project were screened after that. The technical session was conducted by Mr. Vinod Sreedhar, the founder of Journeys with Meaning and Ms Sanjana Chopra. He is a Facilitator and Communicator in the space of Environmental Education and Ms. Chopra is a Delhi based photographer and filmmaker. Mr. Vinod started off the technical session by discussing the techniques and tips on how to make a perfect film. He shared how and why films are powerful. With the help of a powerpoint presentation, the technical process of filmmaking was discussed. Before one starts filming, there are three stages that one has to go through. The themes, camera required for shooting and what software to use for editing.

The various steps of shots used in a film were explained by Ms. Sanjana Chopra. She explained that getting the right shot is as important to choosing the right theme. Mr Vinod also shared some tips on how to handle a camera while shooting a film.

Editing is the final step where one puts in the visuals, add or remove and also add sound to the film. Ms. Sanjana demonstrated a step by step on how one can use the windows software ‘Windows Movie Maker/ Photos’ for editing the film. A fine example of a video that was shot in Ms. Sanjana’s home itself was used for the edit.

There were questions and answers all through the session and the technical resource team explained to the students all their doubts and queries. Mr. Abhishek Das, HECS, INTACH explained the process of uploading the films on the website, the size of the film and various converting softwares the students can use. Ms. Anuradha Reddy, Convenor, Hyderabad Chapter, addressed the participants. She wished them luck for their films and asked them to get in touch whenever needed. The workshop concluded with a vote of thanks from Mr. Abhishek Das followed by a group photograph.

The INTACH Filmit workshop was organised on 18th-19th August 2020 through as a webinar due to the ongoing pandemic. The first day was the content workshop which was conducted by Mr. Feisal Alkazi. Mr. Abhishek Das, from HECS welcomed everyone to the workshop. He introduced Mr. Feisal Alkazi (educationist, trainer and theatre director) and Ms. Anuradha Reddy (Convenor, INTACH Hyderabad Chapter). Ms. Purnima Datt, Director HECS spoke to the participants about Mr. Alkazi, his long-term association with INTACH, the Filmit project She also thanked Anuradha Reddy for her support and enthusiasm. Ms. Anuradha Reddy then welcomed the participants. She expressed happiness to be part of this webinar. She spoke about the INTACH activities, such as the quiz that has been conducted in Hyderabad. She thanked Feisal for this great learning experience, the HECS team and all the teachers.

In the first session, Ms. Datt introduced INTACH and the kind of work it does and HECS division. She introduced the project to the new participants funded by the Helen Hamlyn Trust. She introduced them to this year’s theme - Heritage at Home. She then introduced the participants to the four themes for this year - natural, virtual monuments, family stories, and personal heritage. She gave suggestions on how students can work on these themes at home.

In the next session, Mr. Feisal Alkazi explained the meaning of heritage - something from the past, which is meaningful to the present, which we want to take into the future. He took the examples of Ms. Reddy’s house and highlighted elements that can be topics for making films - the cantonment, railway in colonial india, Parsi culture, food heritage of the region, local crafts that make chairs, range of languages spoken in Hyderabad, variety of trees. He then asked the students and teachers to quickly go around the house and find any heritage item which is more than 50 years old. Some of the artefacts brought forth were: a violin, to play Carnatic music maternal grandfather’s coin collection, a replica of a train from 1855, khadi cloth with Kashmiri embroidery, a Radha Krishna wood carving painting, etc. He encouraged students to think of film ideas around each of these heritage items.

He then asked students to think of a one-liner about ‘My film explores...’. Some of the responses were: the forgotten family traditions - family involvement in weddings in the olden days and how it is not practiced anymore, my sports experiences, old stones collected by my grandparents, etc. One very interesting story was shared by a student about how one object that can tell you the story of your lineage - a lucky charm that his grandfather carried while fighting in the World War, which his father carried while fighting in the Kargil War.

In the final exercise, Mr. Alkazi encouraged students to break out and be creative. He told them to continue his story - ‘I got up when I heard a sound in the middle of the night in my room, and then...’. He told them how there are certain ideas which are very common, and comply with a stereotyped way of thinking. He encouraged the students to come up with many ideas and always get rid of the first eight, as those are very common ideas. Another important point he discussed was that films should hook the audience in the first 20 seconds. Mr. Alkazi then discussed the first two themes with the students. The participants were then asked to come up with some ideas. They came up with interesting ideas such as, a stray dog that keeps visiting the house; a stray cat who gave birth to kittens, who now play in the garden; a girl who doesn’t like milk, so feeds it to the kittens; feeding crows with the father, as they are believed to be ancestors; stray dog protecting the pet dog and family, etc.

Mr. Alkazi concluded his session by reiterating that students should not limit themselves with what got discussed in the webinar. He encouraged them to think visually rather than with words. He thanked all the participants. The workshop ended with a screening of two films from the previous year and finally a group photograph where everyone was asked to turn on their cameras.

The Filmit Chandigarh and Ambala Workshop was organized by Heritage Education and Communication Service in collaboration with INTACH Chandigarh and Ambala Chapter on 17 August 2020 as a Zoom Webinar. It was attended by over 54 students and 18 teachers from 12 schools, of the cities. This was followed by a brief introduction to INTACH and the filmit project by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, Heritage Education and Communication Service, she shared with the students and teachers the remarkable journey of the filmit project across different cities of the country, highlighting its outreach and impact in making learning about heritage interesting and engaging through the medium of films.

The speaker explained to the students, how to shoot creative films this year, from their homes and neighborhood and discussed the themes for the current year, through a slide show presentation. She encouraged students to think out of the box and be at their creative best to make a good use of the pandemic shutdown. She also suggested topics that students could explore from their homes such as eco – friendly practices at home, family heirloom and family stories, recipes etc and urged students to creatively shoot their films

Post this, an interactive session was initiated by the speaker and she showed to students some examples of personal heritage like a Paan Daan, Jamdaani saree and multilingual dictionary. Students were also encouraged to look around in their homes for an heirloom which has a story of personal heritage. Some very interesting objects were brought out by the students such as a wooden jhola, grandmother’s hand woven mat, dictionary from 1930s, a book dated to the year 1921, and trophy of World War I etc. Teachers and students also discussed practices that have been part of their family through generations. Through this activity students were encouraged to look around themselves and search for stories that could be an exploration towards knowing more about their personal heritage

The technical workshop was organized in continuation of the content workshop, the latter had intensive brainstorming sessions on the content of the film, the workshop of the technical workshop was on the process of film making, direction and shooting. The technical session was taken up by Mr. Ankit Pogula and Ms. Sanjana Chopra of Tuning Fork Films, this focussed on the 3 major aspects of film making namely – planning, shooting and editing.The speakers discussed the importance of shots and angles and their use as well as relevance in film making, a session on editing was conducted which focused on the use of editing software, especially Photos and its various features, essential for short film making. The importance of sound, camera positioning, story boarding were topics extensively covered.

Concluding his remarks on editing, the speakers then briefed the students about four clear steps of editing as follows - assembly, adding text and music, managing brightness and contrast, audio levels, effects and transitions and exporting with recommended settings. The technical session also saw a lot of queries from students and hence was very engaging and interactive.

The Jaipur Filmit Technical Workshop was held on 14th August, 2020. The program was organised by the Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) division of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) with support from INTACH Jaipur Chapter. The online session was attended by 12 schools of Jaipur (with addition of two new schools- Shanti Asiatic School and DPS Jaipur)

Session 1

The first session started with a warm welcome by Ms. Shivaa Rawat, National Coordinator, HECS INTACH. She introduced Mr. Sandeep Sethi who is associated with CBSE Delhi and pioneered several education projects with City Palace, Jaipur as well as the State. He is also an educationist, writer and heritage consultant. It was then followed by a short note by Mr. Sethi. He told the children on how their films are being used in the Jaipur Film Festival and encouraged them to continue to make good films. He appreciated the schools for being a part of this project and also welcomed the two new schools that have joined this year for the project. Ms. Shivaa also introduced the technical resource person Mr. Ankit Pogula and Ms. Shreya Kakria from Tuning Fork Films. Then, Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS thanked the INTACH Jaipur Chapter for their constant help. She also shared how the Filmit project started. Ms. Shivaa Rawat, National Coordinator, HECS INTACH, with the aid of a slideshow, led the students through the themes of Filmit for this year. She shared examples on the type of films the students can make and encouraged them to explore and think about the various things around their home. It was then followed by the film screening.

Session 2

The technical session conducted by the Tuning Fork Films team Mr. Ankit Pogula and Ms. Shreya Kakria who is both a filmmaker and video trainer. Mr. Ankit guided the students about the process and important elements of film-making, from planning to shooting adn how to handle a camera. Ms. Shreya guided the students with the types of shots and other details related to shooting and also a hands on demo on how to edit, the final step in film making. Q and A was done throughout the session where the students clarified their doubts and queries. The session was interactive and informative.

The session concluded with details on how and where to upload the films and a vote of thanks by Mr. Abhishek Da, Senior Programme Coordinator, HECS INTACH.

The Filmit Content online Workshop was organised by Heritage Education and Communication Service, INTACH on 13th August 2020. The workshop was attended by more than 80 participants from 12 schools.

The Workshop began with an introduction to Filmit by Ms.Geetika Gunjan, Programme Coordinator, HECS followed by a brief address by Ms.Purnima Datt, Principal Director,HECS. This was followed by the Content session conducted by Mr. Feisal Alkazi, renowned theatre director, educationist and author. The main theme for this year is heritage through my home- encouraging students to explore their personal heritage while at home.

Mr. Alkazi held a brainstorming session with the students and encouraged them to explore their personal heritage and find unique stories and objects. Students shared some of the unique heritage items at their homes as part of the activity,such as a picture of the first car of the family, grandma's anklets, coins, Grandparents stamp collection etc. They were guided by Mr. Alkazi on how to build a story around the objects and link them to other aspects of culture and make their films. The students and teachers both participated enthusiastically.

This was followed by Ms. Datt's session where the themes for this year's project were discussed. Each theme was discussed in detail and students were encouraged to explore more about their personal heritage. As due to the unforeseen circumstances, the Filmit Festival was not held this year, the results were announced during the workshop.

Ms. Dharmendra Kanwar, Convenor INTACH Jaipur Chapter also addressed the participantss and appreciated their efforts and encouraged them to make more good films and learn about their heritage. Ms. Kanwar also appreciated HECS for their initiatives and said that the impact can be seen in the films that have been made by the students.

The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Christina Shangne, Programme Coordinator, HECS.

The Vadodara Filmit Workshop was held on 7th August 2020 through an online portal of Zoom meeting. The program was organised by the Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) division of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) with unparalleled cooperation and support from Mr. Sanjeev Joshi, Convener of the Vadodara Chapter. The online session was attended by around 50 students and 13 teachers from 6 schools in Vadodara.

Session 1

The session started with a warm welcome by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS and Mr. Sanjeev Joshi, Convener of the Vadodara Chapter.The session was further conducted by Ms. Shivaa Rawat, National Coordinator, HECS. Ms. Rawat introduced the students and teachers to the entire concept of Filmit to the students and teachers. With the aid of a slideshow, Ms. Rawat led the students through the themes of Filmit for this year. She also conducted a fun and interactive session with the students in which she asked them to fetch an item in their respective houses that can be called heritage. Once the students brought in options, with the option of raising hands on Zoom, they were asked to share their idea about making a short film on that very item.

Session 2

The film screening was followed by a technical session conducted by Mr. Vinod Sreedhar, Film-maker and Musician, and Ms. Sanjana Chopra, Film-maker and Photographer at Tuning Fork Films.While Mr. Sreedhar guided the students through the most important elements of film-making, from planning to shooting to logging and editing of the film, Ms. Chopra guided the students with the types of shots and other details related to photography and shooting. Ms. Chopra also guided the students by displaying the process of editing and compiling shots and snippets to create a film.

This was followed by a Q and A session where the students clarified their doubts and queries. The experience, though virtual, was actually quite informative and hands on. The one on one interaction throughout the workshop was commendable.

The vote of thanks was delivered by Mr. Sanjeev Joshi, Convener, Vadodara Chapter.

Varanasi

Session 1

The session began with welcoming the participants to the Webinar. Mr. Ashok Kapoor, Convenor INTACH Varanasi Chapter then addressed them and thanked the students and teachers for their participation over the years. He asked the students and teachers to be grateful in these distressing times. He said that while things are very uncertain right now, there is a lot more connectivity too because of the online platforms that are helping us conduct such events. He spoke about the many programmes by INTACH that are close to his heart and how Filmit has been a great success at Varanasi.

Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH then started with the first session. She appreciated the students’ enthusiasm that has kept this programme going for all these years. She highlighted the multicultural aspect of Filmit and introduced the participants to the Helen Hamlyn Trust and how they started this project in the UK and India. She highlighted how it flourished in India because of the students and their efforts.

She introduced the students to the four themes for this year - nature, monuments, intangible personal heritage, and tangible personal heritage. She then conducted a small brainstorming session where she shared with the students some interesting heirlooms that she has in her family, and encouraged students to share their personal heritage too.

The session ended with showing two films made by students in the past years.

Session 2

The second session was the technical session. Ankit Pogula, filmmaker spoke to the students about the potential Filmit has in Varanasi because of the rich cultural heritage of the city and its people. He then discussed the two films that were showcased and discussed the different styles in which they were made - such as camera work, text, music, dialogues, etc.

He taught the students the importance of framing and how the meaning changes with a change in framing. He told them that as responsible filmmakers one must always tell the true story.

He then told students about the 3 stages of filmmaking - preparation, shooting, and editing. The first step is to review all topics and finalise your ideas, then convert it into a script, and finally visualise it. After this, it is important to plan out the location and time of shooting so that there are no disturbances. And finally, sequencing - this is when the final details are put together. He said that filmmaking is a balance between planning and spontaneity.

The students were then introduced to shots and angles. Ms. Sanjana Chopra, filmmaker, introduced the students to the different types of shots and angles and their significance. They then showed two short films and asked the students to compare the effect the two made on them. Through this, they told them the importance of short breakdowns and how they give character and dimension.

Sanjana and Ankit then dealt with the issue of sound disturbances during shooting. They gave the students interesting tips and tricks on how to take shots and interviews while avoiding noises from the surrounding areas. They also discussed the importance of keeping the camera steady. He also told them to always make sure their battery is full and the memory card empty when they go for shooting.

Finally, Sanjana showed the students through screen sharing how to edit and export a film through the Windows in-built photo app. Ankit also told the students about other apps and softwares that can be used. The session ended with a question answer round.

Mr. Abhishek Das, Sr. Programme Coordinator, then told the students about how the films should be uploaded onto the Filmit website. The webinar ended with a vote of thanks from Mr. Kapoor.
Photographs of the Webinar

Van Mahotsav Week, 6th August, 2020

INTACH Jammu Chapter in association with Baba Jitto Boys Hostel, University of Jammu and Dept. of Forests, Ecology & Environment Jammu & Kashmir (UT) organized a plantation Drive. As part of the ongoing Van Mahotsav, a tree plantation drive on August 06/2020 (Thursday) more than 200 traditional plants of Jammu such as Neems, Panjtara, Gandilla, China rose etc were planted and all these plants which have medicinal value.

The plants were planted by Prof. Yashpal Sharma (Provost Boys Hostel) as a chief Guest, Sh. Sunil Singh DFO Urban Forestry Division Jammu, J&K Forest Department as Guest of Honour on the occasion, Dr. Jaspal Singh Warwal (Warden BJBH), Dr. Rajesh Sharma (Resident Warden BJBH), Mr. Nitan Sharma (Research Scholar, Department of Law) and Warden’s of the other hostels, faculty members and other staff members were also present during this plantation drive.

Sh. S. M. Sahni, Former Director Tourism, J&K and Convener INTACH Jammu Chapter along with Dr. Rajesh Sharma and other members of Jammu Chapter Distributed cotton face mask to all the participants and insured that social distancing protocol in maintained. Sh. S. M. Sahni, while welcoming Prof. Yashpal Sharma, Dr. Jaspal Singh Warwal, Shri Sunil Singh (DFO), Dr. C. M. Seth, Co-Convener INTACH J&K State & other faculty as well as members of INTACH explained the purpose of the Plantation Drive. He further explained the importance and benefits of such kind of Van Mahotsav Week programme.

Dr. C. M. Seth IFS (Retd.), Environmentalist and Co-Convener INTACH J&K, briefed the house about the importance of plants with reference to soil conservation, Global warming and deforestation. He also stressed to protect the Natural Wealth as Natural Heritage including Forests Wealth (Varieties of Traditional Trees) Water Bodies, Animals, and Medicinal Plants etc.

Dr. Rajesh Sharma, Event Coordinator of INTACH Jammu Chapter, Resident Warden of Baba Jitto Boy’s Hostel, Lecturer Department of Buddhist Studies, University of Jammu proposed a vote of thanks especially to Prof. Yashpal for sharing his valuable time to share his views on importance of plantation drive and to all the dignitaries of the programme.

The Ahmedabad Filmit Workshop organized by INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) was held on 6th August, 2020. It was attended by over 93 participants from 8 Schools, 6 schools from Ahmedabad, 1 from Jamnagar (Bhavan's Shri A. K. Doshi Vidyalaya) and 1 from Surat (GIIS Surat). The session started with a welcome note and introduction of Mr. Pawan Bakeri, Co-convenor of Ahmedabad INTACH Chapter and the technical resource persons Mr. Ankit Pogula and Ms. Sanjana Chopra by Mr. Abhishek Das (Senior Programme Coordinator HECS INTACH). It was followed by words of encouragement from Mr. Pawan Bakeri, who applauded the students for participating in the session and encouraged them to use this platform to learn more about the tangible and intangible heritage of Ahmedabad.

The Filmit themes for 2020/21 were shared and explained by Ms. Purnima Datt through a detailed presentation. She urged the students to explore more about their heritage in their homes and the things around them. A range of heritage objects were identified by the students found in their homes for filming, including a pot made by her great grandmother, old brass utensils, old one rupee note, a snack jar belonging to her grandfather, an old painting, embroidery cloth etc. Ms. Purnima stressed upon that after the project of film making is over, everyone will learn to respect their culture, their grandparents, the culture of their friends etc.

The technical resource persons shared in details on how to make a good film. Using a powerpoint presentation, short films and a hands on demo on the various steps required in making films was shared. They stress that one has to be creative and make a good film with a good message.

Mr. Abhishek Das also shared about where and how the students can upload the films on the filmit website. The workshop concluded with a vote of thanks from Mrs. Purnima Datt.

The Filmit Mumbai Workshop was organized by Heritage Education and Communication Service in collaboration with INTACH Greater Mumbai Chapter on 4 August 2020 as a Zoom Webinar. It was attended by over 73 students and 13 teachers from 9 schools, of the city. This was followed by a brief introduction to INTACH and the filmit project by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, Heritage Education and Communication Service, she shared with the students and teachers the remarkable journey of the filmit project across different cities of the country, highlighting its outreach and impact in making learning about heritage interesting and engaging through the medium of films.

The speaker explained to the students, how to shoot creative films this year, from their homes and neighborhood and discussed the themes for the current year, through a slide show presentation. She encouraged students to think out of the box and be at their creative best to make a good use of the pandemic shutdown. She also suggested topics that students could explore from their homes such as art galleries of Mumbai, embroidery style of Parsis etc.

Post this, an interactive session was initiated by the speaker and she showed to students some examples of personal heritage like a Jamdaani saree and multilingual dictionary. Students were also encouraged to look around in their homes for an heirloom which has a story of personal heritage.

Some very interesting objects were brought out by the students such as a hereditary keychain, ivory carom stricker, picture of 100 year old home, statues made in Africa etc. Through this activity students were encouraged to look around themselves and search for stories that could be an exploration towards knowing more about their personal heritage.

The technical workshop was organized in continuation of the content workshop, the latter had intensive brainstorming sessions on the content of the film, the workshop of the technical workshop was on the process of film making, direction and shooting.

The technical session was taken up by Mr. Ankit Pogula and Ms. Shreya Kakria of Tuning Fork Films, this focussed on the 3 major aspects of film making namely – planning, shooting and editing.The speakers discussed the importance of shots and angles and their use as well as relevance in film making, a session on editing was conducted which focused on the use of editing software, especially Photos and its various features, essential for short film making. The importance of sound, camera positioning, story boarding were topics extensively covered.

Concluding his remarks on editing, the speakers then briefed the students about four clear steps of editing as follows- assembly, adding text and music, managing brightness and contrast, audio levels, effects and transitions and exporting with recommended settings. The technical session also saw a lot of queries from students and hence was very engaging and interactive.

Heritage Education and Communication Service organised the Filmit Workshop online as a Webinar on 31st July, 2020. 76 participants attended the workshop including teachers and students from 15 schools from Kolkata as well as two schools from Chandannagar. The session started with a welcome note by Mr. Abhishek Das, HECS INTACH. Mr. G. M. Kapur, Convenor INTACH Kolkata Chapter shared some encouraging words with the students and teachers and asked them to use this new platform of online webinar and utilize it to the fullest. The technical resource persons were Mr. Vinod Sreedhar and Ms. Sanjana Chopra.

The session started off with a brief about the FILMIT project by Mrs. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, Heritage Education and Communication Service, INTACH. She introduced the Filmit project to the newcomers of how it started in Delhi and then spread to Kolkata and other cities. She thanked the teachers and as well as the students for sustaining the project for so many years and appreciated their hard work towards contributing to the Filmit project. She also thanked the Kolkata Chapter for their support.

The project timeline and the number of films (5 films) to be made by each school was shared with the participants. It was then followed by a brief discussion about the themes for this year that is 'Heritage through my Home' (*shot inside the house or even two/three students coming together to shoot a film through an online collaborative technique). The presentation concluded with sharing what their personal heritage means to them. One of the teachers shared about his personal heritage, two old books that belonged to his grandfather. Mrs. Purnima Datt also talked about the old paandan that was used by her grandmother. Few students also shared about their personal heritage, a bookstand belonging to his grandparents, another student about the favourite dress of her mother that is now passed down by her, each bringing lovely memories. This was followed by a screening of a short film made by one of the Filmit schools.

The technical session was conducted by Mr. Vinod Sreedhar, and Ms Sanjana Chopra. Mr. Vinod started off the technical session by discussing the techniques and tips on how to make a perfect film. He shared how and why films are powerful. With the help of a powerpoint presentation, the technical process of filmmaking was discussed. The various steps of shots used in a film were explained by Ms. Sanjana Chopra. The various shots and angles that the filmmaker can use are long/wide shot where the character is visible in full with space around; Mid shot- where the character are visible from above the knee; close up shot- a detailed shot of the object; cut away- shots of action of the character; over the shoulder-the angle that is used in dialogue; point of view where the eyes of the character is used as the camera. The camera angles such as eye level, low angle, high angle, side angle etc. give or portray the subject in a different perspective and give a good texture to the picture. A video on how to get a good sound quality was played. Mr Vinod also shared some tips on how to handle a camera while shooting a film.

Editing is the final step where one puts in the visuals, add or remove and also add sound to the film. Ms. Sanjana demonstrated a step by step on how one can use the windows software ‘Windows Movie Maker/ Photos’ for editing the film. A demo using the software on how to arrange visuals, texts, images etc, how to adjust audio in the film and most importantly how to save film in high quality were shown. Features like inserting title, subtitles, credits, adding visual effects, changing audio levels in different parts of the film, trimming videos, ensuring smooth transition of clips etc were also discussed. An example of a video that was shot in Ms. Sanjana’s home itself was used for the edit. It also gave the students a fine example on how to create good content even from home.

There were questions and answers all through the session and the technical resource team explained to the students all their doubts and queries. Mr. Abhishek Das, explained the process of uploading the films on the website, the size of the film and various converting softwares the students can use. The workshop concluded with a vote of thanks from Mrs. Purnima Datt.

Filmit India 2020 Delhi Technical Workshop organized by INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) was held on 27 July 2020. It was attended by over 95 participants representing 18 schools (18 teachers and 90 students). The participants were welcomed by Ms Shivaa Rawat (INTACH HECS, National Coordinator). It was followed by a welcome address by Ms Purnima Datt (Principal Director, INTACH HECS) and an introduction to the resource person, Mr Ankit Pogula and Ms Sanjana Chopra from Tuning Forks Films. The Filmit themes for 2020/21 were described by Ms Purnima Datt through a detailed presentation. She explained the themes for the students and how all films could be made in their homes taking into consideration the ongoing pandemic. Thereafter, two films made by students were screened. It was followed by the technical session by the resource persons, Mr Ankit Pogula and Ms Sanjana Chopra. They described the technicalities of making films that were engaging and creative stressing on role of research, planning, sequence selection, camera shots, angles, sound quality and most importantly, editing the entire footage to create a compelling film. The workshop concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms Purnima Datt and her best wishes to the students for Fillmit 2020/21.

Photographs

Group photographs

Filmit India 2020 Delhi Content Workshop organized by INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) was held on 23 July 2020. It was attended by 94 participants representing 19 schools (18 teachers and 76 students). The participants were welcomed by Ms Shivaa Rawat (INTACH HECS, National Coordinator). It was followed by a welcome address by Ms Purnima Datt (Principal Director, INATCH HECS) and an introduction to the resource person, Mr Feisal Alkazi.

Filmit themes for 2020/21 were described by Ms Purnima Datt through a detailed presentation. Content development and an examination of the heritage themes was undertaken by Mr Feisal Alkazi. He urged the participants to think about heritage of their homes and what was the heritage around them. A range of heritage objects were identified by students for filming. Including, Phukari dupatta, Kripan, Tamba Lotta, Kashmiri ancesteral tabla, Naga head hunting sword. Caring for Nature, Birds and Animals was the next theme discussed by Mr Feisal Alkazi. He stressed upon creating an inspirational personalized account and communicating with powerful visuals in each film. The workshop concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms Purnima Datt and her best wishes to the students for Fillmit 2020/21.

Photographs

Group photographs

21 - 22 July 2020

A Two-day teacher training workshop on Heritage Awareness and Education was organised by INTACH HECS in collaboration with INTACH Faridabad Chapter through an online webinar on 21 - 22 July 2020. It was attended by over 40 participants representing 15 schools, 2 women's colleges and senior INTACH Faridabad chapter members. The first day of the workshop began with an introduction by INTACH Faridabad Chapter Convenor, Mr Anand Mehta followed by a detailed presentation by Principal Director, INTACH HECS, Ms Purnima Datt. The presentation highlighted heritage and all its dimensions with numerous examples as well as, interesting lesser known facts. The participants appreciated the knowledge acquired and ways to examine heritage. The session concluded with a question-answer exchange facilitated by Ms Purnima Datt. The second day of the workshop focussed on heritage education and ways to introduce it in classrooms through an engaging presentation by Ms Purnima Datt. An integrated multi disciplinary approach was used to highlight the ways to incorporate heritage into curriculum learning. Such as, the use of role play, games and interactive exercises. The aspects of experiential on-site learning through guided heritage site tours, heritage walks, museum tours and role of resource persons in promoting heritage education was described by Mr Abhishek Das (Senior Programme Coordinator, INTACH HECS). The use of HECS educational resources, including books, webpage, facebook and instagram was highlighted by Ms Shivaa Rawat (National Coordinator, INTACH HECS). Thereafter, material heritage conservation undertaken by INTACH was presented and participants were intrigued by the range of heritage assets that had been restored by INTACH Conservation Institute. The session concluded with an exchange of question-answers undertaken by Ms Purnima Datt which was followed by a vote of thanks by the Convenor, Mr Anand Mehta.

Content and Technical

24th and 29th July 2020

Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, introduced the students and teachers to the Filmit project. She discussed the journey of this project, of how it has grown over the past years, from a few schools in Delhi to now covering thirteen cities Ms. Datt discussed the project timeline with all the participants. Through a powerpoint presentation, she discussed the themes for this year.

The second session was conducted by Mr. Feisal Alkazi. He started the session by telling the students that this will be an interactive session where they too will discuss their thoughts and ideas.The most important thing in filmmaking, he said, is to have a conversation with the audience. The message needs to be good. He took the example of the two films that were shown to illustrate this. He then asked the students to run around their house and share any heirloom with the other participants. This was very interactive as a number of students had interesting objects and stories to share. This interaction helped them brainstorm ideas for their films.

He reiterated an important aspect of designing the content of a film - the first twenty seconds of the film must grab the viewer's attention. He gave the examples of our regular habit of surfing TV channels because nothing is interesting. He said that the films must be fun, dramatic, and must have a conversation with the audience. Lastly, he said that the current pandemic situation should not be an excuse for the student’s to not participate, as there is a lot that can be done in the house. The students enjoyed the session very much. They were very happy with the interaction and felt extremely motivated to start making films. They thanked Mr. Alkazi for his great insights and a very interactive and successful session.

The technical workshop was organized in continuation of the content workshop, the latter had intensive brainstorming sessions on the content of the film, the workshop of the technical workshop was on the process of film making, direction and shooting.

The technical session was taken up by Mr. Ankit Pogula and Ms. Sanjana Chopra of Tuning Fork Films, this focussed on the 3 major aspects of film making namely – planning, shooting and editing.

The speakers discussed the importance of shots and angles and their use as well as relevance in film making, a session on editing was conducted which focused on the use of editing software, especially Photos and its various features, essential for short film making. The importance of sound, camera positioning, story boarding were topics extensively covered.

Concluding his remarks on editing, the speakers then briefed the students about four clear steps of editing as follows- assembly, adding text and music, managing brightness and contrast, audio levels, effects and transitions and exporting with recommended settings. The technical session also saw a lot of queries from students and hence was very engaging and interactive.

Webinar: The Panoramic Legend of Rama in the Living Traditions of Asia

17th July 2020, Varanasi

The Varanasi Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organized an online webinar workshop for students and teachers of the city. Over 70 participants; students and teachers from 13 schools of the city were part of this online workshop. The Chapter had invited Shri Vinod Vyomesh Shukla, as resource person for the workshop. He is a poet author, film and theatre personality closely working on the subject. INTACH Varanasi Chapter member Dr. Anuradha Raturi facilitated the workshop and Shri Ashok Kapoor, Convener Varanasi and Shri Nirmal Joshi, Additional Co - convener also attended the workshop.

The workshop started with Dr. Anuradha Raturi welcoming all participants to the workshop, she gave a brief introduction to the workshop highlighting the usage of the word Ram in our day to day lives and how Lord Rama and the values associated with him and his rule have been idealized and understood across time and space.

Shri Kapoor welcomed all students and teachers to the workshop and added that the idea of Rama cannot be characterized as one. He has numerous facets to his character, for instance - an obedient son, skilful warrior and just ruler and this is a subject of great scholarly study, he further added that while most of understand him as God, Orchha in Madhya Pradesh has temples dedicated to King Rama and there he is worshipped as a righteous king till date in the Raja Ram Temple.

This was followed by a screening of an internationally acclaimed film called Ramayana: A Shared Culture by Shri Binoy Behl. The film explored the various dimension of the Rama story across different cultures and countries in South – East Asia. Post the film, Shri Shukla interacted with the students and spoke to them about the most popular forms of association with Lord Rama in India, the Ramleela’s, he specially focused on the staging of the Ramnagar Ramleela, which is patronized by the royal family of Varanasi. He focused on the environment and the setting of the staging which led scholars like Richard Schechner to coin the term “Theatre of Environment”. Through his interaction with students some key characteristics of different characters of the Ramayana, he also showed students the masks used by artists of Varanasi to stage a Ramleela. He also spoke of the Ramayana as a historical epic and its importance in the social and cultural sphere.

The workshop ended with a vote of thanks from Shri Nirmal Joshi, he thanked the resource person for an enriching session and Dr. Raturi for her moderation and inputs, and he also expressed his gratitude towards the participating students and teacher for their enthusiastic response and thought provoking questions which even interested elders and brought to fore some areas of discussions.

Discover your Living Heritage Webinar on Hindustani Classical Music – Dhrupad Tradition, 10th July 2020, Varanasi

The INTACH Varanasi Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organized an online webinar workshop for students and teachers of the city. 100 participants; students and teachers from 9 schools of the city were part of this online workshop. The Chapter had invited Dr Ashish Jaisawal, as resource person for the workshop. He is a trained musician and a scholar of the Dhrupad tradition of music to interact with the students. INTACH Varanasi Chapter member Dr. Anuradha Raturi facilitated the workshop and Shri Ashok Kapoor, Convener Varanasi and Shri Nirmal Joshi, Addl Co - convener also attended the workshop.

The workshop’s main focus was making students aware of the origins and features Dhrupad style of Hindustani Classical Music, its relationship with the city of Varanasi, throwing light on the contributions of numerous stalwarts of this traditional Indian music style.

The Raipur Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organized an online webinar workshop and competition for students and teachers of the city. Around 50 participants; students and teachers from various schools of the city were part of this online workshop and competition of the Folk Art of Chhattisgarh– Aathen Kanhaiya. The Chapter had invited Shri Gore Lal Chandel, an educationist with a background in history and folk who had retired as HOD of the Hindi Department from the Indira Kala Sangeet Vishwavidyala, Khairagarh and Shri Kapil Singh Verma, Faculty member from the Indira Kala Sangeet Vishwavidyala, Khairagarh as resource persons for this workshop. Other distinguished guests in presence were Dr. Nathu Thode and Dr. Deepshika Patil, who work closely with Raipur Chapter.

The workshop was designed as an interactive session, through a medium of lecture and demonstration with its focus was making students aware of the origins and features of the folk art style, its importance in the cultural milieu of Chhattisgarh and its rapid disappearance in the age of commercialized celebrations. The idea was to make students aware of such rich indigenous art traditions so that students become torchbearers for its revival.

Post this session students were instructed to prepare themselves for the competition – which required them to submit an essay and painting on the topic. The competition was monitored online and entries were collected via electronic means.

The Raipur Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH and with INTACH Khairagarh Chapter organized an online webinar workshop and competition for students and teachers of the city. Around 90 participants; students and teachers from various schools of the city were part of this online workshop and competition of the Folk Art of Chhattisgarh – Aathen Kanhaiya. The Chapter had invited Shri Gore Lal Chandel, an educationist with a background in history and folk who had retired as HOD of the Hindi Department from the Indira Kala Sangeet Vishwavidyala, Khairagarh and Shri Nathu Thorey, from the Indira Kala Sangeet Vishwavidyala, Khairagarh as resource persons for this workshop and Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH. Chapter Conveners from Sarguja, Kawardha, Raipur, Manendragarh and Khairagarh were part of this online workshop. Dr. Lalit Surjan, State Convener of INTACH Chhattisgarh Chapter was also present for the workshop. The Chief Guest for the event was Ms. Mamta Chandrakar, Vice – Chancellor of the Indira Kala Sangeet Vishwavidyala, Khairagarh.

The workshop was designed as an interactive session, through a medium of lecture and demonstration. It’s main focus was making students aware of the origins and features of the folk art style, its importance in the cultural milieu of Chhattisgarh and its rapid disappearance in the age of commercialized celebrations. The idea was to make students aware of such rich indigenous art traditions so that students become torchbearers for its revival.

Post his session students were instructed to prepare themselves for the competition – which required them to submit an essay and painting on the topic. The competition was monitored online and entries were collected via electronic means.

The INTACH Dhar Chapter in collaboration with HECS INTACH has started a series of craft workshops for schools students to acquaint them with the lesser known cultural heritage of the region. The workshops are being held online. The first in this series of workshop was conducted on 28th October and was conducted on Paper craft, and the importance of tribal motifs in such crafts. The workshop was attended by 20 students, members of INTACH Dhar Chapter, Convener Shri Deependra Sharma.

The resource person for the workshop was - Ms. Neha Chouhan, an art teacher from the Kendriya Vidyalaya who demonstrated a step by step manner, creation of paper craft doll, decorated with tribal motifs, inspired from the tribal communities inhabiting the region, the speaker stressed on the importance of recycling paper and not wasting resources, while practicing the craft.

Mrs. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS who spoke to the students about the Young INTACH website and its use for students, especially in the revamped education scenario brought in by the pandemic.

Ms. Teresa Walter, Programme Coordinator, HECS spoke about the various social media initiatives of the division and encouraged students to participate in the activities; she also expressed her gratitude towards the chapter for organizing the workshop and facilitating a more innovative learning experience for students.

The Varanasi Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organized an online webinar workshop for students and teachers of the city. Around 70 participants; students and teachers from various schools of the city were part of this online workshop. The Chapter had invited Shri Prem Mohan Dobhal as resource person for the workshop. He is a retired educationist with a background in theatre and folk culture to interact with the students. INTACH Varanasi Chapter member Dr. Anuradha Raturi facilitated the workshop and Shri Ashok Kapoor, Convener Varanasi and Shri Nirmal Joshi, Addl Co - convener also attended the workshop.

The workshop’s main focus was making students aware of the origins and features of the folk theatre style of the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand called Ramman, this folk theatre form, a unique mix of festival and theatre is also selected by UNESCO for its Representative List of Intangible Heritage.

The INTACH Varanasi Chapter organized a Living Heritage interactive webinar workshop on Traditional Painting of Banaras. The session was attended by teachers and students, members of INTACH Varanasi Chapter- Mr. Ashok Kapoor, Convenor of INTACH Varanasi Chapter, Dr. Ms. Anuradha Raturi, Shri Shashank Singh ji, INTACH Life Member and Advisor, Art and Craft Cell of INTACH Varanasi Chapter and . Christina Shangne (representative of HECS INTACH). The guest speaker for the session was Artist Mr. Dayashanker and Mr. Shashank Singh who spoke about how miniature paintings are done using the natural paper- wasli to make the paintings and demonstrated step by step on how miniature paintings are done.

The session was organised to help the students learn more about Banarasi miniature painting. Mr. Kapoor, Convenor of INTACH Varanasi Chapter thanked all the participants for joining the session and also thanked the artists for teaching the students about Banaras miniature paintings. The Chapter has conducted 4 sessions in different schools in Varanasi along with the artist and also plans to conduct more sessions with different schools in future. He also requested the students to draw a painting and submit it and the selected students will be awarded. The Chapter also plans to organise more sessions with teachers too with the help of INTACH headquarter.

30 June 2020

INTACH Varanasi in collaboration with INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) organised a webinar on Heritage Awareness and Education for school teachers of Varanasi on 30 June 2020. The webinar was attended by over 55 teachers representing 11 schools from across the city. The webinar began with an introduction by Ms Anuradha Raturi, INTACH Varanasi chapter and Mr Ashok Kapoor, Convenor INTACH Varanasi Chapter. It was followed by a detailed presentation on Understanding Heritage and Creating Heritage Awareness through Education by Ms Purnima Datt, Principal Director, INTACH HECS. Natural heritage was highlighted as the starting point of heritage and the birth of all life forms. The inception of life from the mythical golden egg and the establishment of the Jambudwipa was described. The segment on built heritage highlighted the Bhimbetka caves, Great Bath – Harrapa, Gandhara and Mathura sculptures, Islamic architecture in medieval India with bulbous domes, majestic palaces and forts, the making of New Delhi and carving of the Capital Story, Lutyens Delhi and Rashtrapati Bhawan, among others. Thereafter, the incredible material heritage and living heritage assets were described. The detailed presentation was appreciated by all participants. In the next segment, ways to promote heritage education in classrooms and heritage clubs was discussed. The use of an integrated multi disciplinary approach with various educational tools, such as, exposure visits, object study, flashcards, HECS publications and HECS online resources was encouraged by Ms Purnima Datt. An outline of the HECS online resources, including, the young intach webpage, facebook page and instagram page was described by Ms Shivaa Rawat (INTACH HECS). It was followed by an interactive question and answer exchange undertaken by Ms Purnima Datt. The webinar closed with a vote of thanks by INTACH Co-Convenor, Mr Nirmal Joshi appreciating the efforts of the teachers for participating and contributing with much enthusiasm.
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An All India online training for Teachers 19 June 2020,DPS Schools

An online day-long webinar was organised by INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) in collaboration with the Delhi Public School Society Human Resources Development Centre for teachers representing the Delhi Public Schools all across the country. The webinar aimed at promoting an understanding of heritage and training teachers to examine ways in which heritage education would be integrated into classroom learning. It was attended by over 200 enthusiastic social studies teachers of DPS from across the country.

An introduction to the webinar and the training objectives was explained by Ms Nita Kumar (HRDC, The DPS Society). It was followed by an inaugural welcome address by Ms Vanita Seghal. It was followed by an introduction to the INTACH HECS Principal Director, Ms Purnima Datt and HECS National Coordinator, Ms Shivaa Rawat.

An overview of heritage and its dimensions was shared by Ms Purnima Datt. Ranging from natural, material, built and living heritage assets that were discussed in detail. The session concluded with a discussion on the fundamental duties and their emphasis on preserving heritage. In the next segment, Heritage Education in Classrooms was presented by Ms Purnima Datt. The need for heritage education and process adopted by HECS was described. An emphasis was laid on an inter-disciplinary approach through innovative lesson-planning, practical exercises using flash cards, role-play and object identification. The HECS educational resources, including the range of publications and online resources were described by Ms Shivaa Rawat and Ms Purnima Datt. The participants were encouraged to use the HECS webpage, facebook and instagram in their class room activities. Thereafter, an interesting and exhaustive question and answer exchange was undertaken by Ms Purnima Datt. The session concluded on a positive note with a vote of thanks by the school teacher coordinator, Ms Sudeshna Mandala.

Online Craft Workshop

30th June 2020

Ambala
The Ambala Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organized a craft workshop for students and teachers of the city. Around 70 participants from 7 schools of the city were part of this online workshop. The Chapter also invited B.K. Shaily, Head of Brahmakumaris, Ambala City and Ms Vijay Sharma (HOD Hindi, SD College, and member INTACH), as Guests of Honour. The workshop’s main focus was making students aware of the various household crafts that have been part of Indian homes. The resource person for this workshop was Ms. Reena, who is a teacher and has deep interest in crafts. . A formal welcome address to the workshop was by given by Retired Colonel R.D. Singh, Convener INTACH Ambala Chapter The workshop session began with Ms. Reena, demonstrating to students how to make a basket for miscellaneous items with the use of discarded glass bangles and wool, her second demonstrated craft was making a lime stone basket at home, with a balloon as its base and along with old newspapers. In her session she also shared with students, certain ideas on decorating such baskets. Ms. Madhu Singh, also shared with students some household craft items that can be made using recycled items such as old paper, she also shared with students the process of making cloth scrolls, which can be handed out as invitations, she also spoke of the traditional context and use of such scrolls. The workshop ended with comments from participating teachers and students, who shared that they enjoyed the workshop and look forward to more engaging events.

QUARTERLY REPORT ONLINE ACTIVITIES - April to June, 2020

World Heritage Day, April 18 , 2020.

An online Painting Competition was organized, where the Central Public School, Rockwoods School  and Central Academy (Sardarpura) participated. In all, 45 students took part and six prizes awarded. Four Videos were shared on Chapter’s WA and Website.

Udaipur Sthapana Diwas, April 26, 2020.

The Foundation Day of Udaipur City was celebrated on Akshya Tritiya, in the form of a meeting and sharing videos prepared by Prof. Lalit Pandey (Historian), Prof. Girish Nath Mathur (Historian), Prof. S S Sarangdevot (VC, JRNRAU), Shri Gaurav Singhvi(Coconvener) and Dr. B P Bhatnagar.

Executive Committee Meeting, May 16, 2020.

The Foundation Day of Udaipur City was celebrated on Akshya Tritiya, in the form of a meeting and sharing videos prepared by Prof. Lalit Pandey (Historian), Prof. Girish Nath Mathur (Historian), Prof. S S Sarangdevot (VC, JRNRAU), Shri Gaurav Singhvi(Coconvener) and Dr. B P Bhatnagar.

Executive Committee Meeting, May 16, 2020.

A Webinar meeting of the executive committee members was organised where they discussed various aspects of Chapter related activities. Dr. B. P. Bhatnagar, Shri Gaurav Singhvi, Prof. Lalit Pandey, Eṛ S. K. Shrimali, Prof. Meena Gaur and Shri Munish Goyal joined the meeting along with Mrs. Manita and Shri Sudhir as Special Invitees. Eṛ. Swapnil and Eṛ Vatsla from Bangalore were also present.

International Museum Day, May 18, 2020.

INTACH Heritage Club of Maharana Mewar Public School, Udaipur, organised a Webinar on May 18, 2020 through Google Meet on the occasion of International Museum Day. The speaker for the session was Historian, Prof. Lalit Pandey, who spoke on “ Museums and their role in society to develop a feeling of inclusiveness and equality”. Dr. B. P. Bhatnagar (Convenor) and Mr. Gaurav Singhvi (Co-convenor) was also present. 26 students along with some teachers attended the Webinar session.

A successful online program was also presented on different aspects of museums with the technical support from Eṛ Swapnil, Eṛ Vatsla and Ms. Manita from Bangalore / Udaipur. Dr B P Bhatnagar welcomed all the participants and shared the importance of the day, Prof. Lalit Pandey spoke on the origin, historical sketch and importance; the MMCF spoke on The City Palace Museum- a visit’; Dr. Liaque Hussain talked about Bhartiya Lok Kala Mandal Museum (assisted by Dr Rohit Manaria, Curator ); Shri Gaurav Singhvi on Types of museums and their importance and Shri Vilas Janve spoke on the Need of Public Support for maintenance of museums.

Talk on Virasat, May 31, 2020.

The Department of History & Civilisation, Gautum Buddha University, Noida, organized a five-day lecture series on Google meet on May 31. Convener Dr. Bhatnagar was invited to give a talk on "VIRASAT". In his talk, he briefly covered various aspects including it's meaning, types, role of citizens, INTACH - it's role and importance, constitutional provisions, role of UNESCO and World Heritage Sites in India, endangered heritage, PG Diploma , employment as well as expectations from our young generation to inherit the rich heritage and protect, conserve and preserve the same. This Google Meet was attended by a large number of students, faculty and other citizens in different states of India.

World Environment Day, June 5, 2020.

On the occasion of World Environment Day, an online Poster making/ Painting competition was organised for the students. In all, 272 students from 11 schools participated. Our Chapter awarded certificates to all the participants and prizes to 33 of them - Gandhi 's book " Hind Swaraj ". These paintings will become a part of our newsletter Nidhi Darpan.

Video talks on various aspects of the environment have been put on our Website. Thanks to Shri S. K. Verma, Prof. Lalit Pandey, Eṛ S. K. Shrimali, Shri. Gaurav Singhvi, student Ms. Akshra and all others for their active support and cooperation for the success of this event.

Annual Activities Report 2019-20

INTACH Heritage Quiz, 31st August 2019

The Heritage quiz was held on 3st August at Dayal Singh Public School. About 104 students from 11 schools participated. Winning team was from Mukand Lal Public School. This team later secured Second position at National level competition at Delhi on 5 & 6 Dec 2019.

Gandhi Ji at 150 Years, 14th December 2019

'Gandhi Ji at 150 Years', a painting and essay writing competition was held on 14th December at Swami Vivekanand Public School, Sector-17, HUDA, Jagadhri. 120 students from 12 schools participated. Dr. Rupinder Singh, a renowned oncologist and also a very inspiring person was invited on the occasion to influence the young minds and convey the right messages according to the core ethos of the subject.

Heritage Awareness Activities.

Our Chapter member Mr. Gurvinder Singh gave a Heritage awareness presentation at Globe International School and helped them to set up a Heritage Club in the school. This school being 25 km away will be self dependent for heritage education under guidance from the Chapter. Regular presentations & screening films for enhancing Heritage Awareness among students, teachers and general public.

Haryana State Advisory Committee. 01-02 April 2019.

This meeting was attended by Convenor Major R S Bhatti & both Co Convenors Mr Vaibhav Garg & Mr Gurvinder Singh. Our Chapter gave a presentation on ‘Impact of Sindhu-Saraswati civilization on evolution of Five distinct Bio-diverse Zones in North Kuru Pradesh , present day Yamunanagar District.

The Best Chapter Award was given to our Chapter for Heritage Quiz 2018.

Lockdown Period Activities.

Our Chapter has created a whatsapp group of 40 members who are Heritage Education related teachers of various Schools, some members of Yamunanagar Chapter. Dr Purnima Datt of HECS is also a member who keeps guiding us on this platform. This group has been particularly active during the current lockdown period. Teachers have been guiding and monitoring the following types of activities of their respective students. Keen participation by all.

i) Poster Making & essay writing on numerous topics.
ii) Participation in online Quizzes
iii) Young India E-newsletter – Sharing and discussing topics in the newsletter.
iv) Weekend Challenge– assignments proposed by HECS - INTACH every week on different topics

Kamala Nehru College, University of Delhi in collaboration with INTACH hosted a webinar on the syncretic culture of Delhi City (11 - 12 June 2020). In the current Covid-19 landscape and prevailing social distancing norms, the educational webinar focused on the themes of Delhi’s lingua franca, poetry, settlement patterns and tumultuous times, such as, 1857 to showcase the city’s roots embedded in rich and resilient multicultural traditions. It was enthusiastically attended by over 140 participants consisting of senior faculty members, college students, eminent experts and professionals from the field.

The first day of the programme began with an introduction to the webinar by Dr Archana Ojha. Ms Jayanti Bala Gupta, Teacher-In-Charge of the Department of History Kamala Nehru College, University of Delhi introduced the eminent and distinguished speakers.

Session II- Dr Saif Mahmood describing Mir-o-ghalib ki dilli: Mughal Delhi and the Romance of Urdu Poetry. The speaker talked about the idea behind Mughal Delhi and the Romance of Urdu Poetry was to survey the evolution of Urdu as a language and how it came to be adopted by the linguists, poets and scholars of the time to write some of the most iconic prose and poetry of the 18th century. His talk also traces the life histories of poets and authors across the late medieval period, instrumental in elevating the position of the language from that of the masses to that of the intelligentsia.

The second day began with an address by Dr Shubhra Sinha. She welcomed the expert panelists for the day and introduced the eminent speakers.

Session III- Dr Yousuf Saeed highlighting the Poets and Saints of Delhi's Nizamuddin Basti: a History in Continuum. He spoke about Poets and Saints of Delhi's Nizamuddin Basti: a History in Continuum. The syncretic culture of Delhi with the help of biographical accounts and references from Sufi Saints was recounted.

Session IV- Dr Rana Safvi talking about 1857 Eye Witness Accounts. She showcased the revolt of 1857 with the help of a presentation capturing Shahjahanabad from May 1857. Interesting visuals from the sepoy revolt of 1857, Bahadur Shah Zafar and the siege of Delhi through iconic Lahori Darwaza were shared. It was followed by a short poetry recital from the speech of the rebel soldiers, the cartridge smearing episode. Thereafter, the powerpoint presentation was accompanied by the thought provoking lecture that traversed through Begum Samru’s Palace on the Delhi Bank, the capture and lockout at the Delhi Bank and an eye catching view of the Telegraph memorial.

Session V- Mr Vinod Dua speaking about Ujde hue logon se aabaad shehr dilli. An enriching and hugely insightful webinar was appreciated by all the participants. He spoke about “Ujdue hue logon se aabadshehrDilli". The session focused on the changing face of Delhi since the time of partition. He also shared his family’s story of migration from Dera Ismail Khan to Delhi due to the partition of India in 1947 and many more. The talk ended with a recitation of Bulley Shah’s "Ni maiKamliaan" by Mr Dua.

The interesting and thought provoking two-day webinar concluded with a vote of thanks by Dr.Archana Ojha (Professor, History Department, Kamala Nehru College).

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Workshop on Built Heritage and the Role of Citizens, 12 June, 2020

INTACH Gwalior Chapter in collaboration with INTACH HECS organized a webinar on the Built Heritage and the Role of Citizens on 12th June, 2020. The informative and insightful session was attended by over 45 participants comprising teachers, heads of departments, heritage experts, convenors, co-convenors and senior INTACH Gwalior as well as Madhya Pradesh Chapter members.

The session began with an inaugural address by INTACH Gwalior Chapter Convenor, Mr. Vikas Singh. It was followed by an introduction to the Heritage Education and Communication Service of INTACH and Ms. Purnima Datt (Principal Director, HECS and resource person for the webinar). The INTACH film was screened in the next segment. It offered the participants an overview of INTACH and its heritage activities spread across the country. A detailed presentation on the Built Heritage and the Role of Citizens was undertaken by Ms. Purnima Datt. The enriching session offered an outline of the incredible built heritage of our country. The information about the built heritage was appreciated by the participants. It was followed by a discussion on the role of citizens and their responsibility as a collective to safeguard heritage. An outline of various activities for responsible citizens and ways to establish a heritage citizenship club was shared by Ms Shivaa Rawat (INTACH HECS). A discussion on INTACH HECS online educational resources, such as, the young intach webpage, facebook, instagram and various publications was described as well. In the final segment, thoughts, ideas and reflections were exchanged. It was followed by enthusiastic participants expressing ways to engage with heritage and the need to carry out more activities in future. The webinar concluded with a vote of thanks by the Convenor INTACH Gwalior Chapter.

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Report on the Webinar ‘Living Heritage Of Varanasi’ with INTACH member school, Sunbeam School Moghulsarai.

The INTACH Varanasi Chapter organised a Webinar session with the Sunbeam School, Moghulsarai on the topic ‘Living Heritage Of Varanasi’. The following report is written by a school student.

Today there was a live session on the ‘Living Heritage Of Varanasi’ by Professor Pradosh Mishra, HOD– History Department of Arts -BHU on the above mentioned topic with our students and Teachers. The session started at 8:30 am, and it was attended by 100 Participants. Professor Pradosh Mishra started the session by sharing his screen with ppt and explained all the topics very nicely. His way of introducing Varanasi as the oldest living city was well supported by the factual evidence. He tried to take us back in the past chronologically and the landmark incidence that took place in Varanasi was informative. He nicely explained the ways of identifying Heritage and developed a connection with the audience. Then his discussion on oral tradition and performing arts was superb ,in which he introduced us with Bismillah Khan sahab and Appa ji ( Smt.Girija Devi ji) Pandit Channulal Mishra ji and Pandit Rajan - Sajan Mishra ji ,through this he tried to relate us with the living heritage and informed us why Varanasi has been given the status of ‘CITY OF MUSIC’ by UNESCO. His pictorial representation in which he tried to explain Indian festivals coinciding with the Gregorian calendar. He informed us about local festivals like Budhwa mangal, Nag nathhaiyya, Ramlila and his way of explaining why and what makes them so special was great. He Beautifully explained why some of the national festivals celebrated here in Varanasi differ from rest of the country, eg. Celebration of holi . He showed us the glimpse of the past which we have seen in our childhood, the wall paintings on the walls of houses inhabited by our Hindu brothers, Which included paintings of Elephants Dwarpal ,Kalash etc. He rightly mentioned about the food of Varanasi which is unparalleled in taste and is continuing from centuries. His talk on arts and crafts especially wooden toys reminds us of the heritage of Varanasi. His appeal for purchasing these local goods was heart touching and motivating to attain self sufficiency.

For the first time I came to know about masks and Mukuts that are made of used paper which is amazing. He tried to put forward the message of keeping the river Ganges clean through the excerpt from the prayashchit tattva - an ancient religious literature. Overall the session was really very informative and interesting. Hopefully looking forward to more such sessions. We are really very sorry for the disturbance caused during the session. I would like to thank the team INTACH HERITAGE -VARANASI CHAPTER and Mr. Ashok Kapoor sir, Pradosh Mishra sir and our School Management especially Director Madam, Principal Sir and Vice Principal Madam and Sir for organizing such an informative session.

Thanking you- MD Sajid Akkhtar, PGT – History Sunbeam School Mughalsara.

World Museum Day- 18th May, 2020

On the occasion of World Museum Day, the Convenor of INTACH Jammu Chapter, Mr. S. M. Sahni along with Satwant Singh Rissam, Programme Coordinator INTACH Jammu Chapter shared about the lesser known Museum of Jammu, the Wadia Museum of Geology.

Wadia Museum of Geology in the City of Temples, Jammu, is of International Fame in the field of Geology. But sadly it is known to very few citizens of Jammu & Kashmir specially the Jammuites. This Museum was established in 1912, in the Geology Department of Erstwhile Prince of Wales College Jammu (Now G. G. M. Science College). The Museum since its establishment retains its original setting, except for few changes in the layout done by the Department.

Wadia Museum of Geology was named after Dr. D.N. Wadia, commonly known as Father of Indian Geology, as he was one of the most influential geologists in the early part of 20th Century. This Museum of Geology has the finest and most extensive collections of fossils, minerals, geological maps of the early period, topographical maps, equipment, models, photographic materials, meteorites, zoologic specimens and various kinds of implements and tools. Moreover, the Wadia Archives contains a large collection of books and journals of the early Twentieth Century. All the Fossil collections lying in the museum are important scientifically and historically. Interestingly, fossils specimens from foreign countries, the Shivaliks and many other parts of India such as 11 feet long tusk (elephus ganesa - a close relations of ancestors of present day elephants) is properly exhibited in the heart of the Museum.

The Wadia Museum has some of the finest collections of the ancestors of present day elephants, hippopotamus, horses, turtles, antiers, cattle pigs, crocodiles, fish etc from the shivalik formations of Jammu, famous for its vertebrate fossils that lived 182 million years ago, when the area was carved by rivers and lakes that enabled a highly diverse ecosystem to develop. There are also imported collections of fossil plants, insects, brachiopods, lamelli branches, gastropods, nautiloids, echinoderms, extinct trilobites and ammonoids from different parts of the world. Inside the museum a complete section is devoted to the fossilized shark tooth from Cambridge England which is well preserved till today. We all should be proud of this treasure as the Collection of Specimens is more than 100,000 in addition to rich fossils and minerals. This Museum is a valuable resource for students, research scholars, academicians, enthusiasts and anyone with an interest to learn about Geology. It is very important to mention here that the Wadia Museum supports teaching and research in earth sciences and scholars from various countries such as the USA & UK have visited this museum for research and study purposes.

After having being neglected for decades on this world museum day of 2020 we all in Jammu and Kashmir should take a pledge to:-

a. Converse, preserve & restore this museum to its pristine glory.
b. To promote this international level museum in a big way all over the world to take advantage of the collections preserved in the museum for research & study purposes.
c. To bring this museum on the tourism map of Jammu for the visiting tourists, pilgrims like Amar Mahal as well as Dogra Art Museum.
d. To publish a document on the Wadia Museum of Geology of G. G. M. Science College Jammu.
e. To make a portal / website of the Museum.
f. To prepare a directory of the personalities of National – International repute who were students of this prestigious Department of Geology as in earlier days the Museum was famous in North India for studying Geology and had produced intellectuals in the field of Geology who later occupied the highest positions in this field.
g. The Geologists of the Nation must be invited once a year to celebrate the opening day or Geology day under the umbrella of the Wadia Museum of Geology, which itself will promote Mice Tourism and one day the event will be of international fame.

But before that the Heritage building of the Department of Geology Govt. Gandhi Memorial Science College Jammu needs the immediate attention of the authorities concerned to save the Wadia Museum of Geology of Jammu with following check points for which DPR’s stand already prepared by the government :-

a. Conservation of Heritage Building as per the prepared DPR’s.
b. Expansion of the building with original architecture design be planned to house the present day requirements such as removal of partitions from the main hall which were erected to accommodate staff, shifting of labs from original verandah, new labs, staff room, faculty room, washroom, stores, pantry etc.
c. Removal of unwanted plants, Algae from the roof and walls to avoid damage to the building and prevent seepage.
d. Interpretation section with I.T. facilities for the visiting faculties, scholars, students & tourists, for briefing about the Museum & the College with introduction of Jammu.

With this all let’s hope that a system can be built to conserve all museums in Jammu and Kashmir and we don’t fail our young people and their passion for free public museums.

4th March 2020

Heritage Education and Communication Service Division,INTACH in collaboration with Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts organised Art workshops for school students on 4th March 2020. The workshops were held as part of the festival Changing Narratives : Kal, Aaj aur Kal , a project initiative of students of P.G.Diploma in Cultural Management celebrating the role of women in history and society. 80 students from S.V. School, Dr.Mukherjee Nagar were part of the workshops. The workshop was divided into three parts - Mosaic Art with Kanika Singh - The Mini Mason, Calligraphywith Qamar Dagar and Mandala Art with Deepa Govekar. The students were introduced to different types of art forms and made beautiful artworks with their mentors. They were also taken for a Curatorial walk for the ongoing exhibition ‘Museum of Womanhood’. Students were also awarded certificate of participation.

3 March 2020, DIET Old Rajinder Nagar, New Delhi

A Teacher Training Session was organised by INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) for about 100 elementary school teachers at the District Institute of Educational Training (DIET), Old Rajendra nagar. DIETs are Teacher Training Education Institutes offering courses for prospective teachers in elementary education. As a part of the teacher’s capacity building and skill enhancement programme, INTACH HECS was invited to organise a session on examining heritage and introducing heritage education in classrooms. The session emphasised upon innovative lesson planning and use of heritage walks or site visits as a learning pedagogy.

The session began with an introduction to INTACH and HECS. It was followed by a screening of the HECS films to explain heritage and its varied components. In addition to, offering a glimpse of the various heritage activities undertaken by HECS. Thereafter, an intensive brain storming session on heritage and its components was undertaken with the students by HECS representative, Ms Shivaa Rawat. It was followed by an interactive session on ways to understand heritage engage with it in classrooms. The use of creative lesson planning, webpage and detailed conversations about ways to conduct a site visit or heritage walks was emphasised upon by her. Thereafter, a step-by-step outline on heritage walks was shared by Ms Teresa Walter (INTACH HECS). The session concluded with a summing up exercise, encouraging the participants to understand, observe, appreciate and design creative heritage activities for their pupils and led to much enthusiasm towards establishing heritage clubs in their respective schools and celebrating the World Heritage Day next month.

25th February 2020

Heritage Education and Communication Service Division, INTACH in collaboration with INTACH Palakkad Chapter organised the Filmit Festival on 25th February, 2020. The event was attended by students and teachers of seven schools. The Chief Guests were Mr. JithinRaj (Director) and Mr.Rohith (Editor). The venue for the event was Sultan of Flavours, a heritage cafe featuring paintings of heritage sites of Palakkad.

The inaugural address was given by INTACH team followed by screening of Best films from Palakkad and Overall Best Films. Screenings were followed by discussion and feedback.

A short film ‘Pallotti’, made by the Guests was also screened. All participant schools received awards for their films. The trophies handed over to participants was made out of metal scraps and was named 'onlyu'. Another unique element was the newspaper 'Film News' which featured all winners.The event concluded on a positive note with cutting of cake.

INTACH Heritage Club Activities

K. L Mehta Dayanand University’s INTACH Heritage Club organized various inter college competitions. Through the event, importance of historical monuments and their cultural significance was discussed along with the means to preserve and converse them. The event focused on awareness of the rich culture and heritage. The event was inaugurated by the President of Maharishi Dayanand Educational Institution and the Convenor of INTACH Faridabad Chapter. The Chief Guest for the programme was Shri Anand Mehtaji, who said that it important to preserve our culture in heritage and also spoke about the conservation works carried out by the university.

INTACH Heritage Club Activity

INTACH Ambala Chapter is in good heart and continuing with the heritage activities regularly. The Chapter keeps in touch with the school heritage clubs and keeps them motivated. This report is about the visit to one of the Heritage Club School of the Cantt Board School, Top Khana Bazar, Ambala Cantt, where the Co– Convenor of INTACH Ambala Chapter, Ms. Reena is also an Art & Craft teacher. She showed me their latest creations of meshed paper - pots and artifacts. She also showed me the new paintings made by the heritage Club. It was a soothing and joyous environment in the class. The next major activity for the Heritage will be the celebration of the World Heritage Day on 18th April.

Udaipur, Rajasthan, 27 – 28 February 2020

A two-day Teacher workshop and a one-day College Volunteer Workshop was organised by INTACH Udaipur chapter in collaboration with INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) and the Maharana Pratap University of Agriculture and Technology (MPUAT) on 27 – 28 February 2020 at the MPUAT premises in Udaipur. It was attended by over 65 participants comprising of school teachers, college faculty members (representing over 17 schools, 8 colleges/institutions, heritage enthusiast citizens) from across the city. The workshop welcome note was shared by Dr BP Bhatnagar (Convenor, INTACH Udaipur). It was followed by a short talk by Prof. Lalit Pande (Former Professor of Archaeology).Followed by an address by the Chief Guest, Prof. N.S. Rathore (Hon’ble Vice Chancellor, MPUAT). Subsequently, a talk on Heritage Education with reference to Role of Heritage Clubs and Volunteerism was delivered by Ms Shivaa Rawat (INTACH HECS, National Coordinator) and facilitated a group activity for the participants. The highlight of the second day was a focus on Heritage and Good Citizenship by Ms Purnima Datt (Principal Director, INTACH HECS); talk on Heritage Education and INTACH Udaipur chapter journey by Mr SK Verma (Retd. IFS and Principal Advisor, Natural Heritage INTACH); The Geo-Heritage of Udaipur by Prof. P S Ranawat and the participants group presentation. The eminent dignitaries attending the workshop sessions were Prof. IV Trivedi (Former, Vice Chancellor, MLSU); Dr SL Mundra (Director, Extension Education); Prof. Hemant Dwivedi (DEAN, Faculty of Social Sciences, MLSU); Prof. PK Dashora (Former, Vice Chancellor, KU); Dr (Rtn.) Y.S. Kothari (Past Governor, RI & Secretary, Kumbha Sangeet Parishad); Prof. Sadhna Kothari (Dean, CSSH); Dr Vilas Janve (WZCC, Managing Director, Martand Foundation); Prof. ML Kalra (Former, Vice Chancellor, KU); Dr Peeyush Bhadviya; Mr Ajay Mehta (President, Vidhya Bhawan Society); Prof. Madhu Sudan Sharma (Former, Vice Chancellor, KU). The sessions were supported and facilitated by Mr Gaurav Singhvi (Co-Convenor INTACH Udaipur) and Dr Peeyush Bhadviya (Faculty Member and Coordinator). The workshop concluded with the distribution of participation certificates, a commemorative group photograph and a vote of thanks by Mr Gaurav Singhvi (Co-Convenor, INTACH Udaipur).

24th February

INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) organized the filmit festival with the support of INTACH Cochin Chapter at Kochi on 24th February at Children’s park theatre, Marine Drive, Ernakulam. The festival was attended by 12 schools of the city. In the inaugural session, INTACH Kochi Co-convenor, Mr. Biley Menon welcomed all the schools and gave a brief introduction about the filmit project to the participants. He introduced Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director (HECS), Mr. K J Sohan (ex mayor Kochi) INTACH Kerala State Convenor and Mr. C Babu Rajeev (retired IAS) Convenor Kochi Chapter. He also introduced the Chief Guest, Ms. Soumili Jain, Mayor, Kochi city.

Ms. Jain in her address said that she was very happy to be a part of this event and remarked that students have the ability to think differently and have purity in their thought process which they are able to express. Ms. Purnima Datt welcomed the schools and thanked them for attending the festival. She also spoke about the filmit project in detail. A few students spoke about their film making experience. After this, a few films form Kochi were screened. The mayor, after seeing the films encouraged the students and said that she would love to include a few of their films in the corporation’s campaign as an awareness initiative. The rest of the Kochi films along with some films from other parts of the country were screened afterwards. Some films that have been made by the students in Kochi include - Saving our Planet, One drop at a time, Journey through Willingdon Island, Chendamangalam Handloom, Coir Production in Gods Own Country, Our School Our Heritage, etc.

After the screening, a few more students shared their experiences and so did some of the teachers. One student presented a self composed poem. The schools thanked INTACH for the opportunity presented to them and appreciated INTACH’s efforts to start the project in Kochi.

Mr. Babu Rajeev and Mr. Sohan in their address also appreciated the efforts of the schools and encouraged them to keep making wonderful films and create awareness about the rich heritage of the country. Mr. Babu thanked the team from Delhi for taking the initiative to start the project in Kochi.

After a short refreshment break, the students were then presented certificates, awards and books by Mr. Babu Rajeev, Mr. Sohan and Ms. Datt. The festival ended with a vote of thanks by Mr. Biley Menon.

Heritage Walk to Kashibai Temple

On the occasion of 264th death anniversary of Raje Raghuji I, INTACH Nagpur Chapter in association with Architectural Sankul along with students of Dinanath High school visited Kashibai Temple complex and paid tributes to the great warrior and ruler who played an important role in giving Nagpur its glorious identity Around 50 students along with their teacher participated in the walk. Yuvraj Jaisingh Raje Bhonsle graced the occasion. Kishore Divekar Convenor of INTACH Nagpure Chapter was also present. Nitika S. Ramani Co- founder, Architectural Sankul and Additional Co-convenor of INTACH Nagpur Chapter, facilitated the whole walk.

18th February, 2020

The Hyderabad filmit festival was held on 18th February 2020 at Jubilee Hills Public School. 13 schools from Hyderabad were a part of the project this year. 11 schools attended the event. Two new schools, Nasr School for Boys and Springfields also attended the programme as they wished to be a part of the project in the next phase. The students from Jubilee Hills Public schools sang a welcome song to start the proceedings. A student from the host school welcomed everyone and gave the formal introduction. She also introduced the Chief Guest Mr. Pushan Vij. Ms. Anuradha Reddy addressed the gathering and welcomed the two new schools. She also introduced Mr. Srikanth – the new Additional Co- Convenor, INTACH Hyderabad Chapter. Mr. Abhishek Das gave a brief summary of the project and appreciated the films made this year.

After the introductory session, the first lot of schools shared their experiences about filmit project. A few students also recited poems about their experience. It included self-composed poems, speeches and accounts from their film-making journey. The best films from Hyderabad were screened next. After the screening, a few more students shared their experiences. Students from Delhi School of Excellence, Manikonda gave a classical dance performance. Some teachers also shared their experiences. They thanked INTACH for the opportunity presented to them and appreciated HECS’ team efforts and dedication towards the project. Afterwards, best overall films from Filmit India project were screened. This was followed by a short refreshment break. After the break, the Chief Guest addressed the students. Mr. Pushan in his address said that he was absolutely amazed to see the films made by the students. Being a photographer, he said that taking good photographs and including them in their films would also be beneficial. He wished the students the best and hoped to see at least a few of them to become full time film makers/photographers.

The schools were then awarded with certificates and books. Mr. Pushan Vij, Ms. Anuradha Reddy and Mr. Srikanth gave away the prizes.

The programme concluded with a vote of thanks from Ms. Anuradha Reddy. She thanked the students, teachers for their efforts and also the host school for their efforts to make the festival a success. A group photograph was taken outside in the assembly area of the host school at the end of the function.

17th February, 2020

The Chennai filmit festival was held on 17th February 2020 at Maharishi Vidya Mandir. Students from 10 schools from Chennai and one school from Coimbatore attended the event. The students from the host school sang a prayer song to begin the proceedings. Dr. Suresh then formally welcomed everyone. He gave a brief description about the filmit project and how it started in Chennai. Mr. Ramalingam, Sr. Headmaster of the host school then addressed the students. Dr. Suresh then introduced the Chief Guest for the day, Dr. Vijay Sriram who is a surgeon and also has a passion for photography.

Some of the students then shared their experiences about film making. It included their experiences while out on a shoot and the difficulties they faced, how difficult it was to plan and finally execute the shoot, etc. A few students also recited poems about their experience.

The best films from Chennai were screened after that. All the films received wide applause from the people present. After the screening, a few more students shared their experiences and so did some of the teachers. They thanked INTACH for the opportunity presented to them and appreciated INTACH’s efforts to keep the project running successfully year after year. Afterwards, best overall films from Filmit India project were screened. This was followed by a short refreshment break. After, the break, the Chief Guest addressed the students. He remarked that even though he was not able to attend the screening of the films due to an urgent surgery, he was sure that all of them had done a wonderful job. He said photographs are an integral part of film making, and the shots that they take will help in making their film even better. He wished all students luck and told them to keep making wonderful films.

The schools were then awarded with certificates and books. Dr. Sriram, Dr. Suresh and Mr. Ramalingam gave away the prizes.

The programme concluded with a vote of thanks from Dr. Suresh. He thanked the host school for their efforts to make the festival a success.

Navrachana International School, 12th February 2020

The Vadodara FilmIt Festival was held on the 12th of February 2020 at Navrachana International School, Vadodara, Gujarat. The programme was organised by Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) Division of INTACH Delhi, with unparalleled cooperation and support from Mr. Sanjeev Joshi, Convener, Vadodara Chapter. The programme was attended by around 65 students from eight schools across Vadodara. The team from Navrachana International School welcomed the audience to the programme.

Mr. Sanjeev Joshi, Convener of the Vadodara Chapter, in his address, thanked the school for their cooperation and the manner in which they organised the programme on a large scale. He thanked the Principal of the school for taking the initiative of preparing for the festival. He expressed his gratitude towards the Chief Guest, Mr. Prakash Gowda, and acknowledged and appreciated the HECS Team for their efforts. Ms. Shivaa Rawat, National Coordinator, HECS, INTACH Delhi, introduced the Chief Guest, Mr. Prakash Gowda, who is a copywriter, a writer and a filmmaker

Ms. Rawat also introduced the FilmIt Programme to the audience, which comprised the students who had participated in the programme and the ones who were attending it for the first time. She talked about how the idea of FilmIt was conceived 12 years back, and that it has grown into a network of successful events with every added year. She explained the themes for this year’s FilmIt Festival, which included 150 years of Gandhi. She congratulated Vadodara schools for their first time participation in the Programme. She expressed her gratitude towards the host school, Navrachana International School, for making excellent arrangements for the annual festival.

The students from the participant schools shared their FilmIt experiences with the aid of different forms of expression like poetry, speeches, miming and skits. . This was followed by the screening of the films made by the students from Vadodara. After a short break for refreshments, the overall best films from across the country were screened for everyone. This is done to provide the students with better exposure and idea of what is being done around them. Mr. Prakash Gowda appreciated the efforts of the students and acknowledged that the films were in fact very well made. He praised the students for thinking differently and coming up with ideas to create something exclusive. Mr. Gowda was surely impressed by the technology input by the students, from audio and effects to the usage of tripods and collar mics. The interaction and exposure students had with Mr. Gowda was pleasant and exhilarating.

The programme was concluded with the students receiving their well-deserved certificates for the best films and their participation.

11th February, 2020

The annual Ahmedabad Filmit Festival organized by INTACH in collaboration with the INTACH Ahmedabad Chapter was held on 11th February, 2020 at Shreyas Foundation. Around 52 students including teachers from 6 schools across the city attended the festival. This project is currently running in 14 cities, with Palakkad, Vadodara and Port Blair being the latest addition to this successful project. The Filmit Festival is held annually across each project city, screening the overall best films, awarding the schools and recognising students for their significant contributions.

The programme started off with a welcome song by the students of Shreyas Foundation. This was followed by an introduction of the Filmit India Festival by Ms. Shivaa Rawat, representative of HECS INTACH. Thereafter a brief interaction with the students about the films they made was done. An overview of the best films made by the students from Ahmedabad and filmit cities was shown. Then Mr. Pawan Bakeri Co- Convenor of INTACH Ahmedabad Chapter appreciated the efforts put in by the students. He shared about how this project is a learning experience and the students should utilize the opportunity to share it on a larger platform too. The guest of Honour for the festival was Mr. Chintan Pandya, who is the Founder Director of Fanatika, a Theatre Club in Ahmedabad. He is an actor, writer, director and also a teacher. He has a degree in MA Arts, Design and communication, theatre major from CEPT University. Mr. Chintan congratulated the students for the efforts in film making and also about their thoughts about heritage. He told the students to also explore different subjects such as the intangible heritage of our country. Film making is both complicated and simple at the same time. He also shared about the technical factors required in film making.

Then short presentations were presented by the students about their experience of film making through the Filmit India project. The students from each school were then invited one by one to share their Filmit experiences. The students shared with great enthusiasm that the experience has been exciting, educational and fun filled. The festival concluded with felicitation and distribution of certificates to all the participating schools.

11th Feb 2020

Bhau Daji Lad Museum

The Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) of INTACH in collaboration with the Helen Hamlyn Trust UK, pioneers the Film It programme, which seeks to impart to the idea of heritage education, dynamism in the form of short films which are conceptualized and shot by children. This project is currently running in 14 cities and the following cities - Kochi, Vadodara, Palakkad and Port Blair are the new additions to this project, Filmit in India has successfully completed 12 years. The festival was held at the Bhau Daji Lad Museum, also an INTACH conservation centre. 36 students and 6 teachers from 6 schools of the city participated in the event.

The inaugural session of the festival was conducted by representatives of INTACH Greater-Mumbai Chapter, Ms. Gargi Mashruwala and Ms. Amruta Shinde. This was followed by the screening of the INTACH film. Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, Heritage Education and Communication Service, INTACH, welcoming all participants; spoke to them about the project, elaborating on the importance of establishing heritage clubs in schools and engaging students in activities enhancing their perspective in relation to heritage.

After this session, the Chief Guest for the festival, Ms. Meghana Erande Joshi, a voice actress who dubs for animation characters and films was introduced by Ms. Shinde. Ms. Alka Aggrawal, ex- principal of Smt. RSB Arya Vidya Mandir, Juhu, and guest of honour was introduced by Ms. Datt.

The student representatives from the participating schools were then invited one by one to share their Film It experiences, the students recounted that their journey has been an exciting one. Working on the project enabled students to build their confidence and learn as well as understand the importance of heritage. A student from Somaiya School shared he realised the efforts that go in making a film, as he shot his film at CST at 2.00 am in the morning, so that he could shoot the structure in reduced background noise!

After the students spoke, a selection of films made by Mumbai students were showcased, Ms. Joshi expressed admiration for the films for the city while they were being screened. After the Mumbai films, the best films from the various cities part of the filmit project were showcased.

Chief Guest, Ms. Joshi was greatly appreciative of the films and congratulated the students for learning the art of film making and executing it so professionally, she shared that the translation of vernacular songs used in some movies as subtitles made the movie all the more effective and enjoyable. This ability of theirs negated the language barrier and made heritage from all across the country more relatable. She was happy that such a project was available to a student which was making learning about one’s heritage an exciting experience; she expressed her pleasure on being part of the event. She also gave students some constructive feedback on the sound recording aspect on film making and concluded her session with tips on voiceovers.

Ms. Alka Aggarwal also addressed the students and shared that as an educator and former principal she always encouraged students to explore films as a creative avenue as a break from routine learning, she further added that films allow us to visually document certain practices and traditions which are now dying out, she added that caring of heritage also comes from a sense responsibility that should be inculcated in students.

After this address by Ms. Aggarwal, the award ceremony commenced, students along with the teachers were commended for the efforts on the project. The festival ended with a vote of thanks by Ms. Datt and Ms. Mashruwala.

Republic Day Celebration

INTACH Ambala celebrated the 71st Republic Day with school children at the Indira Chowk with great patriotic fervor. The walk/rally was led by the INTACH Convenor, Colonel R D Singh, nearly 40 children and teachers from various schools raised the national fervor displaying patriotic banners and placards. NCC cadets from the Army Public School present in their uniform, paid a befitting tribute to our martyrs and soldiers. They displayed banners and placards on the great freedom fighters and our national heroes. Photographs of our achievements and great Indian culture and heritage were also displayed. Our women achievers were also highlighted. Many children were seen waving the national Tricolour. Mrs. Madhu Singh, a senior teacher in the Army School, Mr. Ashish from the Army School, Ms. Priyanka from the Lord Mahavir School, Principal Sheetal from the GMN School, and many others joined the children in making people proud of our country. As they all said in unison – Bharat Mata Ki Jai, Vande Matram, Salute to our soldiers , Ham Sab Ek Han etc etc – the commuters and people around smiled and cheered the children. After the awareness rally at the Indira Chowk, the children carried out a Republic Day march in the heritage Rai market to motivate more people. They sang patriotic songs and showed banners of our national heroes to people. People in the streets, shop keepers, cheered the children, and many of them joined in the march. Mrs. Madhu Singh from the Army School said that Republic Day should unite the whole nation in one thread. She also gave a talk on highlights of our freedom struggle, and framing of the Constitution to the children. The people complimented the children and INTACH members, as they spread joy and patriotic fervor. Refreshments were served to the participants at the end of the rally. It was a joy and a thrilling experience to walk with school children, with tricolor and motivational banners in our hands. Rather than being in our quilts, we came out and spread a smile – a patriotic spirit.

Music Workshop, January 25th 2020

INTACH Varanasi Chapter in association with ICCR and Kala Prakash organised a Music Workshop at Rajghat Besant School, Raj Ghat on January 25, 2020. Shri Hari Paudwal, a Flute Artists conducted the workshop. Dr. Amit Ishwar, Tabla player accompanied him. Shri Hari Paudwal explained about the history and mythology connected with the Flute and how it is played. He explained the intricacies of Rag he played. He also played a short Alap followed by Drut in 3 taal. He then played Gandhi Ji's favourite bhajan- VAISHNOAV JAN TO TENE KAHIYE to conclude the recital. The students enthusiastically asked many questions about the flute, tabla and classical music itself. They liked the way he explained by giving example of some of the popular film song tunes and compared it with Classical Ragas. Mrs. Arshia Akhtar, Principal, Rajghat Besant School proposed vote of thanks. She felicitated Mr. Ashok Kapoor, Convener of INTACH Varanasi Chapter and all the artists. The school was founded by renowned Philosophist J. Krishnamurti in early thirties. The programme was held at the historical Assembly hall of the school.

6th February 2020

The Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) of INTACH organised the Filmit India Festival on 6th February 2020 at the India International Centre (IIC), New Delhi. Students from over 35 schools were a part of the project this year.

The welcome address was given by Ms.Purnima Datt , Principal Director, Heritage Education and Communication Service, INTACH. Ms.Datt spoke about the Filmit Project and its aim to generate awareness amongst children about the local heritage of their cities.The project completed 12 years this year and is being undertaken in 14 cities. She also spoke about the important role of the camera and how filmmaking has an important role in documenting heritage and engaging children. Ms. Datt also shared that this year one of the themes was about Gandhiji and India’s culture as we’re celebrating 150 years of Gandhiji; and that many films were made on environment as well.

The guests for the occasion were Mr. K.N.Srivastava, Director, India International Centre; Mr.Pradip Bagchi, renowned journalist and Senior Editor at Times of India;Mr.Rupin Dang, filmmaker,writer,naturalist &entrepreneur; Mr.Faisal Simon, film director & producer and director of Gen Next Actors’ Studio; Ms.Pulkita Parsai , an independent filmmaker and mentor for Filmit Technical workshops; Lady Helen Hamlyn founder of Helen Hamlyn Trust; Dr.Shobhita Punja, renowned art historian and former director and founder of HECS and Lt.Gen.L.K. Gupta ,Chairman INTACH

Following this the students presentation began. Students shared their experience of Filmit through skits,poems, songs and even rap songs. They shared about their journey,what they learnt from the workshop and during filmmaking and how they enjoyed it. After the presentations, Best films from all cities and Best films from Delhi were shown.

The Guests then also shared words of encouragement and appreciation for the students. Mr.Srivastava expressed his happiness with the work done by the children. He appreciated the efforts of INTACH for instilling the talent of filmmaking and providing students with an oppurtunity to know more about their local heritage. He appreciated the support of Helen Hamlyn Trust and said that this project will help more young talents to come forward.

Mr. Faisal Simon spoke about the incredible effort taken by the kids to make films and appreciated the different mediums in which they captured their heritage. He also appreciated the research done by students to make short films. Mr.Simon appreciated the hardwork and encouraged students to continue making good films.

Mr. Bagchi also appreciated INTACH and the films made by students. He commended the initiative of colllaborating the topic of heritage with filmmaking. He spoke about how nowadayas the youth is spending many hours on their gadgets and how the students used the technology to make incredible films. He appreciated the use of technology to spread awareness and create good content. Mr.Bagchi said that he was happy to see the way students have interpreted and showcased Gandhian values through their films. He said that Filmit will make students will make students storytellers. It is important to know the story of a monument in order to truly appreciate.

Mr. Rupin Dang spoke about how students have interpreted and covered all aspects of their history and heritage. He stated that heritage is about ones living persona. Mr.Dang said that media is a powerful tool and one should use it responsiblly. He was glad that students have made such unique films and urged them to explore lesser known monuments and traditions to uncover hidden aspects of Indian heritage.Mr.Dang asked students to reflect upon what they learnt during the project and use it to spread this message and create awareness about the beauty of our country.

Lady Helen Hamlyn appreciated all the wonderful films made by students. She said that children are gifts of today and tomorrow. They should work on improving their tommorow. Lady Hamlyn said it was an enormous pleasure to see the work of students and asked them to use media for good causes.

Lt.Gen.L.K. Gupta thanked the Helen Hamlyn Trust for their support and providing students with such a platform. He also appreciated the HECS team for their work. Chairman Gupta also spoke about Gandhian values and how they’re important for the future of the country. He appreciated the Filmit project which focuses on India’s great heritage through the medium of films.

Dr.Shobhita Punja, appreciated the hardwork of all students and teachers. She encouraged them to continue making films with such great enthusiasm.

This was followed by the distribution of Certificates and books for all schools.

Following are some excerpts from Student presentations:

The Foundation School:
This day is full of bliss and joy.
As movie making is a new thing hey boy!
It is something new to learn,blending our talents and inteliigence at churn.
A step back and forth I eagerly take
Heritage is the concern,so no mistake I shall make,
With limited time and many things at hand,
With teacher’s support and my classmates at stand…
We thoughtfully made attempts on attempts,
Gushing on things that usually tempts.
I am glad,I had this chance,
Have a look at my work,Have a little glance
Heritage is a way to connect to our rich past
Working on memories and history that’s vast.
Exploring around we have brought this for you,
I hope with this revival comes up something new.
I alone may not be the change I need,
A bit of you will surely bring a new lead!

Nigam Pratibha Vidyalaya,New Chaukhandi:

अपने मन की बात बताने, आपके सम्मुख खड़ी हूँ
आप सुनेंगे तो सोचेंगे , छोटा मुँह बड़ी बात
देखे होंगे आपने बेशक , फिल्मों में चाइल्ड एक्टर्स
पर ना होंगे मेरे जैसे डायलाग राइटर्स , डायरेक्टर्स
इनटच ने दिखलाया मुझको , फिल्मों का संसार नया
दुनिया देखना का मेरा नजरिया ही बदल गया
थोड़ी थोड़ी सीख रही हूँ , फिल्म बनाने की मैं आर्ट
मम्मी पापा कहते हैं मई होने लगी हूँ और भी स्मार्ट
नहीं सिर्फ ये फोटोग्राफी , है उससे ज़्यादा बढ़कर
अभिवयक्ति का मंच अनूठा , अन्वेषण का है अवसर
लेखन, अभिनय और निर्देशन, कितने सारे काम नए
मेरी रचनात्मक क्षमता ने पाए हैं आयाम नए
इनटच का आभार की मेरे व्यक्तित्व को निखार दिया
मुझको खुद की काबिलियत पर, भरोसा करना सीखा दिया

S.L. Suri DAV Public School, Janakpuri

….We feel proud to be a part of this platform and honestly we gain more technical knowledge as well as various colorful aspects of our heritage. We are trying our best to aware people about its conservation so that India will be on the summit of world’s richest and cultural heritage"

Cambridge School, Noida

My filmit experience was really interesting. It was a valuable one. It motivated me to make many different movies. It made my family happy that I have taken interest in this task. I learnt a lot about culture and how a movie is made. I also encouraged my friends to participate.

4th Feb 2020

The Filmit Varanasi Festival 2020 was organised by INTACH Varanasi Chapter in collaboration with INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) on 4 February 2020 at the W.H. Smith Memorial School. It was attended by 131 participants comprising of 112 students and 19 teachers from 12 schools across the city. The programme began with a welcome note by INTACH HECS representative, Ms Shivaa Rawat and an introduction to the Filmit India Festival. It was followed by short presentations by students with an experiential account of their film making experience through the Filmit India project. The students shared self composed poems, songs, anecdotes, skit and creative presentations to capture their diverse experiences.

INTACH Varanasi Chapter Convenor, Mr Ashok Kapoor appreciated the students for their efforts and congratulated them for their dedication, as well as, enthusiasm. Thereafter, the varied heritage educational activities undertaken by the chapter were described. It was followed by a welcome song presented by the students of the W.H. Smith Memorial School and a felicitation ceremony for the Chief Guest, Mr Rajesh Kumar Gautam (Assistant Director of the All India Radio). In his address, Mr Gautam encouraged the students to recognise their heritage and become its caretakers. He appreciated their enthusiasm and the role of INTACH. The INTACH Varanasi Additional Co-Convenor and Heritage Education Cell Incharge, Mr Nirmal Joshi and other senior INTACH Life Members were among the other dignitaries attending the ceremony.

The screening of national films, the best films from Varanasi was followed by the felicitation and award ceremony. The films made by students were awarded in various categories. The festival concluded with a vote of thanks and a commemorative group photograph.

The Filmit project is currently operational in 14 cities with Palakkad, Port Blair and Vadodara becoming a part of the Filmit project in 2019-20. The Filmit Festival is held annually across each project city, screening the overall best films, awarding the schools and recognising students for their significant contributions.

3rd February 2020

The Heritage Education and Communication Service Division of INTACH organised the Filmit Festival in Goa at Sharada Mandir School in collaboration with INTACH Goa Chapter on 3rd February 2020. Ten schools from all over the state attended the festival. The Chief Guests for the event were Ms.Harshada Kerkar, a renowned artist who has exhibited her work at many exhibitions and recipient of awards such as AIFACS Award in 2001;  Mr. Yash Sawant- a young filmmaker whose debut short film 'A Cold Summer Night' premiered at International Film Festivals such as Busan International Film Festival; Mr. Vinod Sreedhar, music composer and social entrepreneur who also mentored students during Technical workshops of Filmit.

The welcome address and introduction to guests was given by Ms. Fatima Da Silva Gracias, Convenor of INTACH Goa Chapter. This was followed by an introduction to INTACH and HECS by Ms.Purnima Datt, Principal Director,HECS. Ms.Datt spoke about INTACH and the the work undertaken by the various divisions. She also spoke about the Filmit project which is currently active in 14 cities including Goa where it completes ten years this time. She also interacted with the students and asked them about what they learned during filmmaking and how and why filmmaking is important for heritage sites. Students shared that they learnt a lot during filmmaking and also got to know more about their city’s heritage.

This was followed by Students presentation wherein one student from each school spoke about their Filmit Experience. This was done in the form of speeches & poems.  Following this the Overall Best films were shown followed by the screening of Best Films from Goa.

The Chief Guests also addressed the students. Ms. Kerkar appreciated efforts made by students in filmmaking and encouraged them to make films in local languages also. Mr.Sawant also appreciated the students for their work and shared a few tips about filmmaking. He asked them to try to film a little every day. Mr. Sawant also spoke about the availability of softwares and how students can use them to create better movies.

The programme concluded with distribution of Certificates and books to the Schools.

The Film Festival at Kolkata was held at Lakshmipat Singhania Academy on 31st January, 2020. 16 schools from the city attended the festival. The welcome song and dance performance was done by the students of Lakshmipat Singhania Academy. It was followed by a welcome address by Ms. Meena Kak, Principal of the host school. She encouraged the students to follow their passion. She remarked “if filmmaking is your passion, then make it into a profession”. She also spoke about the wonderful initiative of Filmit taken up by INTACH and thus giving the young students an opportunity to learn and explore one’s talent. The honoured guests for the event were Ms. Mallika Jalan, an Indian Film producer and executive producer who has worked in Bengali, Hindi and Telegu film industries and Mr. Sanjay Gosh, who is a film critique and documentary film maker and also the organizer of the Kolkata Film Festival. Another guest, Mr. Siddharth Sarkar, a member of INTACH Kolkata Chapter spoke about the work done by the Chapter and how important and valuable our heritage is. He stressed that we have to understand what heritage is and INTACH was formed to protect and preserve our heritage.

Students from each school made short presentations about their filmit experience. It included self-composed poems, speeches and accounts from their film-making journey. Some teachers too came forward to share their experiences as well. Ms. Sharmila Sengupta, teacher in charge of Kailash Vidyamandir thanked INTACH for giving her school this lovely opportunity to make films. Mr. Arindam Sengupta, teacher from Hare School also shared about the wonderful experience for him as well as the students. The school also pledged to make more films in the coming phase.

The best films from Kolkata and thereafter, best overall films from Filmit India project were screened. Students appreciated this opportunity to view films made by other fellow students in other cities and learn about the heritage there.

The award ceremony included certificates and prizes and were presented to the schools by Mr. Sanjay Gosh and Ms. Kak.

The programme concluded with a vote of thanks from Mr. Abhishek Das, HECS, INTACH. He also thanked the host School and teachers for their efforts to make the festival a grand success.

17th January 2020, New Delhi

The College Heritage Volunteer Workshop organised by INTACH Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS) was held on 17th January 2020 at INTACH New Delhi. The workshop was attended by over 84 participants, including, undergraduate college students and faculty members representing 14 colleges of the Delhi University.

The workshop began with a welcome address by Ms. Shivaa Rawat, followed by the screening of the INTACH film to give the participants and overview of the organisation and varied heritage activities being undertaken. It was followed by a detailed presentation on understanding the various aspects of heritage by Ms. Purnima Datt (Principal Director, Heritage Education and Communication Service). Thereafter, Dr. Narayani Gupta (Historian and Former Director, Documentation Centre, INTACH) who discussed Historic Delhi - Its Heritage and the Role of Youth, urges the students to have some sort of relationship with one’s heritage and see heritage as works of art. Dr. Swapna Liddle (Convenor, Delhi Chapter, INTACH) spoke on the Historic precincts of Delhi. Dr. Padma Rohilla (Art and Material Heritage, Centre Coordinator INTACH Delhi) offered an understanding Material Heritage and the restoration work undertaken during a guided tour of the INTACH Conservation Laboratory. Heritage based development of Delhi and its related conservation issues; Nomination of Modern Architecture was shared by Ms. Annabel Lopez, Project Coordinator and Consultant, INTACH Delhi Chapter.

In the next segment, a presentation on College Heritage Volunteer Programme and Heritage in my institution was given by the HECS Team- Ms. Shivaa Rawat, on the activities of ‘College Heritage Volunteer Programme’ (since its launch in November 2012) and its role in sensitizing college students about their heritage and the importance of their active involvement in this movement for heritage preservation. The meaning of volunteerism and how crucial it is in the context of heritage conservation was explained too. Ms. Christina Shangne suggested the students about activities that can be taken up by volunteers in their institute and how as a volunteer can help spreading understanding about the rich culture of the country. Thereafter a presentation on Heritage Walks was conducted by Ms. Teresa Walter, which highlighted the importance of taking heritage walks in the city as well as acquainted the participants with the various sites that HECS conducts heritage walks.

In the final segment, students made group presentations highlighting ways in which they could promote Heritage in their respective Educational Institutions and their contributions as College Heritage Volunteers. The workshop concluded with words of encouragement from Maj. Gen. (Retd) L. K. Gupta, Chairman of INTACH, and Dr. (Mrs) C. T. Misra, Member Secretary, INTACH and a commemorative group photograph.

11th January, 2020

A teacher’s training workshop was organized at Chandannagar College on 11th January, 2020. The workshop was attended by 41 teachers from various schools and colleges of Hooghly district. In the inaugural session, the principal of the host college, Dr Debashish Sarkar welcomed all the participants and the resource persons. He stressed on the importance of heritage conservation and welcomed INTACH to take necessary steps required. He said that Chandannagar has a lot of heritage that needs to be preserved and pledged his support for the same. Professor Ian Magedera, from Liverpool University spoke about his Hugli River of Cultures project. Mr. G M Kapur, who was invited as the Chief Guest spoke next. In his speech, he mentioned that protecting our heritage is our duty and through this workshop, he hopes to revive the INTACH Hooghly Chapter again. Dr. Antara Mukherjee, who was in charge of organizing the workshop introduced her team members and thanked everyone for attending the event.

In the next session, Ms. Purnima Datt spoke about heritage and why one needs to preserve it. She interacted with the teachers and enquired about what things of heritage value is dear to them. A presentation on types of heritage was shown to the participants which focused on some of the important heritage features and entities of the country. Next, a presentation on heritage education was also shown which included the ways and means to teach heritage education to students. It also included a role play activity to make heritage education more interesting and easy to understand.

In the session after lunch, an ice breaker game called romantic pairs was played. In this session , the activities undertaken by HECS were discussed and a presentation on the ‘youngintach’ website was given. After the presentations were over, the teachers were divided into four groups for their group activity. After an hour of discussion, they gave their presentations on the Hooghly River – natural heritage group, Chandannagore College – built heritage group, Rath Yatra of Mahesh- living heritage group and the French Loaf – material heritage group. After the presentation, the teachers were taken to the Chandannagar Strand for a short heritage walk conducted by members of Hugli River of Cultures Pilot Project beside the river Hooghly. The workshop ended with the distribution of resource material and participation certificates being given to the teachers.

7th and 8th January 2020

INTACH’s Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS), Heritage and Citizenship programme – ‘JAGO’ aims at promoting heritage awareness and conservation as good citizenship values. ‘Jago’ - The Heritage and Citizenship Training Programme was launched for the INTACH southern zone chapters, Kerala and Tamil Nadu through a training workshop held on 7 – 8 January 2020 at the Heritage Inn Hotel in Coimbatore. The programme was organised by INTACH HECS in collaboration with INTACH Tamil Nadu State chapter and INTACH Coimbatore chapter. It was attended by 29 senior INTACH members (comprising of state convenors, chapter convenors, co-convenors, additional convenors and active INTACH members) representing the two states.

The workshop was inaugurated with a welcome note by State Convenor, INTACH Tamil Nadu Chapter, Dr S Suresh and Convenor INTACH Coimbatore Chapter, Mr Prasad. An introduction to INTACH and the workshop objectives were shared by Ms Purnima Datt (Principal Director, INTACH HECS). It was emphasised that JAGO initiative presented ways of becoming more informed and active citizens through engagement with heritage. The sessions by resource persons were enriching and informative. Need for Heritage Protection and role of Government/ ULBs was emphasised by Mr K. J Sohan (Convenor, INTACH Kerala State Chapter). Built Heritage Conservation was described by Ar. Sakthi Murugan Rajendran through various case studies undertaken, such as ‘Manikoondu,’ or the Tower Clock, among others. Understanding Heritage and Citizenship, Heritage and Citizenship Education was described by Ms Purnima Datt (Principal Director, INTACH HECS). Offered an overview of heritage - explaining what it meant and an overview of its varied dimensions (natural, built, material and living). Civil Society and Voluntary organization initiatives and best practises in conserving heritage by Mr Rajesh Govindarajulu through the work undertaken by Siruthuli was highlighted. The day concluded with a detailed presentation on heritage listing by Dr S. Suresh (Convenor, INTACH Tamil Nadu State Chapter).

The highlight of the second day was a site visit to the Gass Forest Museum and the Government Museum. The Gass Forest Museum was a natural history museum in the Forest College Campus situated in a century old heritage building. The State Government Museum was situated in the midst of shops across the VOC zoo in the grarage yards of the Nehru stadium complex. It was followed by a Group activity and presentation of action plans by the participants. Thereafter, chapter presentations were made by INTACH Nilgiri, INTACH Palakkad and INTACH Thajavur Chapters. In the final segment, the workshop proceedings were summarised by Ms Purnima Datt [Principal Director, INTACH HECS]. The workshop concluded on a positive note with a vote of thanks by State Convenors, Mr K J Sohan and Dr S Suresh.

The new calendar was released by the Chairman of INTACH, Major General (Retd.) L. K. Gupta, the Member Secretary, Dr. C. T. Misra, and the Principal Director of HECS, Ms. Purnima Datt on 2nd January 2020 at INTACH HQ Delhi . The Paani ki Kahaani- My Water Heritage Competition (2018-19) was organised for school students across the country in collaboration with 108 INTACH Chapters. Over 14000 students were part of this competition that sought to document through essays and paintings, the unique water heritage features of India. This calendar showcases the best illustrations made by students on their local water heritage.

With the new year and new decade, Young INTACH has a new calendar for you! It is crafted love, inspiration, positivity, and a hope to take care of our heritage. With every page adorned with student illustrations, the tabletop calendar for this year encourages us to save our water heritage.