NEWS
INTACH HECS in collaboration with INTACH Mahabubnagar organised an Endangered Craft Workshop on "Pottery" on 29th December 2021 with 219 students from various schools participating in the workshop. It was a virtual session which had the presence of Ms Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS and Shri Y. Linganna, Retd, H.M. as Guest Speakers and Smt Suvarna and Smt Krishnaiah as the Potter (Resource persons).
Dr Nagendra Swamy, Convenor welcomed all the participants and the esteemed guest speakers as well as the resource persons for the workshop.
Ms Purnima Datt began the session by thanking the Convenor and the Chapter team for their efforts in conducting this workshop online, she started by briefing the new participants about INTACH and its various divisions and the work that gets done in the organisation, focussing on the Heritage Education division.
Mr Y Linganna, retired Headmaster, the Guest Speaker was introduced by the Convenor, the speaker expressed his delight for the workshop and mentioned various traditional professions such as Blacksmiths,Potter, Barbers, Carpenters, etc who are vital in Indian society. He highlighted the skills where these service providers could deliver amazing pieces with modern technology and techniques. He expressed how these traditional professions such as Pottery are diminishing due to no patronage and due to changing times.
Dr Swamy then introduced the resource persons, Smt Suvarna and Smt Krishnaiah.
A demonstrative session with the resource persons showcasing how to make pottery to the students virtually present. They showcased the step by step demonstration of how the soil is transformed and earthen wares are made using the traditional potters wheel, once made, the vessels are dried and painted and they are fired in the kiln and last touches are given post which the final piece is ready and showcased to the students.
The resource person also explained the benefits of earthen vessels and they are made on a traditional wheel and modern electric one as well. Post the demonstrative session, the students spoke about their experience attending the workshop.
Ms Smriti Malhotra, HECS representative appreciated both the workshops and was thankful to be a part of them and thanked the Chapter for all their efforts.
Sr Sattur Chandra, Co-Convenor, Mahabubnagar Chapter gave the final vote of thanks and concluded the workshop.
Workshop Photos:
Induction and on the spot painting competition prize distribution ceremony was organized by INTACH Young Heritage Club under the aegis of History Department on 23-12-2021 in Agrawal Mahavidyalaya today, in which Anand Mehta, Convenor INTACH Faridabad Chapter and Principal Dayanand Educational Institution visited. Famous industrialist and social worker Sharad Bhasin, eminent singer Vanshika Bhasin Neeta Aneja, Harpreet Kaur and Sangeeta Taneja were present as special guests. The program was presided over by the Principal of the college, Dr. Krishnakant Gupta. In this program, the Chief Guest, while inducting the new girl students of BAO first year in INTACH Young Heritage Club, presented them with badges and club passports. The winners of the painting competition based on various historical heritage were also awarded and the new students involved in INTACH were administered the oath of INTACH Young Heritage Club. Head of the History Department, Dr. Jaipal Singh said that Agrawal Mahavidyalaya has been providing knowledge of the historical heritage, buildings and culture of India to the younger generation through continuous competitions and educational tours for the past twelve years. He has been performing consistently since its creation, for which he deserves congratulations. The Principal said that historical records and heritage are the glories of our past and it is our ultimate duty to preserve them. In the painting competition, first Vaishali (B.O. first year), second Simran (B.O. third year), third Poonam Saini (B.O. first year) and The consolation prize was received by Nancy and Rekha Saini. In the end, Dr. Supriya Dhanda, Assistant Spokesperson, Department of History, thanked everyone.
INTACH Jammu Chapter in collaboration with HECS conducted an Endangered Craft workshop on Straw craft in association with Assistant Director Handicrafts Department in the Govt. High School Sarote, Block Mathwar Jammu district on 22nd Dec 2021. Around 47 Students of classes 7th to 9th participated in the workshop.Mr. S M Sahni KAS (Retd.), Convener INTACH Jammu Chapter gave a brief introduction to the craft tradition. Mrs. Sonika Parihar, Assistant Director Handicrafts Department J&K Govt welcomed the students, Headmaster & staff of the school, artisans, members of Panchayat and habitants of nearby villagers appreciated the efforts of INTACH Jammu Chapter for organising the workshop of school students. She also distributed Registration cards to the crafts persons of the area. She explained to the children about the Handicrafts products of Jammu & need to revive these as traditional crafts.
The live demonstration and training was done by Smt Shakuntala Devi, Smt Shakti Devi, Smt Santosh Devi, and Smt Shakuntala Devi. The students learned thoroughly from the live demonstration and interacted with the artisans enthusiastically. The workshop was coordinated by Shri. Subash Chander Sharma HTO- J&K Handicraft Department
Mr. Arvind Kotwal KAS (Retd.) Life member, INTACH Jammu Chapter presented/proposed a vote of thanks.
INTACH Mahabubnagar in collaboration with HECS, INTACH conducted an online Endangered Craft Workshop on "Puppetry" on 22nd December 21 for 125 students from various schools of the region. Dr T Nagendra Swamy, Convenor welcomed all the participants and the esteemed guest speakers Ms Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH, Professor Manoja (Retd), Palamuru University, Smt Kalavathi, SGT.
Ms Purnima Datt began the session by expressing her delight about the initiative taken by the Chapter for doing this virtual workshop. She briefly explained the work of INTACH and the 5 divisions that we have in the organisation and their respective work. She informed the students about the continued efforts and work done by the Heritage education division of INTACH and thanked them for their engagement and participation in the workshop.
After the brief introduction given by Mr Nagendra Swamy on Professor Manoja, she began the workshop with great fervour. The students were showcased the great 350-year-old shadow puppet Parasurama and few other wooden puppets, all the while explaining India's vast puppetry tradition and the cultural/oral heritage associated with these puppets. She went on to explain the tangible and intangible aspects of heritage, she explained about the famous Telangana wooden puppets that are painted by Nakashi people which are presently being made by Mr Jaganatham in Janagam district where they still perform with these puppets. She introduced the participants with the present-day puppetry which is made from recycling waste and ended her session by asking the students as citizens of this country to do what they could to preserve and safeguard Indian heritage.
The vote of thanks was by MR V.S.R.K Prasad, Additional Co-Convenor, INTACH Mahabubnagar.
Workshop Photos:
INTACH Jamnagar Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH and Jamnagar Archaeological Museum and Lakhoto Khoto conducted an all day (offline) workshop on Endangered Folk and Traditional Art-Craft Embroidery workshop on 22nd December 2021.With the support of the Directorate of Archaeology & Museum Sports Youth and Cultural Activities, Government of Gujarat - the workshop was under the 'Government of India's 'Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav' initiative, celebrating 75 years of India's history of its people,culture and achievements.
The workshop was conducted in-person at Jamnagar Archaeological Museum and followed strict Covid-19 health protocols. The morning session was from 10.30am to 12.30pm for English Medium students and the afternoon session was from 2pm to 4pm for Gujarati Medium students. Ms. Sakina was the workshop instructor. The workshop began with introductory remarks from INTACH Jamnagar Honorary Secretary Yashi Kumari Jadeja who designed the workshop; and INTACH Jamnagar Convenor Air Commodore SS Tyagi VM (retd). Air Commodore Tyagi spoke of India's rich cultural heritage.
Ms. Sakina's first tutorial was recycling a plastic bottle and making a pen holder and a drinking cup. The students enjoyed the craft process turning a simple plastic water bottle into a functional everyday item. The second tutorial was embroidery on plastic mattie to create coasters. Using a combination of slip knot and chain stitching. Despite many students' first ever use of a crochet hook, they learned very quickly and enjoyed seeing the mattie come to life. The third tutorial was decorative border embroidery on cloth. The students stitched on handkerchiefs, using a variety of stitches traditionally used in Indian ethnic wear. The fourth tutorial was paper craft. Students learned how to make paper lotuses, snowmen and collages using the motto, "best from waste".
With members of the media present, students joined workshop coordinators in interviews and showcased their pieces by the end of the workshop.
INTACH Kasargod Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH conducted an Endangered Craft Workshop on "Palm leaf fan making" on 20th December 2021 for 80 school students . The great tradition is practised by the Panans, a Harbinger community of Palakkad district of Kerala who visits houses and sings awakening songs called Thuyilunarthu Pattu ", they also perform "Pana Porattu" ( a satirical dance drama). The art of making palm leaf fans is centuries old which is now on the verge of extinction, hence this workshop was necessary to raise awareness regarding the same for the school children of the region. Mr. Mannoor Chandran , eminent folk artist and Kerala Folklore Akademy Fellowship recipient, Mr. Tharoor Gopalan and Mr. Tharoor Krishnan are the eminent Craft persons who were invited as esteemed resource persons to conduct the workshop.
The workshop commenced by the inauguration ceremony done by Dr. V. Jayarajan , Chapter Convener, Adv. P.V. Hareesh. P.V, Co Convener of the chapter also spoke and welcomed all the students to the workshop. The craftsperson began the workshop by demonstrating the cutting of palm leaves in a particular shape for making desirable fashion. After getting the shape of the fan , They have made decorations using cotton. The process was showcased rather simply to the students. Once the fan demonstration was done, Mr Chandran sang a folk song pertaining to the palm leaf fans, ending the workshop on a musical and mythological note.
The INTACH Varanasi Chapter started the series of Heritage walk for INTACH member schools. In the first walk was started off with a visit to Rani Laxmi Bai Smarak Sthal, the birth place of Jhansi ki Rani. The briefing of the walk was done by Shri Devesh Agrawal ji at Assi Ghat, assisted by Shri Vineet Sharma. Mr. Ashok Kapoor, Convenor of INTACH Varanasi Chapter, life member Mrs. Manju Agrawal and students from 8 school participated in the walk. The Chapter looks forward to more events under the series as already planned by the team.
Indian National Trust for Art & Cultural Heritage Jammu Chapter in collaboration with Department of Environmental Science University of Jammu and Green Campus task force (GCTF JU) organized a heritage Drive/Walk to traditional route to Mata Vaishno Devi ji to celebrate the Heritage week & "Azadi ka Amrit Mahatsav" a jan Utsav to commenorate the 75th Anniversary of India Independence. The Heritage walk was organized to make the students, scholars and faculty members aware about the rich Natural as well as built heritage of Jammu region.
Prof. Piyush Malaviya , Head, Department of Environmental Science University of Jammu along with Sh. Jyoti Bhatti, Principal, Food Craft Institute, Shri. Arvind Kotwal KAS (Retd), Coordinator Heritage Tourism, INTACH Jammu Chapter flagged off the Group from the campus of Food Craft Institute Dhammi-Nagrota on 27th Nov 2021 at 10:30 am. Prof. Piyush Malaviya briefed the students about the rich Natural Heritage of the nation and J&K in particular for which the environmental sciences students can play an important role for its preservation and spreading the message of traditional species of the area.
Shri. S. M. Sahni KAS (Retd) Convener INTACH Jammu Chapter highlighted the importance of the traditional route to the holy Cave shrine of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Ji, since ancient times and explained about the various initiatives and programmes of Intach Jammu Chapter for the promotion, conservation and preservation of Heritage Tourism in Jammu. He also explained the archeological details about the built heritage sites along the traditional route which includes small temples, wells, step wells, ponds & haltage sarais with cluster of mango & other traditional plants in group formations.
Dr.Deepika Slathia, Sr. Asstt. Professor and Member Secretary, GCTF University of Jammu explained in detail about the unique features of the Natural heritage sites (springs, step wells, wells & ponds) Constructed-developed by the devotees who used to visit the holy shrine in groups. She said that these traditional water bodies constitute a unique part of Indian architecture and are testimony to traditional water harvesting system developed in the ancient times. Our water bodies are very important and there is utmost need to conserve them for our future generations.
The Heritage drive/walk started from the Oli temple (The last temple) the tail end of the route falling with in Jammu district and culminated at Pangali temple, the last temple on Nagrota by pass traditional route. The students were also shown Shivalingam of ancient times at Bhamyal, Shiba temple & pond, at Pangoli Temple of Mahalakhshmi ji, Students were shown traditional step wells with chambers for filtration which is believed to be more than 100 years old structure. The students were also shown the various sections of the food Craft Institute Nagrota Jammu which is conducting the Diploma courses besides Skill development program in hospitality sector.
The walk was attended by students, scholars and staff members of EVS Dept. FCI and INTACH Family. An interaction program with local was also organized over a cup of tea & refreshment. All the protocols of Covid-19 were observed -measures were taken into consideration.
The quiz started with the entry of the 6 schools from Central Zone who participated in this round. This included schools from Gwalior, Durg-Bhillai, Bilaspur, Bhilwara, Raipur, and Mahasamund.
Purnima Datt, Principal Director of HECS INTACH, introduced the Quiz to the students and mentioned the past winners of the main quiz from this zone. Abhishek Das and Purnima Datt then went on to answer the doubts of all the students and gave instructions for the Quiz. The teams were divided into their positions by the randomizer operated by Geetika Gunjan. Round 1 was started which included questions on Natural Heritage and Built Heritage. The students were asked to give their preferences, following which each student was asked 2 questions from each theme.
The 2nd Round began after this which included 1 INTACH question and 1 Visual question. Each team included 2 students and each student was asked 1 question.
After the end of Round 2, the scores were tallied and the top 4 teams were selected to go into Round 3. Round 3 included 4 questions for each team with each student answering 2 questions. These included questions on Material and Living Heritage.
The scores were tallied after the end of Round 3 and the final results were announced. St. Anselm�s S.S. School, Bhilwara came 1st and Krishna Public School, Raipur came 2nd after a tie-breaker and qualified for the semi-final round. The Vote of Thanks was given by Purnima Datt and the Quiz ended with a group photo.
INTACH Jamshedpur Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH conducted an Endangered Craft workshop on 18th December 2021 on Kharsawa Chau Dance (Tribal Mask Dance) at the St Mary's English High School for 42 students. Esteemed Guru Parmanand Nand and his team were invited to conduct this workshop for the students and throw some light on this lesser known unique living tradition of Jharkhand. Guru Paramanand with his team has been performing on and working on this art form for over 10 years and he has worked relentlessly to save this art form from fading.
Kharsawa Chau dance is different from other Chau dances that are prevalent in the region and neighbouring states. In this dance form, the dancers aren't wearing a mask, rather their faces are painted with different colours. The unique dance form has been patronised by the likes of Kalamandir, Jamshedpur and Dorabji Tata Trust, and Raj Parivar's Shrimati Vijya Rani Singhdev. Guru Paramanand and his team has also performed various versions of this dance form at National School of Drama, Sangeet Kala Akademi and at more such centres. In the workshop, Guru Paramanand very kindly spoke about the different dancing steps of the dance form and urged the students to all try dancing. The students were seen enthusiastically dancing the unique steps and following the guidance of the Guru as well as the Chau dancers. It was a fun-filled way of learning about this special tribal dance form.
The workshop ended with the representative from Kalamandir and the Chapter Convenor, Shri Amitabh Ghosh said a few words about the dance form and on preserving the tangible and intangible heritage of the region. They also spoke about how such traditions give us a glimpse of tribal communities and their cultures and how one must protect them at all costs.
The quiz started with the entry of the 4 schools from West Zone who participated in this round. These included schools from Mumbai, Nashik, Vadodara, and Pune. The Quiz began with Dr C.T. Mishra, Member-Secretary of INTACH, introducing the heritage quiz and speaking about the importance of such a quiz. She mentioned how children are the future of the nation and world. It is their responsibility to preserve heritage for the future. Purnima Datt, Principal Director of HECS INTACH, then took over and introduced the Quiz to the students and mentioned the past winners of the main quiz from this zone.
Abhishek Das thanked both Dr. Mishra and Purnima Datt for their introductions. Abhishek Das and Purnima Datt then answered the doubts of all the students and gave instructions for the Quiz. The teams were divided into their positions by the randomizer. Round 1 was started which included questions on Natural Heritage and Built Heritage. The students were asked to give their preferences on the themes, and were asked 2 questions each.
The 2nd Round began after this which included 1 INTACH question and 1 Visual question. Each team included 2 students and each student was asked 1 question.
After the end of Round 2, the scores were tallied and the top 4 teams were selected to go into Round 3. Round 3 included 4 questions for each team with each student answering 2 questions. These included questions on Material and Living Heritage.
The scores were tallied after the end of Round 3 and the final results were announced. A tie-breaker took place between DPS Nashik and SES Gurukul for second place. Bright Day School Vasna, Vadodara came 1st and SES Gurukul, Pune came 2nd. They both went through to the semi final round. The Vote of Thanks was given by Purnima Datt and the Quiz ended with a group photo.
On the third day three eliminator rounds were held.
In Eliminator 6, seven teams from Jamshedpur, Assam, Nagaland, Hazaribagh, Bhubaneshwar, Shillong and Dibrugarh participated. The quiz commenced with the welcoming of participants by Ms Purnima Datt. She briefed about the Quiz rules and Mr. Abhishek Das conducted the quiz. Ms. Purnima Datt gave extra information for the answers after every round. After three rounds of intense quizzing DAV Public School, Bhubaneshwar came first followed by Faculty Higher Secondary School, Assam and qualified for the semi final round.
In Eliminator 7, five teams from Kolkata, Hooghly, Balasore, Bhagalpur, and Balangir participated. Ms. Purnima Datt greeted the students and gave a brief introduction to quiz and INTACH. She explained the format and rules. Mr Abhishek Das conducted the quiz and briefed about the instructions before every round. Ms Datt provided extra information to the answers at the end of every round. The top two teams of this round were Siddhi Vinayak Public School, Balasore and APJ School, Park Street, Kolkata who qualified for the semi final round.
In the eliminator 8, the six participating schools were from Udaipur, Jamnagar, Nagpur, Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Marwar-Jodhpur. Ms. Purnima Datt welcomed all the students and gave a brief introduction to quiz and INTACH. She explained the format and rules of the quiz. Mr Abhishek Das conducted the quiz and briefed about the instructions before every round. Ms Datt provided extra information to the answers at the end of every round. After three rounds of intense quizzing St. Anthony's SS School, Udaipur and Centre Point School, Wardhaman Nagar, Nagpur qualified for the semi final round with both the teams scoring equal marks.
Ms. Geetika Gunjan was the time keeper and Ms. Christina Shangne and Ms Smriti Malhotra was the score keeper for all the eliminator rounds. They were supported by Ms. Vaishnavi who helped in th4e invigilation.
The Eliminator- Zonal round as a part of our INTACH Heritage Quiz was held on 16th December 2021. The quiz was conducted online via webinars for around 60 cities across India. The South zone was covered on 16th December, which saw the participation of 12 cities with 24 students from various schools who participated in the quiz.
The event began with Ms Purnima Datt welcoming all the participants, she briefly went over the purpose of the heritage quiz and how it is open to all students irrespective of language, as the INTACH Heritage Quiz is conducted in local languages as well.and acquainted the students about INTACH and HECS's role in educating the younger generation about heritage through various programmes and initiatives.She wished students all the luck and proceeded with telling them the rules of the quiz. Mr Abhishek Das, Senior Programme Coordinator, HECS, INTACH conducted the quiz and asked the questions to the students, while Ms Geetika Gunjan handled the technical aspect of the quiz with Ms Christina Shangne, Ms Smriti Malhotra, and Ms Vaishnavi Singh participated in conducting the quiz as well.
The first round saw the participation of schools from Chennai, Thanjavur, Calicut,Nalgonda,Vizag, and East Godavari. The teams that emerged winners and shall proceed to the Semi-finals to be held in January 2022 were Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Calicut and RR High School, Nalgonda.
While the second round of eliminator-zonal round saw the participation of schools from Hyderabad, Bangalore, Kochi, Rangareddy, Kasargod,and Machilipatnam. The teams that emerged winners and shall proceed to the semi-finals to be held in January 2022 were Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Girinagar, Kochi and Delhi Public School, Nadergul.
Ms Shama Prasanna (INTACH Chennai Chapter) was present for the first round of eliminator-zonal round, she motivated the students and wished them luck for the quiz.
Shri Swaminathan (INTACH Thanjavur Chapter) also graced us with his presence for the quiz and congratulated HECS, INTACH for conducting this quiz and wished the students all the luck for the event.
Questions based on built, natural, material and living heritage of India featured in the Quiz. Some questions based on INTACH were also included in the format of the Quiz as well as visual questions were also asked from the students. The final marks were declared by Mr Abhishek Das and the event was open to comments by students, teachers and convenors that were present for the webinar.
Ms Purnima Datt shared the books as prizes that the students shall be receiving and congratulated the students for all the effort they had made for the quiz and looked forward to seeing the winning teams in January 2022 for the semi-finals.
The event concluded with a group photograph and with the hope that the students learned something in regards to heritage in their preparation for the quiz.
The INTACH Heritage Quiz Zonal elimination rounds began on 15th December2021 and three eliminator rounds were held on the first day.
In the Eliminator 1, six teams from Gurgaon, Kurukshetra, Panipat, Ambala, Yamunagar and Hisar participated. Ms. Purnima Datt welcomed everyone. She gave a brief introduction about the INTACH Quiz which is the largest quiz done in English, Hindi, and regional languages. This year too it was held via online platform due to pandemic. Ms Datt explained the rules of the quiz and showed the book which would be given to all the participating teams. The quiz was conducted by Mr. Abhishek Das. Ms Geetika Gunjan handled the presentation and technical aspects; Ms Chritina Shangne and Ms Smriti Malhotra were the score keepers. The Quiz was held in three rounds; first round was on natural and built heritage, second round was on INTACH and visual questions and the last and final round was on material and living heritage. After each round Ms Datt gave extra information regarding the questions. After three rounds of intense quizzing Lord Mahavir Jain Public School, Ambala and DPS Sec-45 Gurgaon qualified for the semi finals.
In Eliminator 2, the seven participating schools were from Amritsar, Patiala, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Malerkotla, Dehradun and Faridkot. Ms. Datt gave a brief introduction to quiz and INTACH. She explained the format and rules. Mr Abhishek Das conducted the quiz and briefed about the instructions before every round. MS Datt provided extra information to the answers at the end of every round. Army Public School, Beas, Jalandhar and Spring Dale Senior School, Amritsar qualified for the next round.
In the Eliminator 3, the seven participating schools were from Jammu, Ayodhya, Lucknow, Delhi, Chandigarh, Varanasi and Gorakhpur. Ms Purnima Datt greeted the students and gave a brief introduction about the Quiz and INTACH. The quiz was conducted by Mr Abhishek Das. The final round of the day was won by Sunbeam School Lahartara, Varanasi followed by Mt Carmel School, Delhi.
Ms. Geetika Gunjan was the time keeper and Ms. Christina Shangne and Ms Smriti Malhotra was the score keeper for all the eliminator rounds. They were supported by Ms. .0.Vaishnavi who helped in th4e invigilation.
INTACH Thanjavur Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH conducted a craft workshop on Thanjavur Doll Making on 10th December 2021 for more than a 100 students for the region. The Chapters efforts were supported by the District collector of Thanjavur, Mr Dinesh Ponraj Aliwar, IAS, the Chief Educational Officer, Mr Sivakumar guided by the chapter convenor, Shri S Babaji Rajah Bhosle. The workshop was conducted under the supervision of Heritage club coordinator Mr K Swaminathan,Secretary Mr S Muthukumar, Treasurer, Mr Ramanathan.
The Thanjavur Doll is a traditional doll made of terracotta, because of its structure, it bobs and dances and oscillates continuously. Local artisans Prabhu and his wife were invited as craftsperson, who demonstrated the art of making the terracotta dolls to the students.The students too tried their hands at making them and enthusiastically played with terracotta to make these unique GI tagged dolls. Thanjavur dolls were also given as souvenirs to the participating students and the chapter successfully raised awareness regarding this distinctive artform in the younger generation.
The workshop was vastly covered by local newspapers and media.
INTACH Jammu Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organised an endangered art workshop on Basohli style of Miniature Painting on 30th November 2021. This was done in association with the Hon’ble Councillor Add. S.D. Tarapuri High School Gandhi Nagar (Ward 21). Ms. Bhanu Mahajan, Councillor of ward 21 was the Chief Guest, Around 35 students from the region participated in the workshop.
Prof. Anita Biloria, Former Dean & Director Heritage Studies University of Jammu briefed the students about the traditional miniature painting of Jammu, its importance & value as an Art of the area.
The Chief Guest in her presidential remarks appreciated the efforts of Intach for organising the workshop for the awareness of the students about their art & crafts and also to connect them to their roots- traditions which are in danger.
After the briefing sessions Mrs. Shivani Khajuria, miniature painting expert & faculty of Skill Development Institute Jammu alongwith three associates were the expert resource persons of the workshop. They imparted training to students of the artwork and explained to the students how to draw & paint the painting with thematic designs, colour mixing & painting with brush.The students enthusiastically tried their hand at the traditional style of painting.
Shri. SM Sahni KAS (Retd.) Convener, Shri. Kuldeep Wahi, Co-Convener and Shri. Arvind Kotwal – Co ordinator Heritage Tourism Intach Jammu Chapter presented mementos to the Chief Guest, Guest faculty & Heritage kit to the school Principal for opening of Heritage club in the school.
INTACH Jalandhar chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organised an endangered art and craft workshop at Virsa Vihar for the music lovers. It was attended by approximately 85 music lovers as well as students on 27 Nov 2021 . The workshop was on traditional Punjabi Folk music utilising equipment which are now in endangered categories. Each music instrument was first explained to the audience and then played by the group. The equipment used were Tumbi,Saap, Sarangi,Gungroo,Algoja, Kattoo, Kanchi, Kartal Thad, Chimta, Damroo. It was a well attended event that raised great awareness about Punjab�s folk musical tradition as well as vernacular and lesser known instruments that people otherwise may not be aware of.
INTACH Raipur Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH conducted an endangered craft workshop on Bastar Face art on 10th-11th December 2021 for 43 students from 8 different schools of the region. Jagdalpur based artist Shri Arun Halder was invited as a resource person for the workshop.
An inaugural session was also conducted. Dr. Ramesh Anupam, well-known litterateur and cultural activist was the Chief Guest. Dr Ramesh in his speech spoke about the cultural splendour of Bastar and encouraged the students to preserve this lesser known artform. Shri Suyogya Kumar Mishra, Former Chief Secretary, Chhattisgarh Govt. also spoke at length regarding INTACH and propounded their efforts in conserving India’s heritage, he mentioned how Bastar has many tribes whose art/practices are often left unknown and undocumented and such efforts help preserve some of the art practices. Mr Rajendra Chandak also welcomed all the guests and resource person and the students to the workshop and briefly spoke about the endangered craft programme.
Shri Arun Halder then began the informative workshop and showcased his painting style on a bamboo mat and demonstrated great skill to the students. The event was widely covered in the media as well.
The INTACH Jammu Chapter celebrating the Iconic week organized a painting competition on Rangoli art on 27th October, 2021. The completion was attended by students of Utterbehni and Govt. Hr Sec School Uttar Behni (Samba). The DDC Samba came to inspect the Painting Competition. Around 41 students participated in the programme. The Winners of Govt. Hr sec. School Utterbehni (Samba) J&K UT- 1st Winner: - Anu Bhagat (12th Class); 2nd Winner: - Pallavi Rajput (12th Class); 3rd Winner:-Amila Rani (11th Class), Suprena Kosser (11th Class). The Winners of Govt. Hr Sec. School Purmandal (Samba) J&K UT- 1st Winner: - Kashish Khajuria (12th Class); 2nd Winner: - Divyanshu Kesar (12th Class); 3rd Winner: - Neha Devi (12th Class); Consolation: - Minakshi Dubey (10th Class).
The Chapter also organized a heritage walk at the historic Purmandal temples corridor. The welcome address was given by S. M. Sahni, Convener INTACH Jammu Chapter. Introduction of the Historic temples corridor was given by Pt. Anil Goswami- Head Priest and an address given by Chief Guest Sh. Keshav Sharma Chairman DDC Samba. Life Member Intach, Officer of Samba District, Sarpanch, Panch and School Children and NCC cadets took part in the Heritage walk. A plantation drive was also carried out.
INTACH Jammu Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organised a workshop on Calico printing (Block printing of Samba) as a part of the Endangered Crafts programme on 2nd December 2021. The workshop was organised in association with District Administration and was organised in Govt. Middle School, Bari Brahmana where students of various schools were taught the importance of the craft as well as received training on how to do block printing. Mrs. Sonika Parihar Asstt. Director Handicraft was the Guest of honour who began the workshop by briefing the students & teachers about the Crafts of Jammu & Block printing as one of the traditional crafts of Samba district, its importance since decades and commercial potential as on date. She also thanked The Deputy Commissioner Samba Mrs. Anuradha Gupta KAS & Mr. S.M. Sahni KAS (Retd.) Convener INTACH Jammu Chapter for their initiatives and giving an opportunity to the Handicrafts Department to organise the workshop of one of the famous crafts of Samba which would help connect the younger generation to their roots.
Shri. Hari Chand Z.E.O Vijaypur & Shri. Rakesh Verma Head of the Institution while welcoming the Intach team, A.D Handicrafts & her team , teachers and students of various participating schools. Mrs. Kiran Kumari Senior Instructor Handicrafts Department conducted the workshop whereas Mrs. Rupinder Kour, Teacher In charge, Cultural activities conducted the proceedings of the event, Mr. Balbinder Kumar RA, Intach Jammu Chapter helped in organising the event.
INTACH Solapur Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH conducted a workshop on the traditional craft of Crochet on 7th December 2021. Prof. Vishakha Marathe, Prof. Trupti Bapat and Mrs. Vimla Dargad conducted the workshop. 60 students from 12 schools along with 2 teachers registered for the workshop. The workshop was arranged at Solapur Education Society’s College of Architecture.
An art form that was introduced by the Europeans to the Indian subcontinent has been through various changes and adapted to Indian sensibilities and traditions.However, due to decreasing awareness and practitioners, this artform is not being carried forward by younger generations and these skills are slowly dying out. To change that to some degree, IINTACH Solapur Chapter wanted to make an effort to reintroduce these skills to school children by conducting this workshop.
The resource persons were women who work in the beedi-making area of Solapur, who are being empowered by the likes of Prof. Marathe and Prof. Bapat along with a few of her friends to work on crochet embroidery instead. The students were provided a kit and material to make wonderful crochet pieces. The trainers patiently taught them the art of crochet embroidery. The students by the end of the workshop displayed their works of art.
The workshop ended with Mr. Subodh Kulkarni, Senior Program Officer, Wikimedia Foundation spoke to the students about how knowledge is generated and archived at Wikimedia. Life Members Prof. Narendra Katikar, Mr. Shashikant Patil, Co- Conveners Ar. Shveta Kothavale and Ar. Pushpanjali Katikar helped make the workshop a success. The workshop was also widely covered by the media.
A College Heritage Volunteer Training Workshop was organised with INTACH Chennai Chapter. 65 students took part from various colleges.
Ms. Rajeswari, Member, Chennai Chapter gave the welcome address. Ms. Sujatha Shankar, Convenor of Chennai Chapter addressed the participants. Ms. Shankar gave a brief introduction to INTACH and its history. She asked the students to inculcate a sense of pride in our heritage and help protect
Maj. Gen. L.K. Gupta, Chairman, INTACH also addressed the participants. He encouraged the participants to learn and care for heritage. Maj.Gen. Gupta also asked students to refer to the Young INTACH website to learn more about heritage and its conservation. He called for a selfless contribution to our heritage.
Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS conducted the first session on India’s heritage. Ms. Datt shared about INTACH and its work followed by a detailed discussion on India’s Built, Natural, Material and Living heritage through an illustrated presentation.
Mr Sriram V, Columnist and Editor of Madras Musings conducted the second session on Chennai’s Built Heritage. Mr. Sriram, through a series of photographs shared about the heritage structures of the city and their present state. He shared about how recent floodings have caused damage to historic structures and also spoke about how in the past fires, rainwater collection etc. has led to damage in historic structures. He emphasised on new measures and methods to be adopted in order to protect the existing structures.
Dr. Jayshree Vencatesan, Managing Trustee, Care EarthTrust spoke about Chennai’s Natural Heritage. Dr. Vencatesan, is an active ecologist working in and around the wetlands of Chennai. She began by sharing in brief geography of Tamil Nadu and also about the natural habitat organization and the evolution of the city - ecologically. She also shared about wetlands of Chennai and her project on the same. She encouraged students to take part in such initiatives.
The concluding session was on Volunteerism - Creating Heritage Awareness by HECS team. Ms. Purnima Datt briefly spoke about volunteerism and how it helps individuals and also about the duties of a heritage volunteer. She also shared about the College Volunteer programme by HECS. Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Prog.
Coordinator, HECS, shared in brief about importance of heritage walks and how to conduct them. Ms. Vaishnavi Singh, Prog. Coordinator, HECS shared about how to promote heritage awareness in their respective institutions through various projects and activities. The 3 categories of Heritage - Built, Material and Living heritage were discussed by Ms Smriti Malhotra, Prog. Coordinator, HECS, and what activities can be undertaken within them to promote a wholesome idea of heritage.
Young INTACH’s online resources such as the website, social media pages were discussed by Ms Geetika Gunjan and Ms Smriti Malhotra. Ms Nanki Kaur, Prog. Coordinator, HECS discussed the various publications.
Kasargod
The quiz was conducted in GHS Kuttamath. 168 students participated in the city round. The winning team qualified for the national eliminator round.
The Chapter conducted the quiz in 12 schools. More than 400 students participated in the city round.
The Hyderabad and Telangana Chapter conducted the Hyderabad City and State round online. Students from Nalgonda, Hyderabad, Rangareddy, Narayanpet and Mahbubnagar district took part in the state rounds of the event.
Varanasi
20th-21st August
16 schools
The Chapter conducted the written round for 16 schools. Mr. Nirmal Joshi, Addl. Co-Convenor, Varanasi chapter was the quiz master. Four teams qualified for the oral rounds held on 21st August. Sunbeam Lahartara qualifed for the National Zonal rounds.
11th September
89 students/11 schools
The chapter conducted the quiz at GDCM hall, JB Academy. Mr. Nirmal Joshi, Co-Convener, Varanasi Chapter conducted the quiz. Top four teams qualified for the oral round. Udaya Public School qualified for the National Zonal rounds. Trophies were awarded to the winner and runner-up teams. Certificates and books were given to all the participants.
10th October
108 students/9 school
The chapter conducted the quiz in two rounds. Five teams qualified for the oral round. S.S. Academy qualified for the National Zonal round.
16th November
18 students/ 3 schools
The quiz was conducted online in collaboration with Cradle Solutions. The written round was held on 21st October with 3 schools. 3 teams qualified for the oral round conducted on 16th November. Mr. Arindam Bhattacharya and Mr Shreyas Hariharan conducted the quiz supported by HECS team.
AMBALA
20th August
68 students/15 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz on 20th August. Sister Shaily BK was the chief guest, and Dr Desh Bandhu, a renowned educationist and INTACH Member , was the guest of honour. The quiz was conducted in two rounds. Four teams qualified from the written round and went on to the oral round. Mrs. Madhu Singh,INTACH Member, conducted the quiz assisted by Ms. Reena, Co-Convenor. After four rounds, three rounds were held for tie-breaker. Lord Mahavir Jain Public School qualified for the National Zonal round.
11th September
64 students/8 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz online. The quiz consisted of two rounds - written and oral round. Springfield School qualified for the National Zonal round.
17th September
80 students
The quiz was conducted in S.D. Vidya Mandir. The quiz was conducted in two rounds - written and oral. Three teams from a total of 40 teams qualified for the oral round. DAV Police Public School qualified for the National Zonal rounds.
8th October
64 students/ 5 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz on 8th October at Kurukshetra Panorama and Science Centre.Sh. Madan Mohan Chhabra, Hon. Secretary of Kurukshetra Development Board was the Chief Guest. The quiz consisted of two rounds - written and oral. Maharana Pratap Public School, Kurukshetra qualified for the National Zonal round.
8th October
22 schools
The Gurugram city round was held on 8th October. The quiz was conducted by Mr Kunal Malhotra. Ms Kiran Rekha Banerji, a very Senior Educationist and a Member of INTACH, helped in organising the quiz.
11th-12th October
The chapter conducted the written round on 11th October and the oral round on 12th October. The oral round was conducted at Sant Nischal Singh Public School. Seven teams competed in the oral round. Chief Guest for the event was Dr Rupinder Singh, addressed the participants and spoke about the importance of heritage. Swami Vivekanand Public School qualified for the National Zonal round.
Jamshedpur
31st August, 3rd September
28 students/ 5 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz online in Kalamandir. Mr. Amitava Ghosh, Convenor addressed the students and discussed heritage and its conservation. Five teams qualified for the oral round held on 3rd September. Questions were based on Monuments, Art & Crafts,Natural Heritage, Audio & Visuals. Kerala Samajam Model School qualified for the National Zonal round.
19th September
4 schools
The chapter conducted the quiz in September. DAV School, Hazaribagh qualified for the National Zonal round.
Patiala Chapter
4th September
4 schools
The chapter conducted the written round on 11th October and the oral round on 12th October. The oral round was conducted at Sant Nischal Singh Public School. Seven teams competed in the oral round. Chief Guest for the event was Dr Rupinder Singh, addressed the participants and spoke about the importance of heritage. Swami Vivekanand Public School qualified for the National Zonal round.
25th September
70 students/15 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz in two phases: Written and Oral. The quiz was conducted by Ms. Amanbir Noorie and Ms. Nancy Pancholi. Five teams qualified for the oral round consisting of four rounds.
24th & 30th September
132 students/ 10 schools
The chapter conducted the quiz in two rounds. The first round saw participation of 66 teams out of which five qualified for the oral round. Dr Chanda Singh Marwah Girls’ School, Kotkapura qualified for the National Zonal round.
8th October
120 students/19 schools
The quiz was conducted online. Out of 60 teams, five qualified for Round two. Teams from Jalandhar and Kapurthala qualified for the next round.
CHENNAI
18th September, 22nd September
68 students/14 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz in two rounds. The preliminary round was held on 18th September. The second round was conducted on 22nd September with 5 teams. The quiz was conducted by Ms. Sushi Natraj, Member, INTACH Chennai Chapter.
19th & 21st September
360 students/18 schools
The chapter conducted two rounds - written round on 19th September and oral round on 21st September. Mr. N. Selvaraj, Historian & Researcher, Life Member INTACH was the quizmaster.
Baroda
6th October
32 students/ 8 schools
The quiz was conducted online. Schools from Anand and Bharuch also joined the event. The quiz was held at Bright Day School CBSE Unit.
14th October
60 students
The quiz was conducted online by Life Member Reema Kumari Jadeja. 60 students participated in the quiz across English and Gujarati mediums.
21st October & 16th November
30 students/ 6 schools
The quiz was conducted online in collaboration with Cradle Solutions. The written round was held on 21st October with 6 schools. 4 teams qualified for the oral round conducted on 16th November. Mr. Arindam Bhattacharya and Mr Shreyas Hariharan conducted the quiz supported by HECS team.
NAGPUR
5th October
102 students/12 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz on 05th October 2021.This quiz was conducted by Dr. Madhura Rathod - Convener and Ar. Nitika S Ramani - Co-Convener, and team (Ar. Kritika and Gayatri) of INTACH Nagpur Chapter. One team from each school was selected for round two. Top four teams qualified for the third round which was an oral round.
20th October & 18th November
52 students/ 6 schools
The quiz was conducted online in collaboration with Cradle Solutions. The written round was held on 2oth October with 6 schools. 5 teams qualified for the oral round conducted on 16th November. Mr. Arindam Bhattacharya and Mr Shreyas Hariharan conducted the quiz supported by HECS team.
East Godavari Chapter
12th September
75 students/10 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz online. Four teams qualified for the oral rounds. All four teams were given Cash prize, Books and Participation certificates.
18th & 25th September
The chapter conducted two rounds of quiz. The first round was held on 18th September and the second on 25th September.
Mahbubnagar
100 students
The Chapter conducted the quiz virtually. The written round saw participation from three districts namely Wanaparthy, Narayanpet and Mahbubnagar. Ten teams qualified for the oral round. Top three teams were given cash prizes. ZPHS Yedira qualified for the Telangana state final.
Dibrugarh
25th September
10 Schools
The chapter conducted the quiz online. 10 schools participated in the quiz.
16th & 30th October
28 students/ 5 schools
The Assam State Chapter and Kamrup Chapter conducted the quiz jointly. Five schools took part in the quiz.
25th September
The quiz was held online in collaboration with Cradle Solution. Six teams qualified to the oral round. S.D.Jain School
Bhubaneswar
3rd September
134 students/9 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz online. The preliminary round was a written round conducted via Google Form. Six teams qualified for the oral round. The questions consisted of questions on Indian heritage and INTACH and audio-visual questions as well.
19th September, 29th September
100 students/ 10 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz online. The preliminary round was a written round conducted via Google Form. Six teams qualified for the oral round. The questions consisted of questions on Indian heritage and INTACH and audio-visual questions as well.
25th September
160 students/16 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz at PP ACADEMY. The quiz was conducted in two rounds. 16 teams qualified for the final round. The top three teams were given trophy and certificate by Prof. Madhusudan Pati, Advisor of INTACH Balangir and Sinusundar Padhi, HM, PP Academy.
Dehradun
23rd- 24th September
50 students/5 schools
The chapter conducted the quiz online. The quiz was conducted in two rounds - written and oral. Pine Hall School qualified for the National Zonal round.
Bengaluru
30 September
The chapter conducted the quiz online. The quiz was conducted in two rounds - written and oral. Pine Hall School qualified for the National Zonal round.
Bilaspur
27th-29th September
115 students/11 schools
The quiz was conducted in two rounds - written and oral. Dr. Dhananjay Pandey of Govt. Multipurpose Schools of Bilaspur conducted the quiz.Three written rounds and one oral round was conducted. Career Point World School qualified for the National Zonal round.
19th October
121 students/14 schools
The quiz was conducted in two rounds - written and oral. Out of 121 teams four teams qualified for the second round. DPS Risali qualified for the National Zonal Round.
8th & 12th November
194 students
The Chapter conducted the quiz in four districts - Khairagarh, Mahasamund, Saraipali, and Raipur. The quiz was conducted online in collaboration with INTACH Mahasamund Chapter. Krishna Public School, Raipur and St. Stephen’s Model School, Saraipali qualified for the National Zonal round.
1st - 2nd November
68 student/11 schools
The quiz was conducted online in collaboration with Springdales School Barnai. The quiz was conducted in two sessions - written and oral. Five teams qualified for the second round. Mr. Arvind Kotwal, K.A.S. (Retd.) was the Chief Guest and the Guest of Honour was Mr. S. M. Sahani, K.A.S.(Retd) and Convener, Jammu Chapter.
Bhilwara
30th September
99 students/ 8 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz online in two rounds. Mr. Rajeev Dadheech conducted the quiz. St. Anselm School qualified for the National Zonal round.
21st Sep & 9th October
150 students/15 schools
The written round was conducted on 21st September. Six teams qualified for the oral round. St. Anthony’s School qualified for the National Zonal rounds.
29th October & 13th November
11 schools
The Chapter conducted the quiz in collaboration with Dharav High School. The written round was held on 29 October. Four teams qualified for the final round. The questions were based on a variety of topics like the monuments, art and artists, jewellery, natural habitat etc. Cambridge Court High School qualified for the National Zonal round.
8th October
98 students
The Chapter conducted the quiz in collaboration with Dharav High School. The written round was held on 29 October. Four teams qualified for the final round. The questions were based on a variety of topics like the monuments, art and artists, jewellery, natural habitat etc. Cambridge Court High School qualified for the National Zonal round.
Calicut
4th & 8th October
88 students/11 schools
The chapter conducted the quiz in two rounds. The preliminary round was held on 4th October and the oral finals on 8th October. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan (Chevayur) qualified for the National Zonal round.
7th & 28th October 2021
94 students/13 schools
The quiz was conducted online in collaboration with Cradle Solutions. The written round was held on 7th October with 13 schools. Seven teams qualified for the oral round conducted on 28th October. Mr. Arindam Bhattacharya and Mr Shreyas Hariharan conducted the quiz supported by HECS team.
Kolkata
25th November
6 schools
The quiz was conducted in collaboration with Cradle Solutions. Two rounds - written and oral round were held. Four teams qualified for the oral round.
3rd October
26 students/ 8 schools
The chapter conducted the quiz in two rounds - written and oral. Dr. Pinaki De, Associate Professor English and an award-winning illustrator & graphic designer, was the Quizmaster. The Written Round was conducted through Google Form. Four teams qualified for the Oral Round. Tribeni Tissues Vidyapith qualified for the National Zonal round.
Burhanpur
24th September
85 students
The chapter conducted the quiz on 24th September at BOI RSETI, Burhanpur. 85 students participated in the quiz. Questions were asked on Indian heritage, Madhya Pradesh, Burhanpur and also INTACH.
274 students
The chapter conducted the quiz on 30th November. 137 teams from various schools across the city took part in the event
Bhagalpur
29th October
74 students/8 schools
The chapter conducted the quiz in two rounds - written and oral. Four teams qualified for the oral round. DAV Public School qualified for the National Zonal round.
6th & 27th October
80 students/ 40 schools
The quiz was conducted online in collaboration with Cradle Solutions. The written round was held on 6th October with around 40 schools. 8 teams qualified for the oral round conducted on 27th October. Mr. Arindam Bhattacharya and Mr Shreyas Hariharan conducted the quiz supported by HECS team.
7th & 27th October
62 students/ 8 schools
The quiz was conducted online in collaboration with Cradle Solutions. The written round was held on 7th October with 8 schools. 6 teams qualified for the oral round conducted on 27th October. Mr. Arindam Bhattacharya and Mr Shreyas Hariharan conducted the quiz supported by HECS team.
20th October & 18th November
30 students/ 3 schools
The quiz was conducted online in collaboration with Cradle Solutions. The written round was held on 21st October with 3 schools. 3 teams qualified for the oral round conducted on 16th November. Mr. Arindam Bhattacharya and Mr Shreyas Hariharan conducted the quiz supported by HECS team.
INTACH Bhagalpur Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organised a workshop on Manjusha Painting on 30th October 2021 Mr Manoj Kumar Pandit, a master artist of the Manjusha style of painting was invited to conduct the workshop. Around 54 students from various schools of the region were in attendance for the workshop. The workshop was conducted at Divine Happy School.
The workshop began with a welcome address by Dr Anita Pandey, Member of INTACH and Principal of Divine Happy School, Bahgalpur. Dr K.D Prabhat, Convenor, INTACH,Bhagalpur Chapter addressed the students and thanked them for their participation in this art awareness workshop.Dr Wibhu Kumar Roy, Additional Co-convenor, INTACH, Bhagalpur gave an introduction to the expert artist and anchored the entire session. Mr Kaushal Kishore Singh, Life Member, INTACH and Principal of SMS Mission Sciences, Bhagalpur also delivered an inspiring speech to the students in attendance.
The workshop commenced with Mr Kumar explaining the history of the art form and how to make preparations for the style of painting. The workshop saw a great engagement from the students as they learned the art of making a Manjusha painting. The workshop was conducted with a vote of thanks given by Ms Gunja Kumari, teacher at Divine Happy School, Bhagalpur.
INTACH Vijaypur Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organised a workshop on making art on earthen pots on 26th October 2021 in association with BLDEA’s Dr P G Halakatti research Centre Vijaypur at Dr P G Halakatti Research Centre Hall Vijaypur . Around 95 students from 13 schools participated in the workshop. State Rajyotsva awardees and ex-principal of Shri Siddheswar Art and degree college Vijaypur, Shri P S Kademani was the Chief guest at the workshop and very kindly agreed to inaugurate the event as well. Shri V V Hiremath Principal of S S Art degree college Vijaypur was invited as the expert resource person to conduct the workshop.
Dr M S Madbhavi secretary of the Centre gave the welcome speech and thanked all students for their participation. The workshop began with a few words from the Chief Guest, Shri P S Kademani, he gave his thanks towards the Chapter efforts being made to preserve this vanishing artform and showcased his enthusiasm about our young students learning simple art and carrying forward the tradition. Shri V V Hitrmath then began the workshop by demonstrating a step by step process of painting on earthen pots. The students were seen eagerly painting on their earthen pots and showcasing their creativity. The students were also asked to submit photographs of their final creation once it was done.
The event was smoothly conducted by Dr V D Aiholi and the vote of thanks was given by Prof A B Budhihal.
INTACH Varanasi Chapter in collaboration with HECS,INTACH organised a workshop on clay pottery and clay toy making on 20th November 2021 at the Gurudham Temple Complex in the region. Around 64 students with INTACH member schools enthusiastically participated in the workshop. Shri Sanju Parjapati, a traditional potter and his son were invited as master craftsperson to conduct the workshop.
Shri Sanju Prajapati started the workshop with a demonstration on making the clay pottery on an electric wheel and talking about the craft while working on it. His son also assisted in the process and taught the students the know-how of making toys out of clay. The students eagerly made little clay pots and took the souvenirs home as well.
This age-old, sustainable craft has been through various transitions over the years and requires encouragement. Initiatives like these help promote this art form and help sustain the interest in the craft especially amongst the younger generation.
INTACH’s Heritage Education and Communication Service Division, in collaboration with Cradle Solutions conducted the final of Mumbai city round online. The written round of the quiz was held on 20th October, from which five teams qualified for the oral finals. Mr. Arindam Bhattacharya of Cradle Solutions was the quiz master supported by Shreyas Hariharan. Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH welcomed the participants and congratulated the participants and the efforts put in by their teachers. Mr. Arindam briefed the students about the rules of the online final and its structure and format. The four rounds included questions based on the different types of heritage of the country, Mumbai and also on INTACH. Arya Vidya Mandir, Bandra West emerged as winners.
The INTACH Thanjavur Chapter celebrated the World Heritage Week by conducting a heritage walk and talk at the palace complex.
INTACH’s Heritage Education and Communication Service Division, in collaboration with Cradle Solutions conducted the final of Mumbai city round online. The written round of the quiz was held on 20th October, from which five teams qualified for the oral finals. Mr. Arindam Bhattacharya of Cradle Solutions was the quiz master supported by Shreyas Hariharan. Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH welcomed the participants and congratulated the participants and the efforts put in by their teachers. Mr. Arindam briefed the students about the rules of the online final and its structure and format. The four rounds included questions based on the different types of heritage of the country, Mumbai and also on INTACH. Arya Vidya Mandir, Bandra West emerged as winners.
INTACH’s Heritage Education and Communication Service Division, in collaboration with Cradle Solutions conducted the final of the Shillong city round online. The written round of the quiz was held on 20th October, from which three teams qualified for the oral finals. Mr. Arindam Bhattacharya of Cradle Solutions was the quiz master supported by Shreyas Hariharan. The programme began with Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH welcoming the participants and congratulating all finalists and the efforts put in by their teachers. Mr. Arindam briefed the students about the rules of the online final and its structure and format. The four rounds included questions based on the different types of heritage of the country, Shillong and also on INTACH. St.Edmund’s School emerged as winners.
A Teacher Training Webinar Workshop was organised on 18th November 2021 by HECS INTACH in collaboration with INTACH Durg- Bhilai Chapter. Teachers from various schools of Durg- Bhillai, members of INTACH Durg- Bhillai, Chairman of INTACH Maj. Gen. L .K. Gupta and the HECS team attended the workshop.
The workshop started off with a welcome address by Dr. Devendranath Sharma, Convenor of INTACH Durg- Bhillai Chapter. Mrs. Purnima Datt, Principal Director of INTACH, then gave a brief description about INTACH, its work, its division and the works taken up by INTACH, followed by the screening of the INTACH film.
The first session was on- ‘What is Heritage- Natural, Built and Living Heritage’, presented by Mrs. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH. The presentation highlighted the complex heritage and culture of India. She further talked about the important four aspects of heritage i.e. Natural, Living, Built and Material heritage of our country in detail with examples. She stressed that heritage keeps us grounded and gives each one a sense of belongingness. Heritage is valuable.
The second session was on ‘Heritage Education, Methodology and Object Study’ presented by the HECS team. Mrs. Purnima Datt, gave a detailed presentation on what is heritage education, its various aspects and how one can make children understand the varied aspects of it. She also talked about the formation and structures of heritage clubs. This was then followed by and interactive activity based session with the teachers, where Mrs. Datt explained how to incite curiosity among children. Mr. Abhishek Das, Senior Programme Coordinator, INTACH HECS, then spoke about the importance of Heritage Walks, Museum Visits and interacting with resource persons. Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Programme Coordinator, INTACH HECS, spoke about the Young INTACH website, its various educational resources available on it and Ms. Smriti Malhotra, Programme Coordinator, INTACH HECS, spoke about the social media handles of Young INTACH such as Facebook, Instagram and further briefed about the Art and Craft awareness workshop held across the country in collaboration with different chapters. The INTACH National programmes such as the Heritage Quiz, Creative campaigns and competitions; the FILMIT project were also shared by Mr. Das and Mrs. Purnima Datt respectively. Chairman Major General L. K. Gupta also spoke briefly. He welcomed and greeted Durg Bhilai chapter and encouraged them to work and care for heritage. This was followed by screening of a short film.
The session concluded with Mrs. Purnima Datt sharing about the group activity to be done by the teachers.
The Gulabbari project started by INTACH - Ayodhya chapter, is achieving new heights day by day. In this respect street play was presented by the Heritage club students of JB Academy. The historical-cultural importance of Gulabbari was highlighted through the play, while on the other hand people were urged to be conscious of their health. An appeal was made to save greenery as well. The students made the audience aware especially about the recycling of plastic and Ecobrick project through the street play. It is the third time in the last one month, when the team of INTACH Ayodhya displayed their determination towards Gulabbari’s cleanliness by running a cleanliness campaign in the Gulabbari premises. It was stressed that cleanliness and greenery are the basis of healthy life. In cities, such places with clean air, open environment and greenery are rare. Individual accountability of the local people should be ensured to save, protect and preserve heritage of this kind.
INTACH HECS in collaboration with the Shiv Nadar University, Greater Noida conducted a College Heritage Volunteer Workshop on 28th October, 2021. The workshop was held online, where the resource persons talked about heritage- its concept and introduction and on volunteerism.
The workshop began with a welcome note by the representative of the University, Radhika Tantia and a short introduction on INTACH and what its roles includes by Mrs. Purnima Datt (Principal Director, HECS INTACH), which was followed by the screening of the INTACH Film.
The first session ‘What is Heritage- concept and introduction’ was conducted by Mrs. Purnima Datt. Mrs. Datt spoke about heritage- its meaning and importance and its various kinds through an elaborate presentation. She also spoke about the work of INTACH and the importance of heritage education, stressing on the role of young students in taking this forward.
In the second session, a presentation on the importance of volunteerism, heritage promotion in institutions and heritage activities was shared by members of the HECS team. The team also talked about the Young INTACH publications, website and the social media handles.
The session concluded with INTACH’s pledge, followed by Q and A session.
In order to acquaint the people with the ancient heritage of Faizabad, INTACH Ayodhya Chapter organized Safar-e-Asasa from Tripolia gate in Faizabad to Begum Gulababri on Sunday, October 10, 2021. The heritage tour not only presented a beautiful combination of Islamic and Indian architecture, but also introduced the people to the splendor of Nawab Shuza-ud-daula. This heritage journey of about one and a half kilometer started from Gulabbari parking area at 6 am. About sixty people involved in this journey visited many historical institutions, libraries and monuments of Faizabad and understood its antiquity and importance. Following monuments/sites were covered –
Tea and Mughlai Kabab paratha’s were served to the participants of the walk. This walk was organized under the inspiration and guidance of the Convener of INTACH Ayodhya Chapter - Ms. Manjula Jhunjhunwala. Dr. Vishal Srivasatav was the main speaker and Dr. Divya Shukla coordinated the walk.
INTACH Ayodhya Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organised an endangered craft workshop on the antiquity, uses, classicity and creation of the Mridang musical instrument on 16th October 2021. The famous Mridang maker Shahid Ali, Doordarshan and Akashvani artist Vijay Ramdas, who is carrying forward the tradition of Kodau Singh gharana, Awadhi folk music lover Sushma Gupta were the guests of honor at the workshop. A physical workshop, it was attended by more than a 100 participants that was conducted at the JB Academy.
In this workshop, the famous Mridang maker Shahid Ali introduced the creation of Mridang minutely. Akashvani artist Vijay Ramdas who has a deep interest in Mridang also spoke at length about the instrument. Awadhi folk music lover Sushma Guptaengaged with both the artists and asked detailed questions regarding the origin, development, size, type, style, utility and relevance of Mridang in present times. Mr. Ali demonstrated how to make a Mridang which was later bought by Jingle Bell School. Artists shared a lot of information on the life of famous Mridang player Pt. Pagal Das ji.
The workshop ended with Ms. Manjula Jhunjhunwala, Ayodhya Chapter Convener thanked the artists. A pledge to promote and preserve Mridang was taken by the members and students.
Workshop Photos:
INTACH’s Heritage Education and Communication Service Division, in collaboration with Cradle Solutions conducted the final of the Kochi city round virtually through zoo meet. The written round of the quiz was held on 7th October, from which seven teams qualified for the oral finals. In total, Teams from 13 schools of Kochi participated in the event. Mr. Arindam Bhattacharya of Cradle Solutions was the quiz master on the day of the city finals. The programme began with Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH welcoming the participants and congratulating all finalists and the efforts put in by their teachers. Mr. Arindam briefed the students about the rules of the online final and its structure and format. Questions were based on the different types of heritage of the country, Kerala state and on INTACH. After 2 rounds of quizzing, three more teams got eliminated. Finally, the winners and runners’ up were the teams of Bhavan’s Vidya Mandir, Girinagar, followed in third position by Bhavan’s Vidya Mandir, Elammakara. The vote of thanks was delivered by Ms. Geetika Gunjan, HECS. Brothers Kiran and Tarun Tyson have qualified for the National Eliminator Round scheduled to be held in early December.
INTACH Heritage Quiz 2021 Oral round for the schools of Chandigarh was conducted on 27th October 2021. 6 schools with 12 students participated in the quiz from the city. The entire oral round was conducted virtually with proper instructions being provided to the participating teams by our Quiz master and the HECS team.
The programme began with a welcome address by Mr Abhishek Das, Sr Programme Coordinator followed by a brief address by Ms Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH. Ms Datt welcomed all the students and introduced our esteemed Quiz master, Mr Arindam Bhattacharya of Cradle Solutions and his team Mr Deepak and Mr Shreyas. Ms Datt then introduced the participating teams - St Kabir School, Learning Paths School,St Stephens School, Bhavan Vidyalaya, Banyan Tree School, Saupins School. Mr Arindam Bhattacharya then addressed the students and shared personal anecdotes about quizzing and imparted the instructions for the quiz with Ms Datt.
This was followed by four rounds of intense quizzing on Indian heritage. The rounds were categorized into one-on-one quizzing, thematic and visual round and rapid fire questions. The winners of the oral round was Saupins School followed by Learning Paths School coming in second and St Stephens School coming third. Mr Bhattacharya and Ms Datt congratulated the winning teams. The programme was concluded by thanking all the students for their efforts and a brief vote of thanks was provided by Ms Purnima Datt.
Quiz Photos:
INTACH Hisar chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organised an endangered craft workshop on moonj grass basketry on 23rd Oct '21.It was a hands-on training workshop which was attended by 62 students from 5 schools of the region. 3 women from Rakhigarhi village who specialise in the art of weaving Moonj grass baskets were invited to conduct the workshop.
The ladies enthusiastically taught the students the art of weaving with moonj grass and making beautiful baskets. They provided the students practical training along with teaching the technique of handling the grass and threads and making the foundation/bases neatly.
It was an educational workshop where students got to learn about the benefits of using products which are lightweight,organic biodegradable ,environment friendly and a great replacement for plastic.The craftswomen urged the students to promote the crafts by showing their appreciation and purchasing the products made in various craft fairs and from the craftspersons directly.
This workshop was enjoyed by the participating students and they were seen happily interacting with the craftswomen and trying their hand at the craft. They also learned greatly of this lesser known craft and understood why it is important to preserve this art from dying.
Workshop Photos:
INTACH Khandwa Chapter in Collaboration with HECS, INTACH conducted a workshop during the Shrad Paksha or Pitru Paksha period which commenced from 20th Sept to 6th Oct’21. Around 80 students from 10 different schools from the district participated in the workshop.
The Chapters Life Members Ankita Sharma and Sonali Arya conducted the workshop in both rural and urban areas with local craftsperson Mamta More and Neelam Upadhyay. The craftspersons lead the workshop by speaking about the relevance of this endangered religious art form and teaching them ways to make the wall art using cow dung.
Sanjha which is made on a wall using cow dung by young/unmarried girls during a 16 day long festival to honor the life of the girl named ‘Sanjha’ who is the Manas daughter of God Brahma. During the interactive workshop, the craftsperson and girls discussed the importance of Sanjha Mata and the wall art made by the girls reflected their artistic creativity.
The endangered status of artform was discussed and how it is not necessary to safeguard this tradition from completely dying out.
Overall it was an invigorating workshop that helped instill some knowledge regarding this lesser known ritualistic art form. The students learned greatly and enjoyed themselves thoroughly during the workshop and while creating beautiful renditions of Sanjha Mata.
Workshop Photos:
INTACH Varanasi Chapter organized a lecture on Saturday, October 9, 2021 at Sunbeam Women’s College, Varuna which is an institutional Member of INTACH. The topic for the lecture was “Relevance of Ramlila in Present Time and Kashi Ki Pracheen Ramlila” and the speaker was Prof. Maruti Nandan Tiwari who is presently Tagore National Fellow and Vice President of Indian Art History Congress. He was a Professor at Emeritus and is also working on two very prestigious projects with IGNCA.
The city of Varanasi hosts many Ramlilas including Ramlila started by Sant Tulsidas and Megha Bhagat and therefore the Chapter decided to hold this lecture to sensitize and apprise the students about the rich culture of Varanasi especially the Ramnagar Ramlila through lecture and visuals. Professor Tiwari explained how Bharat Milap, Soorpanakha Episode, Hanuman Charitra are relevant in present times and how we have to learn from those. He gave examples of 6th century sculptures which depict some Ramlila scenes.
Mr. Ashok Kapoor, Convenor of INTACH Varanasi Chapter welcomed the participants and explained the reason for organizing large numbers of programmes in educational institutions especially for students. He shared that it is very necessary for students to be aware of one’s culture. Dr. Piyush Pthak conducted the session while Shri Ram Kumar of the College cocordinated the programme. Around 40 students of graduate attended the lecture along with Mr. Nirmal Joshi, Addl. Co-convenor, Life Members Mr. Praval Pratap Singh, Mr. Upendra Kumar, Mr. Vikas Narayan (a scholar), Prof. S. S. Sinha, Art History, Dr. Rajiv Siingh, College Principal and Dr. Shalini Singh, Asst Administrator and some guest were also present.
INTACH Varanasi Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH conducted an offline Clay pottery workshop on 9th October 2021 in association with the institutional member, Little Flower House. Around 95 students from 9 different schools were registered for the workshop and were excited to learn the craft of pottery making. Mr Sanju Prajapat was invited as the expert resource person to conduct the workshop.
The workshop began with lamp lighting by Mr. Ashok Kapoor, convener INTACH Varanasi Chapter, Mr. Sanju Prajapati, the mentor of the workshop and Ms. Aditi Gulati, Deputy director of the host school and a life member of INTACH. Mr Prajapat began the workshop by providing a brief about the craft and the art of making clay pottery and demonstrated the different kinds of pots that can be made using some clay and a potter's wheel.
The students also tried their hands in making different pottery on the potter's wheel, whatever they created they took home. Not only students but the teachers attending the workshop also learnt hands on and made clay utensils. INTACH life member, Mr. Suresh Nair, and a renowned photographer Mr. Balram also attended the program.
INTACH Jodhpur Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organised a unique virtual workshop on Durrie Crafts on 9th October 2021 for around 30 students across various schools in the region. Shri Roopraj Ji Prajapat was invited as the guest speaker and expert to demonstrate the art of Durrie weaving. The workshop was moderated by Mrs Kalpana Champawat.
The workshop was an interactive and demonstrative one, wherein Shri Roopraj Prajapat spoke at length about the craft of durrie weaving. He talked about his family’s involvement with the craft and got his wife to be a part of the workshop as well.
He showcased various different varieties of durries throughout his presentation, also touching upon the difficulties he faced during the pandemic to sustain the artform and keep the craft alive.
Dr. Mahendra Singh Tanwar, Convenor, INTACH Jodhpur Chapter spoke about the efforts being made currently to safeguard and promote the art of Durrie weaving.
The workshop was very well received by the students in attendance, they asked pertinent questions regarding durrie weaving and Shri Prajapat’s life as an artisan. It was a lively session that encouraged the students to learn more about the durrie crafts and the people behind them.
INTACH Solapur Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH conducted a "WORKSHOP ON HALVYACHE DAGINE- Sesame Sugar Bead Jewellery- Traditional Craft on October 5th, 2021. Ms. Shraddha Kandale- Shete conducted the workshop. 65 students from 15 schools along with 12 heritage enthusiasts registered for the webinar. Since schools have partially opened up in the region, some schools made arrangements for the students to attend the workshop as well.
Sesame sugar beads, also made of Indian sago, poha, pumpkin seeds and others are an important part of the Sankranti festival in January. These beads are a mark of respect and kinship, young babies and kids, newly married couples, put ornaments made of these sugar beads as part of celebrations of the festival.
The workshop was conducted at Mr. Agarwal’s coaching class. Mr. Pawan Bargaje and Mr. Ambadas and Ms Surabhi Chaphalkar provided technical support. The session started with an introduction to INTACH and awareness programs on endangered folk art forms conducted by INTACH Solapur Chapter by Convener Ar. Seemantini Chaphalkar. Ar. Chaphalkar welcomed the expert Ms. Shraddha and the session commenced with a small YouTube video on the making of sugar beads.
Ms Shraddha started with sharing her earlier memories of the sugar bead ornaments made by her mother, aunts and neighbors and how it is a part of the Sankrant celebrations.She showed the different types of sugar beads and then demonstrated the stringing of these beads to make garlands and the different articles that can be made by combining in different combinations. She also showcased different sets of ornaments made for babies, small girls, newly married couples and for baby showers.
It was followed by an interactive Q&A round with the students in attendance.The workshop ended with Ar. Chaphalkar who gave a vote of thanks to the expert and students.
INTACH Durg Bhilai Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH conducted a unique endangered workshop on folk musical instruments on 3rd October 2021 for around 190 students from 18 schools across Durg Bhilai and Bhalod districts. Shri Rikhi Kshatri, famous folk music artist and collector of folk music instruments was invited as an expert speaker on the topic as well as Ms Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH.
Dr DN Sharma, Convenor, INTACH Durg Bhilai Chapter welcomed the speakers, students and Chapter team to the workshop and gave a brief introduction about the world of folk musical instruments, thanking Shri Kshatri for conducting this workshop. Ms Purnima Datt at the outset spoke about INTACH and the efforts being made by the entity and HECS division for preserving heritage and culture.
The eminent speaker was introduced and interacted with Ms Sonali Chakraborty, President of Swayamsiddha. Rikhi Khastri attracted the attention of the audience in attendance for the virtual webinar by playing a few instruments and talking about them as he moved on to showcase pieces from his vast collection. He played instruments which were used by tribals to attract animals during their hunting escapades. He further also explained the new needs and how musical instruments are used nowadays. He also stressed upon that if such a folk art is not conserved then we may completely lose this distinctive heritage forever.
The vote of thanks was given by Ms Vidya Gupta, Co-convenor, INTACH Durg Bhilai. Prof. Deepak Das provided technical support.
INTACH Durg Bhilai Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organised a virtual workshop on the Endangered Artform of Pandwani oral performance. Padma Vibhushan Awardee Shri Teejan Bai was invited as the guest speaker at the workshop. Dr Pardesi Ram Verma, a folk art expert and Ms Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH graced the workshop as well. More than 159 students from various schools of the region were in attendance for the webinar.
Dr DN Sharma, Convenor, INTACH Durg Bhilai Chapter welcomed the esteemed speakers and students to the workshop, providing a brief introduction to Shri Teejan Bai and Dr Verma as well as the folk singing tradition of Pandwani.
The workshop commenced with Ms Purnima Datt of HECS providing a short introduction to INTACH and the HECS Division. Shri Teejan for gracing this workshop and the chapter for all the efforts they made for conducting this unique workshop and raising awareness for the lesser known art tradition. Dr Pardesi further spoke about the history of the Pandwani folk music tradition, mentioning the vibrant lineage of the artform and the fame and prominence brought to the art by Shri Teejan Bai.
Videos of selected presentations of Shri Teejan Bai were played and she spoke at length about the stories being recited in the singing tradition and how she is always willing to provide such training to students and enthusiasts.
Ms Vidya Gupta, Co-Convenor of Durg Bhilai Chapter, provided the Vote of thanks at the end of the workshop. Dr Anil Choube, Principal of MU College provided technical support. Social activist Dr Sonali Chakraborty made appreciative cooperation in the webinar.
INTACH Balasore Chapter in collaboration with Heritage Education and Comunication Service of INTACH conducted a two day teacher training workshop on 27th and 28th September 2021 at Hotel Hari Plaza, Balasore. 21 teachers from 11 schools participated. The welcome address was delivered by Mr. Uday Ranjan Das, Convenor, Balasore Chapter. The programme was inaugurated by Mr. Nilu Mohapatra, Additional District Magistrate, Balasore. The first session was conducted by the HECS team. Ms. Purnima Datt, Director HECS thanked Mr. Uday Ranjan Das for being enthusiastic and committed and appreciated all the efforts to conduct the workshop. The INTACH film was screened. She then shared a presentation on the types of heritage. The different types of heritage were discussed with examples. The next presentation was on heritage education. She gave a brief description about what is heritage education and described it as a primary object to create awareness among public for the preservation and care of heritage. She also talked about Heritage awareness as a part of citizenship awareness. Mr. Abhishek Das spoke on the importance of heritage walks and national programmes conducted for school children. Ms. Geetika Gunjan gave a brief on the youngintach website. Ms. Smriti Malhotra talked about the social media section of HECS.
This was followed by a role play activity where in an old ink pot was shared by Ms Purnima and few questions were put up for the teachers. She asked “what is the object? Who would have used the ink pot? What does it tell you about the society?” The virtual session by HECS ended with this activity and the participants were given a lunch break. There was a brief ice breaker session post lunch. Mr. Choudhury Swapan Kumar Mohapatra gave a presentation on the local heritage of Balasore. The participants were divided into four groups and asked to prepare for their group activity which was to be presented on the following day.
On the second day, the participants were taken for a heritage site visit to Shyam Sundar Temple and British Cemetery. Mr. Biswanath Rana, resource person, guided the participants with inputs about historical and cultural significance of the temple, its archaeological importance and unique style. He also spoke about the importance of the British cemetery as an important part of heritage of Balasore. Upon return from the site visit, the participants worked on their group activities. Post lunch, they made their presentations. This was followed by the distribution of certificates and resource material. The programme ended with a vote of thanks by Mr. Nikunja Bihari Das, Additional Co Convenor, Balasore Chapter.
INTACH Porbandar Chapter conducted a workshop on heritage awareness programme on 29th September, 2021 at Shri GMC International School, Porbandar. Ms Purnima Datt, Director from INTACH Heritage and Education Services was one of the speakers who joined the programme through online medium. Ms Prajakta Dattani Co Convenor from INTACH Porbandar, welcomed Ms Purnima Datt.
Ms Purnima Datt then started with the INTACH presentation. She began with a brief description on what INTACH is and how it is committed to conservation works. She explained what is Heritage - something which passed down from generations, which needs to be saved and protected. Through a series of slides, categories of types of heritage that is natural, built, material and living heritage were elaborately discussed with what one can do preserve it.
Beginning with natural heritage, she mentioned about the mountainous terrain and ammonites, diverse and contrasting cultural landscape of desert areas like that of Rajasthan and Gujarat and lush green areas of Kerala. While mentioning about animals she laid emphasis on 12 big cats of India.
While discussing about the Built Heritage she mentioned about the Harappan sites in the state of Gujarat and briefly mentioned about the newly inscribed Dholavira by UNESCO. From ancient to medieval to modern architectural buildings and INTACH’s listing were briefly discussed.She shared Living heritage while citing different forms of dance forms which are on the verge of extinction. Associated with skills, customs, language, crafts of the country which are dying slowly needs to be preserved.
This was followed by mentioning INTACH’s outreach in different cities, how to establish heritage clubs in schools and activities taken up. Ms Datt concluded the session by with the INTACH pledge.
The next session was taken up by Architect Rushank Mehta who spoke on Cultural trail of Porbandar and through a series of slides talked about the architecture of region, heritage and history and what have survived today. His session began with discussing about the difference between the structures of old city and new city in any town. He questioned what is culture and why should we preserve it and asked children to note the questions. He explained that the cultural trail is to trace our cultural heritage, understanding it better and to shape our future in right direction. He elaborately talked about the cultural and historical aspects of Porbandar and construction of certain buildings and narrated the story of Manabhai who creates gold from dust.
Heritage Education and Communication Service , INTACH in collaboration with INTACH Chanderi Chapter conducted a teacher training workshop on 27th September 2021. Teachers from various schools of the city participated in the workshop.
The programme began with a welcome address by Mr. Niraj Vardhman, Convenor, INTACH Chanderi Chapter. Mr. Abhishek Das, Sr. Programme Coordinator, HECS introduced the programme which was followed by screening of the INTACH Film.
The first session ‘What is Heritage’ was conducted by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS; Mr. Abhishek Das, and Ms.Geetika Gunjan, Programme Coordinator, HECS. Ms. Datt spoke about heritage - its meaning and importance and its various kinds through an illustrated presentation, followed by Mr. Das who spoke about built heritage and shared about some iconic sites of India. Ms. Gunjan spoke about Material Heritage and shared examples of arts and crafts from across the country. The last segment on living heritage was undertaken by Ms.Datt.
The second session was undertaken by Dr Avinash Kumar Jain on the history of Chanderi’s illustrious history. Tracing the history of the region, Dr. Jain shared about the various epics and scriptures which mention Chanderi. The various rulers and landmark events in their reign was also discussed. Dr. Jain shared many facts and figures and scholarly accounts.
The third session was conducted by Mr. Mazeed Khan on the water heritage of Chanderi, focusing on the Baolis. Mr. Khan began the session with a brief introduction about the historical place. He shared in brief about the living and craft heritage and emphasized on the need to preserve our diminishing heritage of all kinds for the future generations.With special significance on Baolis of Chanderi he talked about its description, importance construction from ancient to present times.
The concluding session was ‘Heritage Education in Classrooms, Establishing Heritage Clubs and HECS Educational Resources’ conducted by Ms. Purnima Datt.
The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Dr. Avinash Kumar Jain followed by a group photograph.
The Felicitation ceremony for the National Winners of Nature in Danger - My Project Report competition was organised on 15th September 2021. The programme was attended by the winners, teachers, Chapter members and the HECS team.
The ceremony began with an introduction by Ms. Christina Shangne, Prog. Coordinator, HECS followed by a welcome address by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS. Ms. Datt spoke about INTACH and the work done by HECS. She mentioned the training workshops and national programmes like the INTACH quiz, National competitions like Nature in danger which are conducted in local languages as well. She also breifly spoke about the Filmit India project, Young INTACH Website and HECS publications. Mr. Abhishek Das, Sr.Prog. Coordinator,HECS next shared the process of conduct of programme across the country. Following this, students shared a brief summary of the work done. The session was coordinated by Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Prog. Coordinator.
Ms. Sumaira Abdulali, environmental activist, shared her happiness and enthusiasm on being part of the programme and appreciated the diverse range of topics on which the students worked on. She shared about the effects of climate change on our lifestyle and also shared about her work. She shared the difficulties and challenges favced by her and encouraged everyone to take initiative to protect the environment. She expressed her happiness on the students taking charge of protecting the environment. She said that they have started their journey already by educating those around them including adults.
Ms. Purnima Debi Barman, Environmental activist also congratulated the students and shared about her work on protecting the Hargila birds or the Great Adjutant Stork. She shared her journey of the past 15 years working on the Hargila bird’s protection and conservation. Ms. Purnima further briefed about the organisation of Hargila army and how women joined slowly and gradually to protect the birds and why women were made the forerunners of the army.She also shared about the recently launched Hargila learning and conservation centre in Assam.
Maj. Gen. L. K. Gupta, Chairman, INTACH, congratulated the participants. He appreciated the speakers for their efforts in protecting the environment. Dr. CT Misra, Member Secretary, INTACH congratulated the winners. Dr. Misra appreciated their projects. She shared that the work done by Ms. Abdulali and Dr. Barman were most inspiring. She congratulated the HECS team on a successful event even during the pandemic.This was followed by a virtual awards ceremony. The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Nanki Kaur, HECS followed by a group photograph.
The INTACH Varanasi Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organized an endangered craft workshop for students across the city. Around 35-40 students were in attendance coming from 8 member schools from the region. The workshop was organised virtually on 15th September’21. The Mural painting of Banaras is centuries-old art that is on the verge of being forgotten as only a handful of living artists that practice this artform remain. These traditional murals can be seen on the walls of Varanasi, painted by the descendants of the artists who started this style of painting. Shri Gokul, a young generation artist of this style of painting was invited to conduct the workshop. Shri Shashank Singh, INTACH Life Member and Advisor for Arts and Crafts Cell was also invited for the workshop. The workshop was coordinated by Ms. Aditi Gukati, Life Member of the Chapter, and provided technical support for the same.
Mr. Ashok Kapoor, Convenor, INTACH Varanasi Chapter welcomed the students and the experts.The workshop began with Shri Shashank Singh briefly introducing the style of painting to the school students. The demonstration started with great fervor, with Shri Gokul depicting different motifs of the painting style and went on to paint many other natural elements such as a lotus and different leaves as well as Ganesha. Shri Shashank gave small factoids regarding the art form and spoke about the different motifs, color-making, and prepping the paper before the painting begins.They urged the students to try their hand at this beautiful style of painting and start by making small motifs and simpler elements. The workshop ended with students asking pertinent questions and interacting with Shri Shashank about the art form and was received well by everyone.
On 9th September, 2021, INTACH Khandwa Chapter had organised a stall in the market where eco-friendly idols of Lord Ganesha were sold. These idols were made by the students using clay. INTACH Khandwa Chapter had provided eco-friendly training to students past year. And this year using their skills, the students made the eco-friendly Ganesha.
INTACH Nagpur Chapter organized a Heritage walk to Munshi Mandir on 04/09/2021. Keeping in mind the protocols of Corona, the walk was for a closed group of 15 participants. Co-Convenor, Ar. Nitika S. Ramani guided the walk and discussed in detail the history, style of construction, and the uniqueness of the temple and the Wada (no longer in existence). Dr. Madhura Rathod (Convenor) explained to participants about the temple architecture and various sculptures present at the temple. Munshi Mandir was once the part of Munshi Wada, which belonged to one of the ministers of Bhonsle kings of Nagpur. The temple is dedicated to Lord Laxmi Narayana and has Sub-shrines of Shiva, Ganesha, Hanumana, and Garuda. The temple is one unique temple in Nagpur that has a twisted onion dome shikhara over the sub-shrines and hundreds of sculptures of God’s, Yogi’s, celestial beings, Kings, and life of the common man.
Another heritage walk was organized to Rukmini Temple Complex, Mahal, Nagpur on 12/09/2021 for the students of Tulsiramji Gaikwad – Patil College of Architecture, Nagpur. This walk was conducted with the physical presence of 20 students only and the rest were virtually attending it through on digital medium. Co-Convenor, Ar. Nitika S. Ramani, who is also an assistant professor at TGPCA guided the walk and discussed in detail the history, style of construction, architecture, sculptures, detailing, materials, and the uniqueness of the temple.Rukmini Temple Complex houses two Shrines belonging to Lord Shiva and Lord Laxmi Narayana along with Sub-shrines of Ganesha, Hanumana, and Garuda, water bodies, and baradwar’s. The temple complex was built by Raje Raghuji II and is one of the most beautiful temples of Nagpur. The architectural style and combination of various materials are the epitome of temple architecture in Nagpur. INTACH Nagpur Chapter and TGPCA are looking forward to documenting and conserve this heritage precinct.
INTACH Solapur Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH conducted a workshop on BARUD and GAVALAN- Traditional Performing Folk Art performed by Smt. Sunanada tai Ghokale and Smt. Gargi Kale” on 23rd August’21. Around 51 students from 11 schools registered for the workshop once the registration was open on Facebook.
Bharud and Gavalan are oral performing folk art forms which saw their origins in the Bhakti movement of the Nath tradition. Sant Eknath Maharaj in 16th century elucidated through more than 300 Bharuds complex spiritual concepts in common man’s language which is performed till date. Gavalan is another form in which singing and musical accompaniments predominate. Earlier only men used to perform these folk art forms. But with proponents like Gangubai Jadhav, and Chandabai Tiwadi, women performers have carved a niche for themselves.
At the onset, Dr. Seemantini Chaphalkar, Convenor Solapur Chapter,INTACH spoke about the need to raise awareness regarding this folk art form and welcomed the expert performers, Smt Sunananda Ghokale and Smt Gargi Kale and accompanist Shri. Gajanana Pujari on tabla.
Smt Gargi Kale began the workshop by speaking about the art form and introduced various forms of performing folk singing involving Bhakti like Bhajan, Gavalan and Bharud. The performance started with Ganesh Vandana; Nath Bharud composition; Muktabai’s Bharud about controlling ones habits with the depiction in the form of a cow; a self- written Bharud on how one should aspire to live a better life by Smt. Kale and ended with a Gavalan and a story about Bal Krishna and Gavalan.
The performance was followed by a Q and A round with the audience.
The workshop ended with many teachers expressing their appreciation for the workshop. It was felt both by the artists and the teachers that the school annual events should incorporate these traditional performing art forms which will impact have a great impact on young minds.
The event was widely reported by the newspapers. The event was also well received on the Chapter’s Facebook page and is also available on the Chapter’s YouTube channel.
INTACH Jamshedpur Chapter in Collaboration with HECS,INTACH conducted a Pyatkar painting workshop on 14th and 28th August’21 for 120 students from different schools across the region. The workshop was conducted virtually with the Pyatkar artist skillfully demonstrating the style of painting for everyone. Mr. Amitava Ghosh, Convener of INTACH, Jamshedpur Chapter, addressed the students on various art forms of Jharkhand and how their motifs developed overtime. He also shared his insightful experiences with the students so that they can connect better with the art and culture of Jharkhand as well as India. The workshop was organized and hosted by volunteers Ms. Pushpa Murmu (Development Officer), Mr. Subham Satpathy (Designer), Ms. Akansha Kumari (Designer) and Ms. Wamika Roy (Designer).
Mr. Vijay Chitrakar, a Pyatkar artist from Amadubi. In modern times, this art form is losing its elongated version but artists like him have kept it alive with help of organisations like Kalamandir.Through the course of the workshop, he shared his personal experiences and how COVID has affected his livelihood and craft. He demonstrated the style of Pyatkar Paintings and how all the colours are extracted from nature. The students in attendance learned greatly from the workshop and turned that inspiration into art, they painted some beautiful Pyatar paintings post the workshop as well.
To commemorate the 75th anniversary of India’s Independence “Azaadi ka Amrut Mahotsav” was celebrated in the campus of University of Jammu on 16th August, 2021. Prof Manoj K. Dhar, Vice Chancellor, University of Jammu flagged off the colorful procession. The students performed the dances with Azaadi songs. Mr. S. M. Sahni, Convenor, Mr. Kuldeep Wahi, Mr. Arvind Kotwal, Prof Sudhir Singh, Dr. S, S. Rissam Adl Co Convenor, Dr. Rajesh Sharma from Intach family along with Prof R. K. Rampal, Dean Life Sciences, Prof Prakash Antahal, Dean Students Welfare, Prof Piyush Malaviya, HOD Environmental Sciences, Dr. Deepika Slathia, Sr faculty EVS, Prof AK Raina Former HOD EVS, Dr. Meenakshi Khajuria, Prof Seema Langar, Prof Shashi Manha, Prof Lehana and Dr Ramni, faculty members of the university, Mr. Sunil Singh Manhas, DFO, Mr. Shakeel Ahmed, RO, students and staff of Jammu university participated in the event.
As a part of Vanmahotsav 2021, with aim to give a green cover to the Northzonal Accountancy Training Institute Campus (NZATI) Muthi –Jammu, a plantation drive was organized by the institute with the support & guidance of INTACH Jammu Chapter, Forest Department and Jammu Municipal Corporation. More than 200 species of traditional plants such as Bottlebrush, Thevetia, Lagerstroemia, Neem, Palm, Cassia glauca, Terminalia Arjuna, Hibiscus, Chinar as ceremonial plants were planted.
Mr. K. Ramesh IFS, Chief Conservator of forests Jammu was the Chief Guest where as Mr. Mahesh Dass Sharma, Director General Accounts & Treasuries was the Guest of honour. Convenor INTACH Jammu Chapter Mr. S. M. Sahni KAS (Retd), Prof Sudhir Singh, Mr. Arvind Kotwal KAS (Retd) & members of INTACH participated in the event along with the host department officers, Mrs Bharti Sambyal, Director/Principal (NZATI), Mrs. Neeraj Gupta Bakshi, Director (A&T), Mr. Raman Gupta, Director Budget and galaxy of senior officers of finance department graced the occasion.
To celebrate the spirit of Vanmahotsav 2021, INTACH Jammu Chapter was associated with Department of Environmental Sciences University of Jammu & with the help and assistance of J&K Forests Department Urban Forestry Division Jammu organized a plantation drive in the University of Jammu Campus. Prof Manoj Dhar, Hon’ble Vice Chancellor University of Jammu inaugurated the plantation drive along with Mr. S. M. Shani KAS (Retd), Convenor INTACH Jammu Chapter, Prof R.K. Rampal, Dean Life Sciences, Prof Piyush Malviya, Head Deptt of EVS, Dr Deepika Slathia, Coordinator Inatch activities, Mr. Arvind Kotwal KAS (Retd), Prof Sudhir Singh, Joint Secy J&K BOSE Member INTACH, Mr. Kuldeep Wahi, Co-Convenor, Dr. Rajesh Sharma, Mr. Sunil Singh DFO Urban Forestry, Mr. Shakeel Ahmed Range Officer, Senior faculty members of university, members of INTACH Jammu chapter & staff of forest Deptt were present on the occasion. Various types of traditional plants of Jammu were planted to give a green look of the campus.
A webinar titled 'Sikh Heritage and Conservation' was held by Dharohar – The Heritage Society, Department of History, Mata Sundri College for Women, Delhi University on the 24th of July, 2021. It commemorated the 400th Year Birth Anniversary of the ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur. Speakers of the event included Dr. Daljit Kaur, started the session by outlining the values of the Sikh faith, and the tangible and intangible aspects of Sikh Heritage. Her presentation was followed by short talks by the Principal of the college Harpreet Kaur, and Seema Bawa, Head of History Department, Delhi University. They both highlighted the lesser-known and underrepresented aspects of Sikh Heritage and urged more researchers to research within the field. They passionately spoke about conserving and preserving the rich cultural Sikh heritage. The eminent Keynote Speaker Dr. S.P. Singh, Former Director (Conservation), National Museum, New Delhi spoke at length about the dangers faced by the tangible parts of Sikh heritage, as well as the ongoing conservation work being done on these sites and objects.
As a part of Nature in Danger Project, an online talk was organised on January 18, 2021 on 'Birds of Awadh and Nature' by INTACH Varanasi Chapter for its educational members and its students under the guidance of Convener-Mr Ashok Kapoor.
Mrs Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS Division introduced the subject and explained about the project as well as the projects of the last 4/5 years. She emphasised that the Varanasi Chapter had participated in all projects.
Ms Aditi Gulati, representative of Institutional members coordinated the session. The session was conducted by Mr. Ajad Singh, the birdman of Ayodhya from the campus of JB Academy, Faizabad. Welcome speech was given by Mr. Nalin Gulati, Co Convener, INTACH Varanasi Chapter. Thank you note was given by Mr. Nirmal Joshi. It was an interesting session, where photographs of few interesting and rare birds were shown, along with explanation. There were a number of questions too at the end of the session. Some screenshots are attached as also the photo of Mr Azad Singh. The entire session was online and very well coordinated by Ms Aditi as participants were very large in number and from three different cities.
INTACH celebrated its 37th Foundation Day on 27th January 2021, Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage is India’s premier citizen organisation that brings together the passion of volunteers with the expertise of conservation specialists to preserve its diverse cultural and natural heritage.
On this occasion, INTACH Nagpur Chapter in association with Architectural Sankul had organised a webinar INSIGHT – INTACH for the public at large, on 31st January, Sunday 2021. The program was organized and coordinated by Dr. Madhura Rathod and Ar. Nitika Ramani who are the founders of Architectural Sankul and Convener and Co-Convener, respectively of INTACH Nagpur Chapter. The presentation shed light on the brief introduction about INTACH along with the mission and vision with which it works. The INTACH divisions were explicitly discussed followed by various works undertaken by INTACH Nagpur Chapter. The webinar was attended by more than 75 participants.
To continue with the work of safeguarding the heritage, the membership drive has been started by INTACH Nagpur Chapter. You don’t necessarily have to be an architect, archaeologist or an historian to join INTACH. You just have to care enough for India’s heritage. As a citizen who cares, simply join hands with INTACH and Architectural Sankul to protect the finest aspects of your tangible heritage (archaeological sites, historical monuments, artifacts, and objects) and intangible heritage (language, Performing arts. Social practices, rituals and festive events. Knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe). Those interested can even share with us the cultural, festive, historical, mythological, built or any knowledge that they cherish.
To know more about how to contribute and become a part of the INTACH Nagpur Chapter, you can contact us on 9325618620 or 9960149404.
INTACH Ambala Chapter celebrated the 75th Independence Day with school children on 15th August at the Indira Chowk with great ‘josh’. Led by the INTACH Convenor Ambala Chapter, Colonel R D Singh, nearly 20 children, teachers, and INTACH members, raised the national fervor by displaying patriotic banners and our Tricolour.
The INTACH team paid a befitting tribute to our martyrs and soldiers. Colonel R D Singh, himself holding the national flag, along with his wife Madhu Singh, Co – Convenor Reena, and all children, proudly repeated ‘in unison ‘Jai Hind’, ‘Vande Matram’, ‘Uncha rahe sadan hamara Tiranga’, ‘Salute to our soldiers’. A befitting tribute was paid to our great freedom fighters and our national heroes. Onlookers were very happy to see such a patriotic josh by children on a busy round about in Ambala.
It proved to be a very befitting celebration by the INTACH Ambala who is always in the forefront to guard our national heritage and culture. The programme culminated with a talk by Madhu Singh, senior teacher of the APS and member INTACH, on importance of freedom and our highlights of our freedom struggle. She emphasized upon being good human beings and responsible citizens, and remains united as one strong nation. Children freely interacted with her. The children were served refreshments at the end. The spirit was high, and all present felt happy and motivated.
On the eve of the 75th Independence Day, Colonel R D Singh (retd) was honoured with the prestigious ‘Country’s Pride’ award by Mega Cosmos, a renowned national organization, founded by Dr Deepika Jain, Mrs India International, doctor, and philanthropist. A total of 14 personalities from across the country were honoured with the award as a gratitude for their selfless service to the society, and being proud of our glorious nation, motivating others. These included our brave soldiers, doctors, police officers, and philanthropists. The awardees included Maj Gen GD Bakshi, Lt Gen Ashok Shivane, Maj Gen Vikram Dogra ( Iron Man), Prof Dr Ravindra Kumar ( Padamshri), Dr Gurvinder Banga ( Dermatologist), Anup Kumar Srivastava, IAS ( retd), Akhilesh Kumar Chaurasia, IPS, Shri RC Agrawal (Environmentalist), and more.
HECS, INTACH in collaboration with INTACH Nagpur Chapter organized a Teacher Training Webinar Workshop on ‘Tree of Life - Heritage Awareness Workshop’ on 27th August’21. About 100 teachers from Nagpur attended the workshop with the HECS and Nagpur team as well as our Guest speakers, Pradyumna Sahasrabhojanee and Ms. Prachi Mahurkar. Maj General L.K.Gupta also graced the workshop with his presence.
The program started off with a welcome address by Ms. Madhura Rathid and an introduction of the speakers was given. This was followed by a short address from INTACH Chairman Maj. Gen. L. K Gupta. He remarked that the workshop is useful in inculcating a sense to preserve and protect our natural heritage.
The next session was taken over by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH who shared a brief introduction about the book “Tree of Life”
She explained that the Tree of Life book is a resource book to help teachers in understanding how trees can be studied. To learn about their sacredness, its function, etc. The focus of this book is to bring out the interconnectedness between trees and life. She stressed that trees are not only the basis of sustaining life on earth but it is an eternal bonding between the physical and spiritual realm. She mentions that the book talks about the adaptations to the tree habitat - cosmology, religion, spirituality evolving around trees. The forest and trees conservation movement began in Uttarakhand and then went on to become many future environmental movements all over the world. She also shared student entries from the Van Mahotsav social media challenges.
The introductory session was followed by showcasing two films on ‘Saving Nature’ which were made by the students as a part of our FILMIT INDIA project. Ms. Madhura Rathod, Convenor of INTACH Nagpur Chapter then proceeded to introduce our guest speakers, Pradyumna Sahasrabhojanee, an architect who has done a lot of work, particularly with trees. Prachi Mahurkar is a nature educationist and ecological restorer.
Mr. Pradyumna took over and started by talking about heritage from an ecological perspective. He stated that for understanding a city, one needs to understand its ecology and trees. Through his presentation, he focused on Nagpur city and its surrounding areas. Talked about how Nagpur city lies within three bio-geographic zones (Deccan Plateau, Eastern Plateau, Central Highlands), and that is why it has such diversity. He then spoke about the history of the area, speaking about the different rulers of the land. Mr. Pradyumna went on to talk about the plan of Nagpur city, particularly its urban plan and expansion. He also spoke to limestone formations and hillocks in and around the city. He showed the Geological, Drainage, Watershed, and Land-use Maps of the Nagpur area. He then showed the various features of the city vis-a-vis the ecological aspects, explaining how the city grew in relation to its biodiversity. He ended his presentation by stating that citizens should create biodiversity corridors and other such zones and initiatives to preserve the ecology of Nagpur. He ends with ‘Nature is the only Creator’ - We need to respect this aspect of Nature.
Ms. Prachi Mahurkar then took over the second session, beginning her session by talking about the oranges of Nagpur and trees that require the ecosystem to develop and talked about the concept of biodiversity. She spoke about orange cultivation in-depth, talking about monoculture, climate, rainfall, and the amount of water required for orchards. She further mentioned some of the common trees of Nagpur in English and Marathi like- Ashoka, Nilgiri trees, eucalyptus, etc., and gave a contrast about Himalayan and Vidarbha trees and ecology. She further through a series of slides presented images of the different trees and described them and their significance from ancient times. She mentioned the importance and uses of Ashoka and Arjuna trees. She also mentioned the list of 84 Heritage trees, that were worked on in a project such as the Banyan tree, Babul, Chikoo, Peepal, and Sal tree. Also mentioning the need for plantation drives to preserve this natural heritage. She briefly mentioned the uses and depiction of local traditional trees in mythology. She briefly mentioned the plantation drives in the region in order to protect them from encroachment. She ended her session with a do and don’t’s of plantation drives.
Post this informative session, Ms. Purnima Datt took over once again and spoke about the ‘Tree of Life’ publication, speaking about the different sections of the book. There are worksheets and factoids such as ‘did you know’ boxes in each activity. Ms. Datt discussed activities such as ‘sense-a-tional trees’, ‘floral fusion’, ‘my tree friend’, ‘green book’, ‘linking up!’ etc. in the first section. Under another section called tree associations, sacred trees like Banyan, Peepal trees, tree festivals like Batthukama, Vat Vriksha Puja, etc. were discussed. Under tree reflections - people and organizations committed to trees were discussed. In the final section – Tree Art – folk art and popular tree iconography was discussed. Gond art, Cheriyal, Warli, etc were shown. How trees are used and depicted in miniature paintings and modern art was also discussed. In the end, a list of National parks in India was shown. In total, 33 activities are present in the book some of which were discussed by Ms. Purnima Datt and Ms. Geetika Gunjan, HECS, INTACH.
Post the workshop, the forum was open for feedback and a Q&A session from the teachers. The teachers showcased their enthusiasm towards the workshop and how informative and thought-provoking it was for them, finally thanking the experts and both the INTACH Nagpur Chapter and HECS, INTACH team for conducting the workshop.
Photographs of the Workshop:
The programme commenced with a welcome address by Mr. Gaurav Singhvi Co-convenor, INTACH Udaipur Chapter. Mr.Lalit Pandey, Convenor, Udaipur chapter welcomed HECS team and the participating schools and the speakers Mr. SK Shrimali, and Ms Iti Kachhawa. Mr. Pandey shared that heritage is a multifaceted subject and has four key areas. He then shared in brief about the various kinds of heritage. He shared that intangible heritage is at the highest risk of endangerment as it is not documented properly and through such workshops efforts can be undertaken to encourage awareness about it amongst young students. This was followed by Film screening by INTACH.
The first session was “What is Heritage - An Overview and Understanding” by Principal Director, HECS, Ms Purnima Datt. Ms. Datt spoke about Heritage and its various kinds in India. Each aspect was discussed at length, illustrated with examples.
The second session was undertaken by Mr. S.K.Shrimali on “Built Heritage of Mewar”.
Mr Shrimali said that Rajasthan is unique and each state has its uniqueness. It has many forts and palaces. He shared briefly about the built heritage of Udaipur and divided them into various categories such as Forts, Temples, lakes, parks and gardens of Udaipur. He shared details about the architecture of each such site and how local materials were used in the construction. Mr. Shrimali also shared about the various stepwells and the traditional methods of building water reservoirs. He concluded by stating that it is very important to take care of our monuments.
Ms. Iti Kacchwaha, spoke about Raagmala Paintings of Mewar. Ms. Kacchwaha shared that Rajasthan has 4 schools of painting – Mewar, Marwar, Hadoti and Dhundhar. Each of these schools have their own unique styles and themes. The paintings originated in 17th century in Udaipur and eventually the city became an important center for the production of these paintings. Through illustrated examples, Ms.Kacchwaha shared about the intricacies of the paintings and the concept of Raagmala. She shared how each raag has a family and is sung during a specific time and weather. Interestingly, the paintings depict the climate,flora and fauna of the time in which each raag was sung. The paintings are an important visual evidence of representation of the kinds of clothes people wore, the jewellery, the political situation and more.
The next session was conducted by Mr. Gaurav Singhvi on “Relevance of Vastu in context of heritage building - City Palace, Udaipur”. Mr. Singhvi shared about the traditional knowledge of Vastu Shastra. He shared about Vastu Purush Mandala and how it shows the various zones of a house/building associated with things like education, fame, energy etc. The presentation also showed the application of Vastu in the City Palace of Udaipur. The palace and its various complexes were discussed at length.
The concluding session was conducted by HECS team on Heritage Education in Classrooms.Ms. Purnima Datt started the session on Heritage education in classrooms by mentioning the various programmes that HECS conducts. Ms. Datt shared how tangible and intangible resources can be used to raise heritage awareness. She also shared the primary objectives of HECS and the process of imparting heritage education. The process of setting up heritage clubs was also explained.
Mr. Abhishek Das, Sr. Prog. Coordinator, HECS, spoke about the importance of heritage walks and how taking such walks promotes a sense of care and conservation and one learns a lot about their local heritage and also lesser known heritage sites. Mr. Das also explained the importance of museum visits. He also shared the various national programmes – India Heritage Quiz, National Painting and Essay competitions and the Filmit India project.
Ms. Christina Shangne, Programme Coordinator, HECS shared about Young INTACH’s website and its role as an online knowledge repository. She explained the various features of the website at the length. Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Programme Coordinator, HECS, further explained the Heritage Club section and discussed at length the various resources available for Heritage Clubs. Some of the resources included heritage walk games, activity worksheets, heritage booklets, heritage newspapers etc. Lastly, the Young INTACH Youtube page was discussed as an important visual resource for learning about heritage.
Ms. Smriti Malhotra, Programme Coordinator, HECS, shared about the social media campaigns of Young INTACH and shared about the various challenges and posts that are organised online.
A Teacher Training Webinar Workshop was organised on 25th August 2021 by HECS INTACH in collaboration with INTACH Visakhapatnam Chapter. There were about 100 participants including teachers from various schools of Visakhapatnam, members of INTACH Visakhapatnam, resource persons and the HECS team. The resource persons for the session was Mrs Sharada Reddy and Mr D. Rajasekhar Reddy.
The programme started off with a welcome address by Ms Mayank Deo, Convenor, INTACH Visakhapatnam Chapter. She greeted the resource persons and all the participants. She then gave a brief description of HECS, INTACH and the chapter, the kind of works and programmes undertaken. A brief history of the city of Visakhapatnam was also shared. This is followed by a Film screening of INTACH by HECS.
Session 1
The first session on- ‘What is Heritage- An overview and understanding’ was presented by Mrs Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH. In her presentation, Mrs Datt shared about the complex heritage and culture of India. She further talked about the four aspects of heritage i.e. Natural, Living, Built and Material heritage of our Country. Each section was explained and highlighted in detail with examples using a PowerPoint presentation. She stressed the diversity of the country and how each one of us needs to conserve and preserve our heritage.
Session 2
The resource person for the second session was Ms Sharada Reddy, who spoke on the Built Heritage of Visakhapatnam. She started off her session by talking about the history of the city, in particular the built heritage of the Visakhapatnam. She highlighted a few of the monuments and talked in detail about them. She ended her presentation by advising the teachers to take their students to visit the heritage sites of Vizag as it will help them know about their city, discover its heritage and history.
Session 3
In the third session, Mr Rajsekhar Reddy spoke on Visakhapatnam’s Natural Heritage. Dr Reddy shared about geo heritage and its forms. He said that whatever we get from the past is maintained in present for the benefit of the future generation. The biodiversity, non-living geo-diversity of Vizag was shared in length through a PowerPoint presentation.
Session 4
The final session of the workshop was presented by the HECS team on Heritage Education in Classrooms, Establishing Heritage Clubs and HECS Educational Resources (Online &publications). Mrs Purnima Datt talked about heritage education, its importance and the process of setting up a heritage club. She also shared about the various HECS publications. Mr Abhishek then shared the importance of heritage walks, national programmes and FILMIT India project. Ms Christina Shangne talked about the Young INTACH Website and all the educational resources available on the website; Ms Geetika Gunjan further delve into the different new sections of the website and lastly, Ms Smriti Malhotra briefly went over the social media handles and the craft workshops.
The workshop ended with thank you note and a group photograph.
The INTACH Filmit India Technical Workshop for Palakkad Chapter was held on 16th August, 2021. The session was held online with more than 55 participants. The resource person for the technical session was Mr Ankit Pogula and Mrs Pulkita Parsai from Tuning Fork Films.
The session began with an introduction to the workshop by Ms Geetika Gunjan (HECS), followed by an address from Major General L. K Gupta, Chairman INTACH. He welcomed the Chapter Convenor and thanked Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH for consistently working on this project. In his address he motivated the students to learn about their heritage and engage a lot through the workshop. Mr Arun Narayanan (Convenor, INTACH Palakkad Chapter) was then asked to say a few words of encouragement. He thanked the students and teachers for participating in this workshop and showcasing their eagerness despite sitting in front of screens for their online sessions throughout. He then went on to speak with the students in Malayalam and spoke about what the project seeks from the students.
Post this, Ms Purnima Datt began her session, briefing the students on the FILMIT project and went on to explain the schedule of the project. She also quickly covered the various themes for this year and the guidelines for making the films. One unique film on recycling was screened post the session.
Ms Geetika then introduced the technical resource persons Mr Ankit and Mrs. Pulkita from Tuning Fork Films. The technical session started off with students sharing about what they liked about the film they just saw about recycling. The technical aspects of filmmaking were then shared. Mr. Ankit stated that this workshop will help students plan their film and execute the film properly. The three stages of filmmaking (Preparation, filming and editing) were discussed in detail. Ankit also spoke about the equipment that should and can be used to film – handycams, DSLR, Handphone, Mics, extra light, etc. He added information about editing softwares that can be used to edit the films. Pulkita then took over and spoke about different shots and explained each shot briefly with visual examples through her PPT. She then explained the shot-breakdown process during the planning of a film to make films look better and also about how one should hold the camera while shooting a film. A hands on demo on editing, using the editing software was also discussed in detail. Mr Arun also helped translate the questions and responses for students.
The workshop ended with a thank you note from Mr. Arun and a formal vote of thanks by Ms. Nanki (HECS), followed by a group photograph.
INTACH Nagpur Chapter and Architectural Sankul in association with HECS, INTACH, and Swanand Govigyan conducted a two-day online workshop on the craft of Cow Dung Products on 13th and 14th August 2021.
The online workshop was conducted to bring attention to the unknown and endangered craft of Cow Dung Products, which was attended by more than 100 children and teachers from various schools.
The 1st day was conducted by Mr. Jitendra Bhakane, Founder of Swanand Govigyan, where he discussed the case study of successful Goshala to bring back and integrate the indigenous method of manufacturing products from cow dung and, shedding light on producing these sustainable items, thereby spreading the knowledge and educating the young generation. The experts emphasized deliberating and discussing issues like skill development, small-scale business models development, and marketing.
The 2nd day was a practical, hands-on session, conducted by the second expert Dr. Bhagyashri Bhakane co-founder of Swanand Govigyan. Participants were taught the making, costing, and selling of the product.
The workshop was organized by Dr. Madhura Rathod and Ar. Nitika S. Ramani from INTACH Nagpur Chapter and Architectural Sankul.
The Filmit content workshop was conducted for Kochi and Palakkad schools on 13th August. 74 participants from 16 schools participated in the programme.
The programme began with an introduction by Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Prog. Coordinator, HECS. This was followed by a welcome address by Mr. K.J. Sohan, Convenor, INTACH Kerala Chapter. Mr. Sohan shared that the programme has completed 4 years in Kerala and it has been exciting journey for the children and the elders as well. He also appreciated Mr. Feisal Alkazi for his efforts in conducting the content workshop.
The 1st day was conducted by Mr. Jitendra Bhakane, Founder of Swanand Govigyan, where he discussed the case study of successful Goshala to bring back and integrate the indigenous method of manufacturing products from cow dung and, shedding light on producing these sustainable items, thereby spreading the knowledge and educating the young generation. The experts emphasized deliberating and discussing issues like skill development, small-scale business models development, and marketing.
Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director thanked the chapters for their support and encouragement for the project. Ms. Datt shared that the project in Kochi started as an attempt to combine art and filmmaking and films made by students were shown at the Kochi Biennale.
Mr. Babu Rajeev, Convenor, INTACH Kochi Chapter shared that Filmit was the most awaited programme by HECS. Every time the programme has seen an enthusiastic response from the schools and requested to continue doing the project. He also appreciated the creativity and originality of students in making the films.
Mr. Arun Narayan, Convenor, Palakkad Chapter shared that the collective experience of the pandemic has an enormous value. Many people will look at these films as memories of this period therefore the films will have historical value. What we are doing right now will serve as a time capsule for the future.
Mr. Biley Menon, Co-Convenor, INTACH Kochi Chapter gave an introduction to INTACH and HECS division. He shared that cultural heritage forms an important part of INTACH’s work. He shared that creative content making is a challenging task. Content is the main thing of filmmaking. Through this students will become warriors and protectors of humanity. Every topic is important how you creatively approach it is important and makes it more unique.
This was followed by screening of two short films.
Ms. Datt then introduced the Filmit project and discussed at length the themes for this year. Each topic was discussed in detail with various suggestions and ideas.
Mr. Feisal Alkazi, renowned theatre director, educationist and author conducted the content session. Mr. Alkazi began the session by talking about the importance of storytelling and citing examples of the vast heritage present in Kerala especially in the two cities whose schools were present for the workshop. Throughout his session, he encouraged the students to share their own personal heritage and their views and thoughts of their city and region’s heritage as.
Students were asked to look for objects that are over 50 years old in their house and share about them. Students shared unique objects like an antique vase, an old manuscript, a heirloom harmonium and many other things. Students shared interesting anecdotes associated with the objects. great pride. Mr. Alkazi then spoke about how a film can be made on these objects and conducted exercises for better understanding.
The workshop ended on a positive note with students sharing their takeaways from the session. The programme concluded with words of appreciation from Mr. Arun Narayan,Convenor, INTACH Palakkad Chapter and C. Babu Rajeev, Convenor, INTACH Kochi Chapter followed by vote of thanks by Mr. Abhishek Das, Sr.Prog. Coordinator, HECS.
Prof. Manoj Dhar, Vice Chancellor University of Jammu released The Cultural Heritage Awareness Lessons for "Young Students” compiled and printed by Intach Jammu Chapter as a part of Heritage Awareness programmes launched by Heritage Education & Communication Services (HECS) Intach New Delhi, across the country. The booklet contains the online lessons sent to the schools during Covid-19 pandemic 2020-21. Shri SM Sahni Convenor, Intach Jammu Chapter along with core group members Shri Kuldeep Wahi, Co-Convenor, Sh. Arvind Kotwal, Prof. Sudhir Singh, Dr Rajesh Sharma, Sh. Ranjan Kumar, Sh. Balbinder Kumar and senior faculty members of the department of Environmental Sciences of University of Jammu Prof. Anil Raina, Prof. R.K. Rampal, Prof. Piyush Malaviya (HOD), Dr Deepika Slathia (Coordinator Intach Projects), students/staff members of the department were present on the occasion.
The INTACH Fimit India (Technical) Workshop for Hyderabad Chapter was held on 13th August’21. We had 14 schools and 85 participating in this workshop.
A welcome note was given by the Chairman and he also requested the students to pay attention to the workshop and to take full advantage of this opportunity. Ms. Anuradha Reddy, Convener of Telangana and Hyderabad Chapter welcomed all the school teachers, students, and parents for their support and participation. She also thanked the HECS team and recognised the efforts made by the team.
Ms. Purnima Datt began her session by speaking about the unique heritage of Hyderabad - its cuisine, festivals, and languages, as well as Ramappa Temple and other heritage features that have been recognised by UNESCO. She asked students to see this heritage and document it through their camera and films.Through her presentation, she gave a brief introduction to the FilmIt India Project while also briefing the students about INTACH and the work the organization does.
Mr. Abhishek Das shared the 5 themes for the FilmIt Project citing brilliant examples of all that can be done in each theme by the students and how they can get creative with the term ‘Heritage’.
Post the presentation, two films made in the past year were shown for the students to get a better understanding of the concept. Mr. Vinod Sreedhar began the session with a brief discussion on the film that was shown. He further moved to discuss the technical aspects of filmmaking. He engaged the students further by asking them the difference between idea and the story from the participants. He also touched upon editing a film and the different software required to edit videos.
Ms. Pulkita then took over and spoke at length about different shots, camera angles while showcasing examples in her presentation. Which was following by the screening of 2 different films to solidify the understanding amongst the students.
Ms. Anuradha Reddy once again showed her enthusiasm towards the project and this workshop and wished the students all the luck in their endeavor of making these films. The workshop concluded with the final vote of thanks given by Ms. Nanki Kaur.
HECS INTACH’s FilmIt Content Workshop in Hyderabad was held on the 11th of August, 2021 over Zoom. The workshop which explained to the participating children and teachers of what content is required to be included in the films, and how to build stories for the films. Over 95 teachers and students from Hyderabad participated in this session. The programme commenced with the introduction by Ms Nanki Kaur who welcomed all the participating students, teachers, and esteemed guests. Ms Purnima Datt, Principal Director HECS INTACH welcomed participants, Member Secretary of INTACH CT Mishra, the Convener of Telangana and Hyderabad Chapter Anuradha Reddy, and Mr Feisal Alkazi.
This was followed by a welcome speech by Dr. CT Mishra. She congratulated the people of Hyderabad for the recent inscription of the Ramappa Temple on the UNESCO World Heritage Site List. Ms. Anuradha P Reddy talked about the enthusiasm of schools to join the session and welcomed everyone on board. Ms Purnima Datt began the session by giving her presentation on INTACH, the FilmIt Project and how it is funded by the Helen Hamlyn Trust. She briefly spoke about the content, timeline, and participation of the FilmIt Project. From there on, Mr Abhishek Das (Sr Programme Co-ordinator, HECS) introduced the 5 themes of the Films for this year and then screened two short films.
Ms Nanki then greeted and introduced Mr Feisal Alkazi who is an educationist, trainer and theatre director. Mr Feisal Alkazi greeted all the participants and began his interactive session. While explaining the importance of building stories, he encouraged the students to share their ideas and personal heritage. He helped students realise the manner in which these can be presented in the form of a visual film.
Towards the end of the workshop, Ms Anuradha Reddy shared her views on FilmIt and mentioned a film made by children from a government school in Delhi that went on to come second at the International Children’s Film Festival in Hyderabad, thereby motivating the participants to work hard on their films.
The session concluded with the formal vote of thanks delivered by Ms Purnima Datt, followed by a group photograph.
The INTACH FILMIT Workshop for Goa schools was held on 10th of August. The webinar was joined by 70 students and teachers from 10 schools of Goa. Mr. Ian Alwaris, co-convener of INTACH Goa Chapter welcomed the teachers and students for the FILMIT workshop and encouraged the students to explore filmmaking as a career option. He thanked the INTACH and Tuning Forks team for the session.
The program commenced with Ms Geetika Gunjan (HECS Representative) welcoming the participants and technical team of Tuning Forks for the FILMIT programme. Ms Purnima Datt Principal (Director HECS, INTACH) greeted the participants and gave a brief introduction to the multi-cultural FILMIT project which was started in the year 2009 and aims to nurture cultural understanding, care and concern for heritage among the students. Mrs. Datt then talked about INTACH and its chapters, the works it has done for heritage conservation and preservation. It was followed by the presentation of the themes for the year by Ms Purnima Datt. Theme one was on natural heritage- ‘Saving Nature’ where students can share about their heritage trees at home or around their locality. They can also make films on kitchen gardens, recycling and traditional ways of recycling. Films on animal stories was another topic the students can work on; Theme 2 was on virtual or on-site monuments/ museums/ art galleries etc,; Theme 3 was about fun with recreation- the students can make films on old paintings or recreate a old using an old family photo; Theme 4 on personal heritage where stories about family heirlooms can be filmed; and the last Theme was on film about unique communication heritage.
She concluded the presentation by giving a brief description about the guidelines for film making. Following this were screening of two films and an introduction of the resource persons Mr Vinod Sreedhar and Ms Pulkita Parsai from Tuning Forks, by Ms. Geetika Shangne.
Mr. Vinod began the session by discussing the importance of films. He shared that films are powerful as they engage two very important senses of people - hearing and seeing. They told stories which was enjoyed by everyone. Through a series of slides, Pulkita shared about the kinds of angles and how they make a difference. Vinod shared about lighting and how it impacts the scene. Issues and concepts related to editing, sound, placement of mic and cameras were also explained in detail. Lastly, Pulkita conducted a live editing demo for the students to make them understand the concept of video editing. The session concluded with a Q&A session.
The Program concluded with a formal vote of thanks by Ms Vaishnavi Singh (HECS Representative) followed by a group photograph.
The INTACH Filmit workshop for Chennai schools was held on 9th August 2021. 100 participants from ten schools participated. The Introduction to the workshop was given by Mr. Abhishek Das. INTACH Chennai Chapter member, Ms. Padma Swaminathan thanked everyone for participating. She congratulated the HECS team for conducting these workshops and giving the children such an opportunity. Ms. Purnima Datt thanked the teachers and the team from Chennai. She appreciated the films made by Chennai through the years. She gave a brief introduction about INTACH and its divisions. She shared how Filmit India project was started and now it has been 14 years and highlighted some memorable films made by Chennai students. In her presentation, she talked about the importance of tangible and intangible heritage, outlined the format and timeline of the workshop. Abhishek shared the themes with the students.
Vinod started the session by asking the students Why are films so powerful? Films are great, it's something that we all grew up with, listening to stories that are told to us by our parents. He Talked about the technical aspect of filmmaking and shared the different elements. The first stage being the planning, the second stage all about shooting the film and the third stage is editing where the film is actually put together. One has to remember to have a good beginning, a middle and a powerful endorsement. The various steps in editing were also shared in length.
In the next step, ways of editing a film were shared by Ms. Sanjana. She showed the participants a demo on editing using software Microsoft Photo. A hands-on demonstration was shown on how to use the software to edit the films. Students were shown a demo using the software on how to arrange visuals; texts, images etc, how to adjust audio in the film, etc.
Dr. S Suresh, Convenor INTACH Tamil Nadu Chapter thanked the schools for participating for the online workshop and hoped that the festival would be held with in-person attendance. Abhishek explained the steps to upload films on the website. The workshop ended with a vote of thanks by Ms. Vaishnavi and a group photograph at the end.
The INTACH Varanasi Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH organized a craft workshop for students and teachers of the city. Around 62 participants from 14 schools of the city were part of this online workshop. The Chapter invited Mr Shashank Narayan, a connoisseur of Banaras Traditional Paintings and Mr. Dyashanker as the expert resource person to conduct the workshop.
Ms Aditi Gulati began the workshop by welcoming the students and teachers as well as introducing Mr Dayashanker and Mr Shashank to the workshop. Mr Ashok Kapoor, Convenor of Varanasi Chapter took over and briefly welcomed the participants and hoped that this awareness craft workshop will deem to be fruitful for all those participating and giving a warm welcome to our consultant and resource person.
Ms Aditi then welcomed Mr Shashank Narayan, the consultant and connoisseur of the traditional painting. Mr Shashank showcased his enthusiasm towards this workshop and introduced the artform for the students. He quickly charted the history of the Banaras traditional painting and how its history can be traced to the Mughal times. He spoke about the two types of Banaras traditional painting which was earlier found, one on walls and one in the form of miniature paintings. He very quickly went through the techniques of making the painting and imparted bits of information on how to go about the process. He mentioned how stacked of thin paper is pressed together to make a single sheet on which the painting is sketched and painted upon as well as other notions of making the art. He also showcased some exemplary examples of the Banaras traditional miniature paintings from his personal collection for the students to get a better understanding of the final product and artform. He then moved on and introduced the eminent resource person and artist Mr Dayashanker who would be conducting the workshop, stating that he comes from a long lineage of artists who painted this painted this artform in the Mughal court and how Mr Dayashanker and his family are one of the few ones who are still associated with the artform. He urged the students to learn more about the artform and practice it and hopefully it would help preserve this dying artform from completely vanishing.
Mr Dayashanker, started his session by showcasing the prepreapred painting he shall be working on for the workshop. He began his demonstration by covering the painting with the adhesive of gum and white mixture so that the colours last better and longer. Moving on to the crucial bits of outlining and filling in the colors of the painting. All the while explaining more about his painting techniques, such as how natural pigments are used and one has to be extremely patient with this artform and have steady hands. He even used a microscope to paint the finer details of the painting and colored it with stunning vibrant hues. While the painting dried, the students engaged with the resource person and the consultant and asked pertinent and important questions regarding the artform and the painting. The expert session was completed by Mr Dayashanker asking the students to start small while learning how to make this painting and use the right kinds of brushes and practice as much as they can so that they have steadier grasp as they go on.
A captivating workshop ended on a high note with a lot of questions and engagement from the students who were ready to try their hands at making this unique and lesser known artform.
Intach Ayodhya Chapter in collaboration with HECS, INTACH had an endangered craft workshop for 9 schools and 58 participants on 7th August’21. The endangered craft of Sarpat grass and the products made using that were discussed in the workshop.
Ms. Sarita Tripathi, Principal, Yash Vidya Mandir started the session by thanking everybody for joining today’s craft workshop Two students, Nidhi and Harshit of Yash Vidya Mandir School were invited to present in this workshop and guest speaker, Dr. SK Verma, Professor in Acharya Narendra Dev Krishi Vishwavidyalaya. The students of Yash Vidya Mandir, Darshan Nagar kicked off the session by briefing about Sarpat Grass that grows wild near water bodies, which is a perfect example of how simple womenfolk of Uttar Pradesh makes utility products using that grass through an interesting film and presentation.
Dr. SK Verma was introduced by Nidhi and Harshit and asked to speak in detail about the uses of the Sarpat grass and the ways in which it could further be used in our daily lives and in products so that more people get associated with the craft of sarpat product making. Dr. Verma started with a small introduction regarding the grass and where it’s grown, further into his talk he spoke about the various uses of the grass and how different government schemes are aiding it in making this more popular and increasing its usage within households. He gave an in-depth analysis regarding the growth and usage of the grass with a presentation. He quickly mentioned the various products that come from this grass and went over the process of making one product using the Sarpat grass and the different steps that go into it. He ended his informative talk with a quick questions and answers session with all the participants.
Ms. Manjula Jhunjhunwala, Convenor INTACH Ayodhya Chapter in conclusion thanked Dr. SK Verma for his session and informative talk and hoped that with many workshops and initiatives, more awareness will be raised regarding this craft. Mr. Prasoon Srivastava also gave the final vote of thanks to the guest speaker, Dr. SK Verma, and showed his enthusiasm towards the project.
INTACH Chennai Chapter and Heritage Education and Communication Service, INTACH in collaboration with Talking Cub organised a storytelling workshop for children on 6th August, 2021. The session is based on the book, “OFF WE GO! TO CHENNAI, TO CHENNAI," the fifth in a series of children’s books on cities of India , their heritage and culture, co-published by Young INTACH (HECS) and Talking Cub (An imprint of Speaking Tiger Books). The other four books are on Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Jaipur. The session was done online and was attended by over 250 participants.The English session was conducted by Arthy Muthanna Singh and Mamta Nainy, Founder- Partners of SYLLABLES27, an independent publishing venture. The Tamil session was conducted by Asha.
The workshop started off with a welcome address by the INTACH Chennai Chapter, followed by an address by Mrs. Purnima Datt. Mrs. Datt introduced the storytelling session about the book Off we Go to Chennai. She shared about what HECS, INTACH does, its various publications and about heritage clubs. She also talked about INTACH Chapters, the works undertaken by INTACH like restoring old buildings, paintings etc. Mrs. Datt then congratulated the Chennai Chapter for their efforts and also thanked the authors of the book Arthy Mutthanna and Mamata Nainy.
This was then followed by an address from Mrs. Sujata Shanker, who welcomed the teachers and students and thanked them all for joining the storytelling session. She briefed about INTACH, which aims at preserving all types of Heritage and everything that makes us a community with the emphasis on why we should preserve it for the future generation. She thanked the authors Mrs. Arti and Ms. Mamta for being in the session. Mrs. Malvika Lakshman, coordinator of INTACH Chennai Chapter then took over and welcomed both the Authors and gave a brief introduction about Arthy Mutthanna Singh and Mamta Nainy. She also welcomed the illustrator of the book, Ms. Vibha.
Moving on, Ms. Mamta took over and greeted the students and introduced the book ‘Off we go! To Chennai, To Chennai.’ She talked about the series of Off we go and shared with the children about how the book has been co-written by both of them. Ms. Arthy described the name of the session that is 'Aiyyo' and briefly talked about how the name aiyyo was given to the session, how both of them started writing the children's book and experiences of Chennai. Ms. Mamta then briefed the inputs of the session. Ms. Arthy also showed the other books of the Off we go series, and how they learned so much while writing books on these cities. Starting off with the storytelling, Ms. Mamta talked about the main character of the book and what she likes about the city of Chennai. Both the authors briefed the children about the book and what they can expect to experience when they read the book with great fervour and excitement.
Activities such as drawing kolam and saree borders were also carried out where the children enthusiastically participated. The session was fun and interactive. It concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Arthy and Ms. Mamta who thanked the children for joining the session and enthusiastically participating in the activities. The next session of storytelling was conducted in Tamil by Ms. Asha.
Total of 11 schools participating from both the cities with the Convenor of both Intach chapters present for the same. The introduction was given by Ms. Smriti Malhotra, HECS representative. The welcome note was given by Mr Virendra Kapoor (Convenor of Intach Chandigarh Chapter), Ms Deepika Gandhi (Co-convenor of Intach Chandigarh Chapter) and Col. RD Singh (Convenor of Intach Ambala Chapter). They all shared their enthusiasm towards being part of this project and thanked the HECS team for proactively doing this year after year. The teachers and students were thanked for their participation and the students were further motivated by the Convenors to make amazing films on the theme of heritage. Ms Deepika Gandhi stated how our rich past is being kept alive through these modern mediums and initiatives. Col R.D Singh asked the students to enjoy this creative session and learn as much as they can while also engaging with the experts.
Ms Datt then moved on and explained all the different themes (Trees, Kitchen Garden, Recycling & Traditional Ways, Animal Stories, Virtual Monuments, Fun with Recreation, My Personal Heritage, Unique Communication Heritage) on which the students can make films on, going through each theme in much detail, citing examples of what has been done and illustrating her talk with lots of interesting ideas and ways in which films can be made. The students were engrossed in the talk and engaged and participated during her session as well.
The experts from Tuning Forks team were introduced by Ms Smriti Malhotra, Mr Ankit began the session by talking about how films can be used to create constrictive stories around India. He went over different aspects and how to prepare for filming, speaking about how one should start from fundamentals and then make your way from there. Mr Ankit then initiated a discussion with the children and asked them what they liked about each of the films shown. The students participated by talking about solutions, choice of music, clean camera work, camera angles, story of the film, and how it conveyed emotions. Ms. Sanjana Chopra from Tuning Fork Films then came on to present on the different kinds of shots and angles. Composition – rule of thirds, light, looking space, headroom. Grips and hold, steady, etc. stabilise, comfortable position. She showcased a demo video and the process of editing was shown in a step-by-step manner using clips. The end product was a short film which was created in the course of the workshop itself.
The workshop ended with both speakers thanking the audience and HECS INTACH. Col Singh and Deepika Gandhi spoke about the importance of the workshop and what the students must do to succeed in this project. A vote of Thanks was then given by Nanki Kaur, followed by a group photograph of all the participants.
The Jaipur FILMIT Webinar Workshop was held on 5th August 2021. The webinar was attended by around 70 students and teachers, and the HECS team. The technical resource persons for the session were Mr. Ankit Pogula and Mr. Vinod Sreedhar from Tuning Fork Films.The programme started off with Ms. Geetika Gunjan (Programme Coordinator, HECS INTACH) welcoming the students and teachers for the Filmit programme. This was followed by an address from Mrs. Purnima Datt (Principal Director, HECS INTACH)who thanked all the teachers, especially during these pandemic, to have inspired the children and to encourage them to work on this project. She also applauded the children for making excellent films made by. The project began with 8 schools in Delhi, and is presently spread across 15 cities with a total of 170 schools.
This was followed by the introduction to the themes by Mr. Abhishek Das (Senior Programme Coordinator HECS). Theme 1 was about saving nature, Theme 2 about Virtual Monuments/Heritage Sites/ Museums/ Art Galleries, Theme 3 is about Fun with Recreation, Theme 4 on Personal Heritage and Theme 5 on Story of a unique communication. Discussions of all the themes were done in details. Mrs. Datt concluded the presentation by sharing the guidelines for the films and encouraged the students to be creative and take this opportunity to care for our heritage. Mr. Vinod Sreedhar and Mr. Ankit Pogula shared the simple techniques of filmmaking. Mr. Vinod started the session by talking about the concept of making films. He also talked about the various aspects of film making such as choosing the right topic, planning, researching before shooting and the various shots and angles were discussed in length. The various stages of editing were also shared.Mr. Ankit Pogula also explained about paper edit, backing up files etc. Sound related issues were also discussed. A small video was showcased on how sound impacts the video/film and how different shots can largely impact sound as well. Lastly a demo on editing software was showcased by Ankit, where the step by step process of editing the film using the software was done. The session garnered a lot of questions and engagements from the School students of Jaipur. It concluded with a vote of thanks by Mr. Abhishek Das.
Heritage Education and Communication Service (HECS), INTACH in collaboration with INTACH Jaipur Chapter organised the Filmit India content workshop for 11 schools of Jaipur.
The programme began with the welcome address by Mr. Abhishek Das (Sr. Programme Coordinator, HECS). Ms. Dharmendra Kanwar, Convenor, Jaipur Chapter addressed the students briefly and encouraged them to make good films.
Ms. Purnima Datt gave an introduction to the Filmit project. She then introduced the themes for this year. The themes cover topics such as Saving Nature, Animal stories, Virtual Monuments/ Heritage Sites/ Museums/ Art Galleries, Fun with Recreation, Personal Heritage, Story of Communication Heritage. Each topic was discussed in detail with various suggestions. This was followed by screening of two short films.
The Content session was conducted by Mr. Feisal Alkazi, renowned theatre director, educationist and author. who is an educationist, trainer and theatre director and screened two short films. The interactive session began with a discussion on how students celebrated festivals during the pandemic. Mr. Alkazi then suggested ideas like making a film on the festivals, rituals performed at their house or the traditional food that is eaten during the festival.
In the next segment of the session students were asked to look around in their house and find an object older than 50 years and share about it. Students shared about stamp collections of grandparents, heirloom odhni’s, coin collections etc. Mr. Alkazi then asked students to develop a storyline around the objects and ask questions about what can be covered in the film.
The programme concluded on a positive note with students sharing their takeaways from the workshop.
Ms. Christina Shangne, Prog. Coordinator, HECS gave the vote of thanks which was followed by a group photograph.
Center Point School, Wardhaman Nagar, Nagpur organized the INTACH HERITAGE CLUB INSTALLATION ceremony on 1st August 2021 on the occasion of Friendship Day with a theme 'Friendship with Heritage'. The program was organized and coordinated by the teacher in charge of the school along with the school heritage club members.
Dr. Madhura Rathod and Ar. Nitika Ramani the Convener and Co-Convener, respectively of INTACH Nagpur Chapter and founders of Architectural Sankul graced the occasion. Students were appreciated for the activities conducted in the last two years and were encouraged to take this mission further with the same zeal and enthusiasm. They were made aware of the need to come further to contribute to heritage documentation, conservation, and preservation. Ar. Nitika Ramani gave them an idea to document all that seems unique in their house so that tangible and intangible things will be recorded in their scrapbook and with the passing years this recording will become heritage. The students were also requested to share with us the cultural, festive, historical, mythological, built, or any knowledge that they cherish. Students presented the club achievements systematically and the badges and passports were sent to them beforehand as a result of which every student of the club was graced with it by their family member online.
The program concluded with a heritage oath, a formal vote of thanks, and a national anthem.
One lakh saplings plantation campaign 2021 of INTACH Lalitpur Chapter was launched by MLA Ramratan Kushwaha by planting saplings at Bhagwan Adinath College of Education. On this occasion, 3000 saplings were planted in the college premises. Chapter convener Santosh Kumar Sharma presided over the program. College manager Pradeep Jain had a commendable contribution in the planting of trees. Principal Sunil Kumar, Ramakant Tiwari, Manoj Purohit, students, teachers and villagers were present on this occasion.
In the sequence of plantation campaign of Intech Lalitpur Chapter 5000 trees were planted in the Chief Hospitality of Minister of State for Labor, Manohar Lal Panth in Wrestler Gurudeen Training College, Uttar Pradesh Government. Purohit Principal Mahesh Kumar Jha Mahila Mahavidyalaya Principal Dr. Sufia and many students and teachers were present, presided over by INTECH coordinator Santosh Kumar Sharma.
The program concluded with a heritage oath, a formal vote of thanks, and a national anthem.
INTACH Jammu Chapter organized an interactive meet in collaboration with Geology and Mining department J&K Govt. Jammu by inviting all the stakeholders to share their views on 6th March 2021 in the conference Hall Jawaharlal Nehru Udyog Bhawan Rail Head Complex, Jammu.
The welcome address with introduction and initiative of INTACH Jammu chapter was shared by Mr. S. M. Sahni KAS (Retd.) Convener INTACH Jammu Chapter. Sh. Vikas Sharma (KAS) Director geology & mining was the chief guest for the occasion. The following speakers talked on the various topics- An Introduction of Traditional Clay Craft of Jammu was shared by Mr. Lalit Gupta, Art Historian Former Faculty Institute of Music & Fine Art Jammu; Climate Friendly Lifestyle through Clay Craft by Dr. C. M. Seth IFS (Retd.) Environmentalist and Co-Convener INTACH Jammu; Clay Craft as one of the prime crafts of Jammu by Sh. Vikas Gupta KAS Director Handicraft & Handloom J&K Govt. Jammu; Importance of Pottery and clay craft was shared by Sh. Bishamber Mehta, former faculty Music & Fine Art; Scope of clay-based industries in Jammu region by Mrs. Anoo Malhotra KAS Director & C Jammu. There was also an open house discussion by Sh. Saleem Beg, Former. Director Gen. Tourism, Convener INTACH J&K. It was followed by the Presidential Remarks by Sh. Vikas Sharma KAS Director Geology & Mining J&K Govt. Jammu. Others presents in the meet: Arvind Kotwal KAS (Retd.), K.K Sharma Former Director Floriculture, A K Khajuria Jt. Director Geology and Mining, H. L Langeh Geology and Mining, Dr. Ishya Devi Geology and Mining, Dr. Sonia Jasrotia Intach Jammu chapter, Dr. Rajesh Sharma Intach Jammu chapter, Dr. RS Rana GC-II Prof., Shalini rana H.O.D, Eng. GCOE, Jammu Craft person: - Bua Ditta Yograj Janak Raj Rakish parajapati, Central university of Jammu interns Anita Rani, Deepika Bhalwal & Rashi Gupta and research assistant Balbinder Kumar also participated. Exhibition on clay crafts were also presented. The vote of thanks was given by Sh. Kuldeep Wahi Co- convener INTACH Jammu Chapter. Proceedings by Dr. S.S. Rissam, Add. Co- convener INTACH Jammu Chapter.
The program concluded with a heritage oath, a formal vote of thanks, and a national anthem.
The INTACH Filmit workshop for Vadodara schools was held on 3rd August 2021. Nine schools from the city participated. The Introduction to the workshop was given by Ms. Christina Shangne. The welcome note was delivered by Ms. Purnima Datt. She spoke about all the memories the team has had in various cities where they went for workshops. She also spoke about the importance of the workshop. She thanked the convener of INTACH Vadodara –Mr. Sanjeev Joshi. He spoke about the memories of the past workshops and welcomed the HECS team and schools. He talked about the Filmit project and mentioned how important participation is. He mentioned about the films that were created by Vadodara schools and praised the quality of the past films. Ms. Purnima Datt spoke about the work of INTACH – Conservation, documentation, preservation, awareness building, plantations of endangered trees and plants, and protection of endangered animals. She spoke about Filmit India and how it has been 14 years and mentioned how the films made by students over the years were highly praised by the judges and experts. In her presentation she talked about the importance of tangible and intangible heritage, outlined the format and timeline of the workshop. Students shared a lot about their personal heritage. Swara showed her Family Tree which lasted for 17 generations in Kutch. Priyani showed a 100-year-old game Chaupar belonging to her mom’s great grandmother. Many other students shared different personal heritage collections. Mr. Abhishek Das then introduced the themes of FilmIt. Healked about the 4 types of heritage. Themes (Trees, Kitchen Garden, Recycling & Traditional Ways, Animal Stories, Virtual Monuments, Fun with Recreation, My Personal Heritage, Unique Communication Heritage). A film on recycling was shown after that.
Introduction of technical experts Vinod Sreedhar and Pulkita Parsai was done by Christina. Vinod started the session by asking the students Why are films so powerful? Films are great, it's something that we all grew up with, listening to stories that are told to us by our parents. He Talked about the technical aspect of filmmaking and shared the different elements. The first stage being the planning, the second stage all about shooting the film and the third stage is editing where the film is actually put together. One has to remember to have a good beginning, a middle and a powerful endorsement. The various steps in editing were also shared in length.
Pulkita, in her session talked about the shots and angles. The various types of shots were discussed in detail, also with the help of a video clip to identify the different shots. Live editing demo was also presented by Pulkita where she showed how one can edit the film using a software.
Mr. Sanjeev Joshi thanked the HECS team as well as the Tuning Fork team for the exciting and meaningful learning experience. He looked forward to some very exciting films from Vadodara and wished the students the very best. The workshop ended with a group photograph and vote of thanks delivered by Ms. Geetika Gunjan.
The Ahmedabad FILMIT Workshop was held on 2nd August 2021 through a webinar. The webinar was attended by around 70 students and teachers, Co-convenor of INTACH Ahmedabad Chapter, Mr, Pavan Bakheri and the HECS team. The technical resource person for the session were Ms. Pulkita Parsai and Mr. Aditya Verma from Tuning Fork Films.
The programme started off with Ms. Christina Shangne (Programme Coordinator, HECS INTACH) welcoming the students and teachers for the Filmit programme. This was followed by an address from Mr. Pavan Bakheri who applauded the students for their creativity and enthusiasm and also encouraged them to look further beyond and discover their rich heritage and make films on it.
Introduction to the Filmit project and the themes for this year (2021-2022) by presented Mrs. Purnima Datt (Principal Director, HECS INTACH). Mrs. Datt introduced the FILMIT project, which is currently in its 13 th year. The project is Funded by the Helen Hamlyn Trust in the UK, Filmit is a multi-cultural project that aims to nurture cultural understanding, care and concern for heritage, and is the only education programme supported by the Trust. The project began with 8 schools in Delhi, and is presently spread across 15 cities with a total of 170 schools.
This was followed by a short interaction where students shared old objects from their homes. Introduction to the themes were then shared to the students. Theme 1 was about saving nature, Theme 2 about Virtual Monuments/Heritage Sites/ Museums/ Art Galleries, Theme 3 is about Fun with Recreation, Theme 4 on Personal Heritage and Theme 5 on Story of a unique communication. which had 3 other parts as well. Mrs. Datt discussed all the themes in detail and with examples on how to make the film. She concluded the presentation sharing the guidelines for the films that the films should be of 1-2 minutes and spend their time ideating the story line and shots. She encouraged the students to be creative and take this opportunity to care for our heritage. Following this were screening of two films and an introduction of the resource person by Ms. Christina Shangne (HECS Representative).
Ms Pulkita started off the technical session with a short interaction with the students on what are the things one should keep in mind while recording a film.She emphasised on talking in english hindi and gujarati so that everybody could grasp about the process of filmmaking. She shared the various stages of camera angles, lighting, clean background, editing etc. Through a series of slides she explained the process of making a film with themes, characters and events citing examples for each of the categories. Mr. Aditya then took over and talked about importing videos and the process of saving video clips and footage. Using the software Windows Photos, he explained the procedure of editing through the clips incorporating all the steps discussed above, on editing software for the students to get a deeper understanding of the process.
The session concluded with final pointers about filmmaking for FILMIT by Purnima Datt. Then followed by a group photograph and vote of thanks by Smriti Malhotra (HECS Representative).
The technical workshop of Filmit India was organized for around 10 schools from Mumbai on 29th July’21. It was a virtual workshop, which was kickstarted by a welcoming address given by Ms. Smriti Malhotra, HECS representative, followed by the welcoming words of Ms. Purnima Datt. She thanked the teachers for their contribution and engagement with the project as well as the participation of the students. She welcomed our esteemed speakers for the workshop, Mr. Vinod Shreedhar and Mr. Aditya Verma of Tuning Forks, and thanked them for their association with the project.
Ms. Datt then further moved to give a brief introduction to the FILMIT INDIA. She started her session by defining ‘heritage’ and showcased her own personal heritage objects for the students to understand the term and concept better. She asked the students to explore and find such personal pieces within their own homes and talk about them and how films can be made around those pieces.
She discussed the different heritage themes and topics that the students can make the films around, such as Saving Nature, Virtual Monuments, Heritage Sites, Museums and Art Galleries to Fun with recreation and exploring Personal heritage and lastly, one could do it on the story of unique communication heritage, citing many examples and ideas around each theme as she went on.
The technical workshop began with Mr. Vinod Sreedhar and Mr. Aditya Verma from Tuning Forks sharing about the simple introduction to filmmaking. Mr.Vinod shared examples of different perspectives and how they impact the story. He talked about all the technical aspects that go into filmmaking such as the camera angles, planned shots, sound, editing, shooting, and preparation. Various editing softwares and how to use them were also thoroughly discussed. Mr. Aditya edited a demo on editing software for the students to get a deeper understanding of the process. Students were explained all the features of the software such as inserting title, subtitles, credits, adding visual effects, changing audio levels in different parts of the film, trimming videos, ensuring the smooth transition of clips, etc were also discussed.
The session was interesting and interactive. It concluded with a vote of thanks by Ushni, HECS, and a group photograph.
The Kolkata FILMIT Technical Workshop was held on 28thJuly 2021 through a webinar. It was conducted by Mr. Vinod Sreedhar, an educationist, trainer and music composer, and Mr. Aditya Verma, a photographer and documentary filmmaker.The webinar was attended by over 85 students and teachers.
Ms. Christina Shangne (Programme Coordinator, HECS INTACH) began the programme by welcoming the students and teachers. This was followed by a welcome and introduction by Mrs. Purnima Datt (Principal Director, HECS INTACH). Mr. Abhishek Das (Senior Programme Coordinator, HECS INTACH) introduced INTACH and its various divisions. Following this, Mrs.Datt introduced the FILMIT project, which is currently on its 13th year in Kolkata.Funded by the Helen Hamlyn Trust in the UK, Filmit is a multi-cultural project that aims to nurture cultural understanding, care and concern for heritage, and is the only education programme supported by the Trust. The project began with 8 schools in Delhi, and is presently spread across 15 cities with a total of 170 schools.
This was followed by a short interaction where students and teachers shared old objects from their homes. Afterward, Mr.Das introduced the themes for this year. They are: Saving Nature,Virtual Monuments/Heritage Sites/Museums/Art Galleries, Fun with Recreation, My Personal Heritage and Story of a unique communication heritage. He discussed all the themes in detail and gave students suggestions on how to make the films. Mrs. Datt concluded the presentation by sharing the guidelines for the films. She suggested that students should spend most of their time on ideating for the film, its storyline and shots. The project is an opportunity to learn and make films in these tough times, and students should utilise this thoroughly. Following this were screening of two films and an introduction of the resource persons for the technical workshop, Mr. Vinod Sreedhar and Mr. Aditya Verma, by Ms. Shangne.
Mr. Vinod Sreedhar began the session by sharing that storytelling is close to our hearts, and films are important because they tell stories. He shared how different perspectives impact our storytelling endeavour. He discussed the various stages of editing, the several camera angles and the different emotions or character details that they are able to convey. He also shared tips and tricks about the editing stage and introduced students to softwares. Mr. Sreedhar also explained how editing can be done and offered solutions to sound related issues. He concluded his presentation by discussing how the sound, lighting and camera handling can change the look and feel of the scene. Mr. Aditya Verma showed the step-by-step process of editing the film using the Windows Photos software. Students were explained all the features of the software and how to use them.
The programme concluded with an interactive Q&A session, followed by a vote of thanks by Mr. Abhishek Das and a group photograph.
The technical workshop of Filmit Delhi was organised on 26th and 27th July 2021. Around 30 schools participated across two days. The workshop was held through the zoom platform. On the first day, Mr. Abhishek Das, Senior Programme Coordinator, HECS INTACH began the workshop by welcoming all the students of Delhi schools and technical experts for the first technical workshop for the FILMIT India project for the year 2021. Ms. Purnima Datt then welcomed the students and teachers. She thanked the contributions made by Mr.Feisal Alkazi for the FILMIT India project and his wonderful and engaging content sessions. She then gave a warm welcome to the team of Tuning Fork thanking them for their association with the project and doing this session.
Ms. Datt then further moved to give a brief introduction to the FILMIT INDIA. She discussed the different heritage themes and topics that the students can make the films around, such as Saving Nature, Virtual Monuments, Heritage Sites, Museums and Art Galleries to Fun with recreation and exploring Personal heritage and lastly, one could do it on the story of unique communication heritage, citing many examples and ideas around each theme as she went on.
Ankit Pogula started off the technical session on the techniques and tips on how to make a perfect film. He shared how and why films are powerful. Using PowerPoint presentations and photographs, the technical process of filmmaking was discussed. He shared how filmmaking is an experience. He discussed the 3 stages of filmmaking. The first step one has to remember before shooting a film is planning and research as this helps in building a story and start shooting. The various steps of shooting a film were discussed. He also stressed how the angle of the camera affects the perspective. The camera angles such as eye level, low angle, high angle, side angle etc. Getting a good quality sound in the film is also a very important step. To get a good quality sound the use of external microphones, getting the camera closer to the subject and moving away from noise are some of the tips one can follow. The angle or distance of the camera also plays a vital role in this.
In the next step, ways of editing a film were shared by Ms. Sanjana. Ms. Sanjana showed the participants a demo on editing using software Microsoft Photo. A hands-on demonstration was shown on how to use the software to edit the films. Students were shown 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 the film in high quality.
The session ended with Ankit stressing that the focus should be on the key story and then followed by the rest. The story should have an interesting beginning, middle and a good ending. The session was interactive throughout where students were able to clear their doubts by the technical team. Abhishek Das explained the steps to upload films on the website. The vote of thanks was delivered by Ms. Vaishnavi, followed by a group photograph.
The programme began with the welcome address by Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Programme Coordinator, HECS. Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS then addressed the students and introduced them to the Filmit project.
Maj. Gen. L.K. Gupta, Chairman, INTACH shared words of encouragement. He encourage students to document their heritage and become better citizens. He also asked students to pay attention to the craft and wished them all the best.
Ms. Purnima Datt then shared the themes for this year. The themes cover different aspects of heritage such as Saving Nature, Virtual tours to Monuments & Heritage Sites, Museums and Art Galleries, exploring Personal heritage and lastly, unique communication heritage.
Two best films from last year were also screened.
This was followed by the technical session conducted by Mr. Ankit Pogula and Ms. Pulkita Parsai, filmmaking experts from Tuning Fork Films.
The session began with a discussion on the films that were shown earlier. Students were asked what they liked about the films and other observations. Ankit shared a presentation on Films and their impact, why they are interesting, and what is the process of filmmaking. Various camera angles, lighting, camera handling etc. were also discussed.
Pulkita, through examples highlighted the sound related issues faced during shooting and shared some tips and tricks.
The last segment of the session involved a step by step editing of a film and also introduction to the software.
The session ended with an interactive Q&A session. Ms. Smriti Malhotra gave the vote of thanks followed by a group photograph.
The Delhi FILMIT Content Workshop was held on 22nd July, 2021 through a webinar. The first day was the content workshop which was conducted by Mr. Feisal Alkazi an educationist, trainer and theatre director. The webinar was attended by over 75 students and teachers.
The programme started off with a welcome note by Ms. Christina Shangne (Programme Coordinator, HECS INTACH) followed by the presentation of the themes by Ms Purnima Dutt (Principal Director HECS, INTACH). She introduced the FILMIT project which is a multi-cultural project that aims to nurture cultural understanding, care and concern for heritage. The project is funded by Helen Hamlyn Trust, which supports heritage and conservation in India. INTACH is the only education program supported by Helen Hamlyn Trust. The project started in 2009 with only 8 schools in Delhi and subsequently spread across 15 cities with a total of 170 schools currently.
The themes for this year were then introduced. Theme 1 was about saving nature, Theme 2 about Virtual Monuments/Heritage Sites/ Museums/ Art Galleries, Theme 3 is about Fun with Recreation, Theme 4 on Personal Heritage and Theme 5 on Story of a unique communication. which had 3 other parts as well. She discussed all the themes in detail and with examples on how to make the film. She concluded the presentation by giving a brief description of the film that should not exceed 15 to 20 lines as the film is only about 1-2 minutes. Everything associated with the film should fit into the particular theme. She asked children to care for heritage, monuments, grandparents and everyone around them. It was then followed by two film screening and an introduction of Mr. Feisal Alkazi by Mrs. Christina Shangne.
Mr. Feisal Alkazi began the workshop with an activity where students shared about their heritage objects they had at their homes. He asked them to develop a storyline in one sentence using the object they mentioned. Further, he asked students to link these ideas/ storylines to heritage and how the same could be presented in the visual medium (animation, re-enactment, illustration, etc.). He shared various tips on making films and encouraged students to think outside the box. He summarised that any movie should begin with an object that has a story to tell and students should develop questions around it, focusing on the colours, textures, memories, smells, space etc. and also the film should leave a message for the audience at the end. The session concluded with students sharing their takeaways from the workshop.
The webinar concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Ushni Dasgupta (HECS representative), followed by a group photograph.
DAY 2
The second workshop was held on 23rd July with over 70 participants.
The programme began with a welcome note by Ms. Geetika Gunjan, (Programme Coordinator, HECS). This was followed by a brief introduction to INTACH and the Filmit Project by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH. Ms. Datt also discussed the Themes for the project this year.
This was followed by screening of two best Filmit films.
The second session was conducted by Mr. Feisal Alkazi, renowned theatre director, author and educationist. The session began with students sharing about heritage objects at their homes. Students were then asked to build a storyline around these objects. Further they were asked to link these stories to heritage and how it can be shown as a film. Mr. Alkazi also shared tips on filmmaking. The workshops concluded on a positive note with students sharing their takeaways from the workshop followed by a vote of thanks by Ms. Smriti Malhotra, Programme Coordinator, HECS, INTACH and a group photograph.
Photos
The INTACH Varanasi Chapter organized a Tree Plantation Drive at various member school premises or parks maintained by those schools. These plants have been given to us by Varanasi development Authority (VDA) on complimentary basis. But there was a condition that VDA will do Geo tagging after 2/3 days of plantation. It was required that VDA - Horticulture Dept head will go and take photos from his mobile. U. P. Govt. has created an app for this which is linked to Hon'ble Chief Minister's portal specially created for Tree plantation. So far we planted at 6 locations.
The webinar ended with a vote of thanks and a group photograph.
PHOTOS
HECS INTACH in collaboration with INTACH Chennai Chapter organised a Teacher Training Webinar on ’Tree of Life- Heritage Awareness Workshop’ on 10th July, 2021. About 180 teachers from schools across the city of Chennai, HECS team and INTACH Chennai team attended the programme. Maj. Gen. L. K. Gupta, Chairman of INTACH also attended the webinar. The speakers for the session were Dr. T. R. Babu, Shobha Menon, Mrs. Purnima Datt and Ms. Geeitka Gunjan.
The Programme started off with a welcome address by Ms. Malavika Lakshman, followed by an address by Chairman General Gupta. It was then followed by the introduction of the Tree book by Mrs. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH. She shared about the focus of the book, how trees as a natural monument, which survived for centuries, plays an important part in our life. This publication is a resource book to help teachers in understanding how trees can be studied - its sacredness, function, etc. It was then followed by a film screening.
The next session was presented by Dr. T. R. Babu who prepared an informative presentation on the trees of Chennai and Tamil Nadu. In his session he brought to light the various cultural aspects of trees and stated how our ancestors have a rich natural tradition related particularly to trees which have been carried forward to some degree now. This was then followed by the next speaker Ms .Shobha Menon, manager and trustee of Nizhal, a Chennai based NGO, which looks after the trees and green covers of the area from 2005. She spoke on the topic Tree concerns- Crucial Greening concerns. Through her presentation she talked about the sampling care, protection of mature trees. With the help of a picture of school children planting trees, she explained that we do take up the initiative of planting trees, but then what after that- there seems to be a gap as people tend to forget after planting.
The third session was conducted by the HECS team on the Tree of Life book. Ms Purnima Datt shared about the various activities listed in the book, covering different aspects of trees and their association with heritage. She also shared about activities like 'Sense-ational Trees' which involves engaging all 5 senses and exploring trees among others. Ms. Geetika Gunjan then shared about Tree Associations - talking about trees and their religious significance, tree festivals etc. She also shared about Tree warriors - people taking initiative to protect the environment and how students can become part of such initiatives or undertake similar activities. The session concluded with a brief discussion on Trees in art by Ms. Purnima Datt.
The webinar ended with a vote of thanks and a group photograph.
PHOTOS
The programme started with a welcome introduction by Ms. Purnima Datt. This was followed by a short address by the Chapter Convenor, Ma. Bhatti. The INTACH Chairman, Maj. Gen. L.K. Gupta spoke to the students about the importance of heritage education across the country, and the need to incorporate it in the curriculum.
Ms. Purnima Datt started her session by stating that heritage education is very important, it is a part and parcel of our lives. She said that heritage is our story. It is a legacy that belongs to all of us. She highlighted natural, built, material, and living heritage.
Mr Vaibhav Garg, Co-convener of Yamunanagar Chapter in his session talked about Built Heritage specific to Yamunanagar through documentation of historical site phase 1. He gave a brief description of the local chapter indulged in protecting the heritage of Yamunanagar and described the evolution of Yamunanagar through a map which had all the sites in Phase 1.
The next session discussed the evolution of bio-diverse zones in Yamunanagar. As an introduction, he discussed the historical timeline and spoke of India's peculiar biomass which houses different kinds of environments - deserts, tropical forests, deltas, mountains, fertile plains, etc. all at the same time.
In the final session, Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director of HECS, INTACH provided a brief on the volunteer program. Mr. Abhishek Das, Senior Programme Coordinator at HECS, INTACH talked about how heritage can be promoted further in their own institutions and what the students can do - organizing field and site visits, conducting talks and discussion with relevant experts in the field, etc. Ms. Christina Shangne, Programme Coordinator at HECS, INTACH shared about the online resources, such the Young INTACH website. Ms. Sanjoli Mathur, Programme Coordinator at HECS, INTACH further took over and talked about our social media presence and engagement and how it has increased two-fold in the last year due to the pandemic.
PHOTOS
Heritage Education and Communicaion Service (HECS) Division, INTACH in collaboration with INTACH Ambala Chapter organised a Teacher Training Workshop on 22nd June 2021 for 40 teachers from various schools across the city.
The programme began with a welcome address by Col. R.D. Singh, Convenor, INTACH Ambala Chapter. Col. Singh gave a warm welcome to all the participants, speakers and HECS team and shared about previous workshops held in Ambala and encouraged teachers to take part in the workshop actively. Maj. Gen. L.K. Gupta addressed the participants and said that he hopes that the workshop is helpful and informative for the participant teachers.
The first session was ‘What is Heritage - An Overview and Understanding” INTACH HECS, Principal Director, Ms. Purnima Datt.
Ms. Datt thanked all the teachers for their efforts during such a difficult period of time. Ms. Datt gave an introduction to heritage and stated that India and the terms heritage and culture are synonymous with one another and that our country is a visual and cultural feast that we must preserve and safeguard. She mentioned how almost all aspects of our country from our landscapes to our local oral traditions, all embody heritage.
Ms. Datt shared about all aspects of heritage in detail. For Natural heritage she gave examples of unique trees and flowers and their significance in culture. India’s geographical history was also discussed at lenth. In Built heritage sites like Bhimbetka to Colonial Architecture were discussed followed by Material heritage in which Indian arts and craft were discussed in detail. Ms. Datt concluded with a discussion on living heritage which comprises of customs, oral traditions, music, dance, performances, and crafts which are very much alive and thriving in our country and for which our nation is also known worldwide.
Session two was conducted by Lt. Gen. Dr. Ranjeet Singh on the theme - Establishing the Ambala Cantonment. Dr. Singh shared the important incidents leading to the establishment of the Ambala Cantonment. Dr. Singh encouraged teachers to let students ask questions and teach them to not take things at face value.
Ms. Madhu Singh spoke about the Intangible heritage of Ambala. She shared the definition of Intangible heritage and provided examples for the same. Ms. Singh through specimens shared with the teachers various traditions of Ambala.
Sister Shaily, Head of the Brahmakumari Ashram in Ambala spoke about Values and heritage. She shared that values are part of our heritage. Heritage buildings and sites are born out of our internal ideas and values. The purpose of history is to understand our rich culture and the achievements of our ancestors which are based on their strong values. The values embedded in our indigenous culture are significant, history enables us to understand these values and emulate them in our lives.
The last session was Heritage Education in Classrooms, Establishing Heritage Clubs and HECS Educational Resources (Online & Publications) by INTACH HECS Team.
Ms. Datt shared with the teachers the work and primary objectives of HECS, INTACH. Ms. Datt also shared about the Heritage Club Network and setting up of Heritage clubs. Mr.Abhishek Das discussed activities such as Heritage walks, Museum Walks, Lectures by Resource people. He also spoke about various projects such as Filmit, India Heritage Quiz, National Painting and Essay competitions. Ms. Sanjoli Mathur discussed the various publications brought out by HECS followed by a brief introduction to Young INTACH online resources by Ms. Christina Shangne. The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Col.R.D. Singh followed by a group photograph.
PHOTOS:
The INTACH Jammu Chapter in association with Rural Development Department, Government of Jammu & Kashmirand Department of Environment Sciences, University of Jammu, organised ‘’World Water Day” celebrations on 22nd March, 2021 at the Food Craft Institute , Dhami Nagrota followed by visit to village Pangali where water body – pond & step well with chambers exists for drinking water for the last more than 100 years . During the session various aspects of water bodies enlisted by Jammu Chapter with the help of students, scholars and faculty members were highlighted with need to conserve and preserve for posterity.
Dr. S.S. Rissam (Add. Co-convenor, INTACH Jammu Chapter welcomed the chief Guest, dignitaries, students, scholars and highlighted the INTACH and its initiative. Mr. SM Shani KAS (Retd), Convenor INTACH Jammu Chapter briefed the house about various initiatives of INTACH Jammu Chapter especially listing of more than one thousand water bodies of Jammu district only. He explained that sustainable development of water bodies in traditional technology needs to be encouraged with integrated approach and participation of rural development, floriculture, fisheries, wildlife, forests, and jalshakti and power development dept. The example of integrated development approach is at block Bhalwal Brahmana of Akhnoor sub division pond. Mrs. Sheetal Nanda, IAS briefed the importance of freshwater for day to day life and the conservation of water resources available in abundance in J&K. Dr. Deepika Salathia, Sr. faculty member of Environmental Sciences University of Jammu highlighted various aspects of water bodies, biodiversity features and further appreciated the students for the opportunity to learn at the grassroots level with ground realities. Prof. Sanjay Sharma who is an environmentalist showed his concern about usage of water and further said that catchment areas of water resources also need to be conserved/preserved. Dr. Ranjan Sharma field research associated along with student’s Ms. Huma Qazmi. Mr. Mohinder Kumar Thappa shared their field experiences of water bodies especially of different areas with distinct features. Sh. Kuldip Wahi, Co-convenor INTACH Jammu Chapter proposed the vote of thanks. Special thanks was given to the Food Craft Institute, Dhami Nagrota for providing logistic support for organizing the event.
HECS INTACH in collaboration with INTACH Varanasi Chapter organised a Teacher Training Webinar Workshop on ’Tree of Life- Heritage Awareness Workshop’ on 14th June, 2021. About 38 teachers from Varanasi and Ayodhya, HECS and Varanasi team attended the programme and Maj. Gen. L. K. Gupta, Chairman of INTACH. The speakers for the session were Dr. Rajni Kant, Dr. Kirpa Ram and the HECS team.
The programme started off with Ms. Aditi Gulati, Programme Coordinator from INTACH Varanasi Chapter, who greeted the participants with a warm welcome. She also welcomed and greeted the HECS Division of INTACH and introduced the prominent speakers of the day and Padmashree awardee Dr. Rajni Kant and Dr. Kripa Ram. Thereafter Mr. Ashok Kapoor, Convenor of INTACH Varanasi Chapter took over and gave greetings from Varanasi. He shared that over the years, 15 schools and 2 from Ayodhya have joined the Chapter. Mr. Nirmal Joshi from INTACH Varanasi Chapter also thanked and welcomed everyone. He remarked that prominent speakers and INTACH would enrich knowledge about and around trees.
The next session was taken over by Mrs. Purnima Datt, Principal Director (HECS INTACH) who shared a brief introduction about the book ‘Tree of Life’. She talked about how last year the team worked on the book ‘Tree of Life,’ which is very much needed for today’s children. As the children have very little time to look at a tree, touch it, feel it or climb a tree, the book intends to expose children to activities around trees, life and culture around trees and people committed and working with trees. She also talked about the interconnection with trees and shared a quotation of Rabindranath Tagore- "trees are the earth’s endless effort to speak to the listening heaven." She stated that the importance and respect for trees needs to be reinstated among students. This was followed by a film screening, ‘Chikoo Tree’, a short film made by the Filmit student.
The first speaker for the session was Dr. Rajnikant who spoke on ‘Trees of Varanasi’. He is an excellent speaker and has expert knowledge about the natural heritage and trees of the Varanasi belt. A great proponent of trees, he spoke about how they were mentioned in our ancient scriptures and they have only aided human life since the beginning of time. He took us through the different kinds of trees around Kashi and the Varanasi region, extending from the lands of Uttar Pradesh and going all the way to the Nepal border. He asked the teachers and individuals to do their part and raise necessary awareness about indigenous trees and the natural world so that we can collectively preserve our ‘virasat’.
The second speaker for the session was Dr. Kripa Ram who spoke on the ‘Cultural Heritage of Trees’. The speaker talked about creating a habitable environment for humans, plants and animals to survive on the planet. He shared how the ecosystem has many components, including producers, consumers, decomposers, and their inter-relationships, and how trees are an important component (producer) in the ecosystem. He shared in detail with data about the importance of trees and how it is important to provide future generations with a healthy environment and culture. Hence, it is important to maintain a habitable and sustainable environment, and at the same time, cherish nature's creativity.
The third session was conducted by the HECS team on the book ‘Tree of Life’. Mrs. Purnima Datt spoke on the various dimension that the book covers, Ms. Sanjoli Mathur spoke about life around a tree and also shared about the activities. Ms. Geetika Gunjan talked about looking at trees through our culture and traditions. Mrs. Purnima Datt then concluded by highlighting each section and how through all these activities, we have tried to study the entire tree cosmos. How trees, life around them can be studied through Indian culture.
The workshop concluded with a Q & A session and a vote of thanks by Mr. Abhishek Das.
INTACH Jammu Chapter in association with Department of Rural Development J&K Govt. and Environmental Sciences, University of Jammu organized an event on the occasion of “World Water Day” to highlight the importance of water resources specially listed by INTACH Jammu Chapter.
Mrs. Sheetal Nanda IAS, Secretary to Govt. of J&K Department of Social Welfare was the Chief Guest and appreciated the efforts of INTACH Jammu Chapter and Environmental Sciences University of Jammu. Mrs. Sheetal Nanda IAS briefed the participants about the importance of fresh water for day to day life and the conservation of water resources available in abundance in J&K.
Mr. S. M. Sahni KAS (Retd.) Convenor Intach welcomed the Chief Guest, dignitaries and students, scholars and highlighted INTACH and its initiatives. Dr. Satwant Singh Rissam Add. Co Convener INTACH Jammu Chapter, Prof. Sanjay Sharma Environmentalist Dr. Deepika Slathia, Sr. Faculty member of Environmental Sciences Shri Arvind Kotwal, Shri Jyoti Bhatti Principal FCI, Shri Madan Mohan BDO, Shri Kuldeep Sharma BDO Akhnoor, Shri Mukesh Sharma BDO Satwari, Shri Dr. Vikas Sharma BDO Nagrota, Dr Menakshi Khajuria Lect. E.V.S, Officers of R.D.D, students, scholars, faculty members of E.V.S/members of INTACH Jammu Chapter along with former senior functionaries of J&K Govt. participated in the event.
Kuldeep Wahi Co convener Intach Jammu Chapter proposed vote of thanks to the chief guests, the officers, faculty members, and to the students for taking keen interest in the water bodies’ projects as well as world water day 2021 celebrations.
The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Geetika Gunjan.
On the occasion of World Environment Day, June 5, the INTACH Bhilwara Chapter in collaboration with Art Institute, Bilwara organised an online poster competition on Cutting Forest- Decreasing Life Force. The competition was organised in three categories- junior, sub-junior and senior category. The winners will be awarded certificates and mementoes.
An online Teacher Training Workshop was organised on 14th May for Delhi schools. The workshop was based on latest HECS publication ‘Tree of Life- An Activity Book on Nature Education’. The programme was attended by 79 participants from 37 schools. The programme began with a welcome address by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS. Ms. Datt also gave a brief introduction to the publication and thanked all the participants. Major Gen. (Retd) L.K Gupta, Chairman, INTACH also addressed the participants and shared that such a workshop would be useful in their teaching methods and they would learn vastly from the same. He mentioned how we all are Children of Nature and should learn how to preserve and protect our natural heritage.
This followed by a session by renowned historian Dr. Narayani Gupta who spoke about the trees of Delhi and shared some interesting anecdotes. Dr. Gupta shared various methods to teach students of different age-groups how to engage with trees and learn more about them. Dr. Ritu Singh, Director, Natural Heritage Division, INTACH conducted the second session on Trees and what we can do to save them. Dr. Singh shared valuable information on trees, ecological factors affecting them and more.
This was followed by a session by HECS team on the Tree of Life publication. Ms. Purnima Datt, Ms. Sanjoli Mathur and Ms. Geetika Gunjan shared some extracts from the book and spoke about the various aspects the book covers.
The final session of the day was by Mr. Verhaen Khanna, Founder, New Delhi Nature Society who spoke about the activities of the Society. Mr. Khanna shared various activities that NDNS has undertaken such as organising interesting activities in natural surroundings for kids, creation of games like the Tree Card game to generate awareness of local trees and educating people about the ways of protecting them.
The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Geetika Gunjan.
The British School in collaboration with HECS, INTACH and Mystic Travels organised a Webinar on Work Experience Programme: Session 6- “Heritage and Culture- A Creative Choice” on 6th May, 2021. Around 50 participants including students, teachers and the HECS team attended the webinar. The speaker for the session was Ms. Purnima Datt (Principal Director, HECS, INTACH) Mr. Abhishek Das (Senior Programme Coordinator, HECS, INTACH) and Ms. Zareen Kahai (Myztic Travels).
The programmes started off with a welcome address by Ms. Neera Lakshmi Handa, University Guidance Counsellor, British School. She introduced the speakers for the programme and welcomed all for the session. She shared how every year students of British School would get hands on experience by interning at HECS, INTACH and interact with the best about the kind of work INTACH as an organisation does.
Mrs. Purnima Datt (Principal Director, HECS, INTACH) shared a brief introduction about how INTACH as an organization was set up by a very illustrious team of founding members in the year 1984 to support the Government of India to take care of unprotected heritage. She also highlighted the works done by the various divisions of INTACH that devote themselves to the restoration, conservation and preservation of heritage of the country. She also shared about the various works INTACH has restored all over the country. Continuing with the presentation, Ms. Datt talked about the four aspects of heritage- Natural, Built, Material and Living heritage at length. She shared that heritage is everyone’s story. Our heritage influences us the way we live, the way we react to situations, the way we adapt ourselves to circumstances. She ended the presentation with a quote from the Rig Veda and another by Guru Nanak. It was then followed by a short video exploring the Qutub Shahi Dynasty, the monuments restored by the Aga Khan Trust with Anuradha Reddy (Convernor of INTACH Hyderabad Chapter).
In the next segment of the programme, Mrs. Purnima Datt and Mr. Abhishek Das spoke about the topic of Heritage careers, how it’s an upcoming field with various avenues and opportunities for all those who are passionate about Heritage, Art and Culture. Suggested few career paths such as archaeology, architecture, heritage management, career in heritage tourism and writing oral history, curation, documentation, archiving, art restorer etc. were discussed in detail.
Post this presentation, Ms. Zareen, a licensed travel guide, who owns the travel company called ‘Mystics Travels’ was introduced to the workshop. She shared about her work as a travel guide, its advantages and disadvantages. She also shared about her background and her past experiences and what led her to choose this as a career path and encouraged the students of British School to also consider becoming a Travel guide. Ms. Zareen also encouraged the students to be sincere about whatever they may choose to do and to do it well and to follow their passions and dreams and keep trying. Her encouragement and great zeal were very well received by the teachers and students attending the workshop.
The Heritage Education and Communication Service, INTACH with the support of INTACH Jaipur Chapter organised a Storytelling webinar on the 15th of April, 2021. About 82 participants including 12 schools from Jaipur (6 students and 1 teacher each), HECS team, the book authors Ms. Arthy Muthana Singh and Ms. Mamta Nainy; book illustrators Mr. Priyankar Gupta and Ms. Dharmender Kanwar, Convenor INTACH Jaipur Chapter attended the session. The storytelling was based on the book "Off We Go! To Jaipur, To Jaipur", a HECS publication. The session was conducted by Dr. Tabeenah Anjum Qureshi, a senior journalist and internationally acclaimed visual storyteller.
The Workshop began with a brief introduction about the session by Ms. Geetika Gunjan, HECS representative. Ms Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH then took over and talked about the beautiful heritage of Jaipur and how special this particular book was in the Off We Go series. She welcomed the Convenor of INTACH Jaipur Chapter, Ms. Dharmender Kanwar and also thanked the book authors, Ms. Arthy Muthanna Singh and Ms. Mamta Nainy and Illustrator, Mr. Priyankar Gupta. Moving on, Ms. Dharmender Kanwar welcomed all and shared her thoughts with the students, authors and Dr. Tabeenah about how informative the book is as well as all the illustrations done in the book. It was then followed by a brief introduction of Dr. Tabeenah and the authors by Ms. Christina Shangne and Ms. Sanjoli Mathur (HECS representatives) respectively.
Dr. Tabeenah Anjum Qureshi then takes over and shares her viewpoints on the book and states how it is a visual delight for all readers and is also highly relatable for the students of Jaipur. She read out the book and also interacted with the students, involving them in the storytelling workshop. Dr. Tabeena also interacted with the 2 authors of the story and asked them what the process was like to author this particular book and how they went about writing this one? This is where Arthy and Mamta Nainy talked about their experience of working together on these books and how the Jaipur book is different from the others in the series as this one has a mystery aspect to it. Mr Priyankar Gupta, the illustrator of the book also had a great interactive session with students wherein they showcased their illustrations and drawings to him. He even shared about the initial sketches he had made for the book and how different they eventually came out. He also interacted with the students about drawing colours, digital art, apps for illustrations and was overwhelmed and enthusiastic with the responses of the students and their interest in art. The session concluded with a vote of thanks by Mr. Abhishek Das, HECS representative and a group photograph.
Intach Thanjavur Chapter and Rotary club of Thanjavur jointly organised M2 Photography of Artist Manivannan's Photo Exhibition on Naga Hornbill Festival. Artist Manivannan is the Life Member of Intach Thanjavur Chapter and a Professional photographer with a Post Graduation in Visual Arts. He was honoured by the Government of Tamil Nadu by permitting him to capture Kumbh Mela, Theyyam festival of Kerala, Camel Pushkar of Rajasthan and the Hornbill festival of Nagaland. He has documented the lifestyle of various Tribes across India with a common and single vision that is "Create Art through Lens" by capturing the elegance and richness of Nature and Human Culture. Currently Mr. Manivannan is the Proprietor of M2 Photography Wedding Studio in Thanjavur. The above photo exhibition was inaugurated by Dr. Arunraj Superintendent, A.S.I. Trichy Circle. It was presided over by Sri. S. Babaji Rajah Bhonsle, Senior Prince and Convenor INTACH Thanjavur. Lighting the Lamp was by Mrs. Janagi Ravindran Commissioner, Thanjavur Corporation.
The Hornbill festival is held at Naga Heritage Village, Kisama, which is about 12 km from Kohima . All the Tribes of Nagaland take part in this festival. The aim of the festival is to revive and protect the rich culture of Nagaland and display its extravaganza and traditions. It is organised by the Nagaland State Tourism and Art & Culture Department. This festival usually takes place between 01st and 10th of December every year in Kohima.
Artist. R. Manivannan prop. M2 Photography conducted the Photo Exhibition with Thanjavur District Collector's permission from 05.03.21 to 11.03.21. More than 10,000 people from different walks of life witnessed and got awareness about Nagaland festival and Culture.
The World Heritage Gyakupsthit held on the third day 'INTACH Lalitpur yoga camp under the chapter' Week Yogarthion by yoga, pranayama, paying close attention to posture and new ones launched Dr. Ramesh part of the sum Sikhayakyog camp and the chief guest Former municipal president Ramesh Khatik remained. Chaired by INTACH Lalitpur Convenor Santosh Kumar Sharma. The camp was very useful and meaningful for the people.
The Chapter also conducted a Sanitation campaign in the ancient Sumera Talab Lalitpur. Additional District Magistrate Anil Kumar Mishra started the cleanliness drive by making symbolic shramdaan, with Municipal Council Executive Officer Nihal Chandra, Councilor Badri Pathak and coordinators of INTACH Lalitpur Chapter Santosh Kumar Sharma, Ramakant Tiwari, Feroz Iqbal, Sohan Vishwakarma gave the message of cleanliness.
INTACH Jammu Chapter in collaboration with the Govt. School of Architecture, Jammu organised a heritage walk cum architectural study visit of the historic complex of Mubarak Mandi Palace, Jammu on 26th February, 2021. During the visit, the students of first year and second year were introduced to the rich cultural and architectural heritage of the Dogra dynasty of Jammu. The students studied the architectural features of all the buildings and the influences of different styles used in the architectural expression while simultaneously learning about construction systems and traditional materials used. Shri Kirpal Singh, life member, INTACH Jammu Chapter explained the Dogra history. Likewise, the architectural characteristics were explained by the faculty members of School of Architecture, Jammu -Ms. Vernika Gupta, Ms. Priyadarshini Nanda and Ms. Komika Walia. The students learned a lot from the entire visit. There were twenty two students with three faculty members who participated in the walk/visit. The students did sketching exercises and discussions about architecture and heritage conservation with the faculty members inside the complex. Army Headquarter of erstwhile J&K state forces, Raja Amar Singh Palace, Raja Amar Singh Palace, Rani Charaki Palace and Golghar, the prominent among all the buildings, were visited by the students and they were briefed about the history and heritage of these buildings. Students were provided refreshment after the culmination of heritage walk. The faculty and students of Govt. School of Architecture, Jammu appreciated and thanked the Convener Intach Jammu Chapter and the Executive Director of Mubarak Mandi for helping them in their visit.
Heritage Education and Communication Service, INTACH in collaboration with INTACH Jalandhar Chapter conducted a College Heritage Volunteer Workshop on 6th April 2020. The workshop was attended by 75 participants comprising of students and faculty members from various institutions.
Post lunch, Dr. Radha Pandey gave a lecture on the various authors and poets of Ayodhya since the beginning of the historical period. Next, a presentation on heritage education by Mr. Abhishek Das 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. The day ended with the teachers being divided into four groups for the next day’s group work and tea and snacks being served.
The programme began with a welcome address by Maj. Gen. Balwinder Singh, Convenor Jalandhar Chapter. He introduced INTACH and the activities undertaken by each division. Maj. Gen. Singh encouraged participants to pay attention to our heritage and become part of INTACH and work towards the protection and preservation of heritage.
This was followed by a brief address by Maj.Gen. L.K. Gupta, Chairman,INTACH. He encouraged participants to take part in protecting heritage which is our constitutional duty and that people should make a selfless contribution to protect and enhance our heritage.
This was followed by a session on Indian Heritage by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH. Ms. Datt appreciated the efforts of Jalandhar chapter and extended support for all activities undertaken by the chapter. The INTACH film was also screened.
This was followed by a second session by Ms. Laveena Rajput who spoke about Local heritage of Doaba Region of Punjab. Ms. Rajput spoke about the Tangible and Intangible Heritage of the region in detail. with two quotes: one from Rigveda and the other of Guru Nanak.
The third session was conducted by HECS team on INTACH and Volunteerism. Ms. Datt spoke about volunteerism and its significance and how it could lead to an enriching experience for the college students.
Mr. Abhishek Das, Sr. Programme Coordinator, HECS, shared about importance of heritage walks in generating awareness and also shared points on how to conduct such walks. Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Programme Coordinator, HECS, spoke about how heritage can be promoted in institutions and shared some ways to do so. Ms. Christina Shangne, Programme Coordinator, HECS, spoke about Young INTACH’s website and other online resources such as e-newsletters. Ms. Sanjoli Mathur, Programme Coordinator, HECS, shared about the social media pages of HECS and the activities undertaken on these platforms.
The programme concluded with the screening of Tilla Jutti – a film made by Saupin’s School,Chandigarh as part of Filmit India project followed by a commemorative group photograph.
Heritage Education and Communication Service Division in collaboration with INTACH Ayodhya Chapter supported by INTACH Varanasi Chapter conducted a teacher training Workshop at Faizabad, Ayodhya on 22nd and 23rd March 2021 at Jingle Bells School. 44 teachers from 23 schools participated. The workshop started with a welcome address by the convenor, Ayodhya Chapter Ms. Manju Jhunjhunwala. She welcomed all the participants to the workshop and thanked them for attending it. She spoke briefly about INTACH and thanked Varanasi Chapter convenor Mr. Ashok Kapoor for helping the chapter in organizing the workshop and attending it. Mr. Kapoor, in his address thanked HECS for agreeing to physically conduct the workshop in wake of covid19 cases. He congratulated Ayodhya Chapter for organizing everything swiftly. In the first session, Mr. Abhishek Das, HECS INTACH spoke about heritage and its types. He did an interactive session with the teachers, identified various forms of heritage and discussed why heritage is important and the need to preserve it for the future generations. 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. Local resource person, Dr. Manoj Dixit, former VC Ram Manohar Lohia University, spoke about Ayodhya, its material past and important sites. He covered the archaeological evidences recovered from the city which date it to be thousands of years old. Mr. Azad Singh, eminent environmentalist, was the next speaker. He spoke about the natural heritage of Ayodhya. He covered various sites which needed to be conserved and also spoke about the river Saryu. He gave a delivered a highly motivating and captivating extempore on the natural heritage of the city and the urgent need to conserve them and also discussed means and ways of how everyone can bring change in their own capacity.
Post lunch, Dr. Radha Pandey gave a lecture on the various authors and poets of Ayodhya since the beginning of the historical period. Next, a presentation on heritage education by Mr. Abhishek Das 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. The day ended with the teachers being divided into four groups for the next day’s group work and tea and snacks being served.
On day 2, a site visit was organized to Guptar Ghat. There is a temple which is in urgent need for conservation which the chapter plans to undertake. A tree plantation drive was also done. After the site visit, a presentation on the ‘youngintach’ website was given and some of HECS’ resource materials were discussed. The teachers presented their group activity after that. After an hour of discussion, they gave their presentations on the Saryu River – natural heritage group, Gulab Badi – built heritage group, Ramlila- living heritage group and Mauni, Sikhaula and Sikhauli – material heritage group. After the presentation, a felicitation ceremony was done where the teachers were given participation certificates and resource material.
HECS in collaboration with INTACH Thanjavur Chapter conducted a ‘Teacher Training Workshop’ on 21st February, 2021, at Senior Prince office, Palace, Thanjavur. All the participating teachers received certificates which were distributed by Sri. Babaji Rajah Bhonsle, Convenor INTACH Thanjavur Chapter. The following people participated in the programme- Sri. K. Swaminathan, Sri. Muthu Kumar, Sri. Ramanathan, Sri. Dr. Tamilarasan, Sri. Ganesh, Sri.Shankar, Sri. Manivannan, Sri. Vijayan, Sri. Arivanantham, Dr. Umamageswari, and school teachers.
The Goa Filmit festival was organised online on 18th February 2021. The festival was attended by 9 schools including students and teachers. The Chief Guest for the event was Mr. Shirish Desai, renowned Cinematographer.
The programme began with a welcome by Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Programme Coordinator. This was followed by a brief address by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director,HECS, INTACH. Ms. Datt introduced the Filmit Project which is currently active in 16 cities and celebrating its 13th year . She also thanked Ms. Fatima Gracias, Convenor, INTACH Goa Chapter for her support. She also shared about various HECS initiatives and thanked teachers for supporting children in doing out-of-the-box, value-creating activities. She appreciated the efforts of the students during the pandemic and encouraged them to continue making films.
Ms. Fatima Gracias gave a warm welcome to the participants. She thanked HECS for taking the initiative and organising the festival. Ms. Gracias said that she hopes students enjoyed fillmaking and have also learnt from the process.
This was followed by sharing of Filmit experience by students from each school in the form of poems/speech.
This was followed by an address from Mr. Shirish Desai. Mr. Desai appreciated the films and the varied themes they were made on. He said that each film was wonderful and showed the understanding of the topic beyond the students age.Mr. Desai encouraged students to keep their sense of aesthetic and poetry, alive in future filmmaking projects. He also told them to enjoy every moment of their filmmaking endeavours.
This was followed by the virtual awards ceremony. The aims of the project and the participation in the 2020-21 session were shared by Ms. Datt. Each school was awarded a certificate and a set of HECS publications.
The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms.Ushni Dasgupta followed by a group photograph.
Excerpts from student presentations:
Uriah Rodrigues, Fr. Agnel Multipurpose High School:
My name is Uriah and my film is about a travelling adventure. Film it was the most fun in lockdown because the idea of a kid making a film is awesome. First I thought I would not enjoy making a film but then when I started editing and filming it was very fun. I usually don’t like editing but this was fun. If I get a chance to join Filmit again I would take it.
Ranveer Sodhi, Navy Children School :
I learned how to make storyline and to show our heritage through a movie. I also learned how to shoot and compose.
Vincy Fernandes, Don Bosco High School:
The Filmit Journey
In the filmit club
we make a short film
It capture's moments
Sometimes happy
Sometimes sad
In the filmit club
They teach us many things
Like how the nature
Is better than you think
In the filmit club
we strive to get better
It also teaches us
about our beautiful culture
At this very moment
the world is in a sad state
Everyone's in quarantine
and have got stuck in their home's
But the filmit club
has taught us an important lesson
Like how our home's have treasure's far beyond what we imagined
The Kochi and Palakkad Filmit Festival was conducted online on 17th February 2021. It was attended by students and teachers from 11 schools of Kochi and 6 schools of Palakkad. Mr. Abhishek Das, HECS gave the formal introduction to the programme. It was attended by Mr. Arun Narayan, Convenor Palakkad, Babu Rajeev, Convenor and Biley Menon, Co-Convenor Kochi chapter. The Chief Guest for the day was was Dr. Sreevalsan Menon, a well known vocalist, composer and actor. Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH welcomed all students and teachers and appreciated them for their efforts. Ms. Datt briefly spoke about the Filmit programme which began in 2008 and how gradually expanded over the years to other cities. This was followed by students presentations in which students shared their filmit experience in the form of poems/speeches. Mr Sreevalsan thanked INTACH for kind and affectionate invitation. He appreciated students for churning out their story and speaking so well. The process of filmmaking might bring a revolution in coming 20-25 years. He requested INTACH to incorporate theme of agriculture as a part of film making. After watching a few films he commented that they were wonderful and the students were highly creative. After few of the films were screened, a second round of presentation by students about their experience followed. Finally, the entire sets of films were screened. Ms. Datt then talked about the FilmIt Project. She explained the aims of the project and how over the years it has grown into a network of successful events, spreading across other states with a total of 146 schools currently. The certificates and books that were to be given to the schools were shown through a help of a powerpoint presentation and a virtual awards ceremony was done. The programme ended with a vote of thanks, delivered by Ms. Geetika Gunjan followed by a commemorative group photograph.
Filmit Experience Shared by Students
I thank intach for giving us such a wonderful opportunity. We are blssd to be a part of this film festival. We thank our teachers nd family because they supported us very well. We have done four films. It was a great experience in this covid pandemic ..shooting these films. I think u guys really enjoyed it. By God's grace we completed the 4 films. Thank u everyone for ur support and once again thank you INTACH.
- Dilna, Kanikkamatha Convent Palakkad.
Good afternoon everyone. Myself Abhinav Prasanth of class 8th in the delta study, fort kochi.it was very fun working on a short film. and i understood how interesting and hard it is to make a short film. thank you.
- Abhinav Prasanth, Delta Study, Fort Kochi
Good evening Everyone, I am Antony Augustus KJ from ST. Paul's Public school. I would like to say that this film making project became a turning point in my life.
- Antony Augustus KJ, ST. Paul's Public school
The Chennai Filmit Festival was conducted online on 16th February 2021. It was attended by students and teachers from 9 schools. The Chief Guests were Mr Rohith Ashok and Ms Sumati Narayan. The programme began with a welcome by Mr Abhishek Das. Ms. Purnima Datt welcomed all students and teachers and appreciated them for their efforts. Ms. Datt briefly spoke about the Filmit programme. This was followed by students’ presentations in which they shared their filmit experience in the form of poems/speeches. This was followed by screening of the best films from all over the country. Mr Rohith, addressed the students about his overwhelming experience of watching the films made by students and how he felt inspired. He congratulated the students and greeted INTACH for taking up such an incredible work. He shared key points on the importance of visual medium and sound to make an effective film- used for conveying a message in short time. Dr Sumati Narayan, in her address, spoke about the importance of culture and heritage being imparted to children at young age. She discussed about significance of the individual in choosing what to see, and its significance in the real life. She was amazed to see how technology has enabled young children so much and their demonstration of cultural values. It was a priceless learning experience. A virtual awards ceremony was done next. Each school was awarded a certificate and HECS publications. Trophies for overall best films were also announced. The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Mr Abhishek Das followed by a commemorative group photograph. Some of the students’ experiences are shared below.
We, should be proud about our heritage as Indians. However, this is possible only if there is cultural awareness. Our awareness and knowledge increase only when they are spread to everyone. In this modernized world, the most robust form of achieving this is to make movies as everyone prefers visuals. This is exactly what the FILMIT Contest or rather experience means, to me. Again, it was a long and never-ending journey in terms of learning. I got to learn new shots and angles. Not only that, I got to work with a lot of other editing softwares. The best part is that we, as a school have made around 16 movies!! My special thanks to Dr.Suresh Sir and Abhishek Sir for have spearheaded the whole event I would also like to thank Sudeshna Mam and Vrindha Mam for have guided us throughout this voyage. And, not to forget, my humble Pranams to INTACH !!
- Shravan A, 7, PSBB Millennium School, Gerugambakkam Branch
Good afternoon to one and all present here, I am Sanvi Baranwal of class VIII C from the school Sir Sivaswami Kalalaya. Intach introduced to us certain rules and etiquettes to be followed while shooting a video. It has also taught us various tricks like camera angles which help us make the video or movie more effective and audience reaching. Second of all Intach has taught us about new technologies that include editing, using various apps for various effects etc. We also learnt how to make good video clips using the limited number of things that we had at home during the lockdown. We also had fun doing these short films and exploring about various topics while we were locked up in the lockdown. Me and my partner Savyasachi Mogili had chosen 3 topics - Heritage from home, pets and nature. These topics helped us realize, understand, analyse and learn these topics in detail. I would like to thank Intach very much for helping us out in so many ways and discovering many things. I would also like to thank my social science teacher Sudha Rani mam for giving me and my friend this opportunity to participate in this filmit competition. Once again thank you mam and thank you Intach
- Sanvi Baranwal, VIII C, Sir Sivaswami Kalalaya
I got mad of this lockdown Remember taking snaps with cheese,
But I had been with frown,
This time the project was different;
though It gave me a chance to step out my toe,
I wore my mask, filmed some clips with my little lens,
And also helped to make a film for my other friends!
Saw a place, needed a clip there, so i started moving,
Before a person stood there and i remembered social distancing!
Editing all the clips inside the 4 walls....
And in between: attending video calls.
Even though lockdown took our slot,
With this different experience, l enjoyed a lot
- S.Ganesh, Sri Sankara Vidhashramam, Thiruvanmiyur
Approx 90 students
Approx 20 teachers
10 schools
The Filmit Festival started with a welcome by Ms. Sanjoli Mathur. She spoke to the students about how the project has been successful even in these difficult times. This was followed by an address by Ms. Purnima Datt. She fondly spoke about events and workshops conducted in Hyderabad and how they have always been eventful. She thanked Ms. Anupama Reddy for her enthusiasm and support in all programmes, and for standing up with HECS for everything. She gave an introduction to HECS and the Filmit project. SShe thanked the teachers, who decided to think out of the box, especially during these times, who have stood by our project and continued to encourage the students to make such wonderful films.
Ms. Sanjoli Mathur then called students from each participating school and asked them to share their experience working on this project. We also showcased all the best films from across the country that had been made this year.
After the screening and the presentations by the students, Ms. Darshani addressed the students. She said that this event reminded her of her school days and how she participated in competitions as a student. She appreciated how the films had something to offer to everyone – some took to the story, some to the technical aspects, etc. Ms. Anuradha Reddy said that the most valuable experience is watching young people grow, and how they bring us together. She said that as children have been indoors, without their contemporaries, they have looked indoors, learnt from their elder generation – their values and stories. This was followed by a virtual award ceremony. Ms. Sanjoli Mathur announced the winners of overall trophies.
Ms. Ushni Dasgupta presented the vote of thanks, followed by a group photograph.
THE Jaipur FILMIT Festival was held through an online platform on 12th February, 2021. The programme was organised and conducted by Heritage and Communication Service Division of INTACH Delhi.
The programme was attended by round about 60 students and teachers from 11 schools of Jaipur. Ms DharmendraKanwar, Convenor of INTACH Jaipur Chapter gave unparalleled contribution in organising the event though she could not attend it, due to ill health. The Chief Guest for the event was journalist and photographer, Ms Swati Vashishth, former chief of CNN-IBN’s Rajasthan Bureau.
The event started off with the introduction given by Ms Vaishnavi (HECS representative), followed by welcoming of all the participants and the Chief Guest.
Ms Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH then briefly talked about the FilmIt Project. She expressed about how the idea of FilmIt was conceived in the year 2008 from Delhi, and subsequentlyover the years it has grown into a network of successful events, spreading across other states with a total of 146 schools currently. She congratulated all the students for their participation and expressed her appreciation for making excellent films despite the adverse situation created by pandemic.
After that students were given time to share their experience, while making the film for the FilmItproject in the form of speeches and poetry. This was followed by presentation of overall best films made by students across India.
The Chief Guest, Ms Swati Vashishtha, also shared what an overwhelming experience she had while listening to the experiences of students and watching their films. She appreciated the heart-warming stories of the students and also shared a few tips on filmmaking. Ms Swatithanked INTACH for the invitation.<
The programme concluded with the virtual award ceremony and a group photograph. Each school was awarded with certificates and trophies and HECS publications.The programme was drawn to a close by vote of thanks, delivered by GeetikaGunjan.
The festival was attended by 58 students and 13 teachers of 9 schools
Ms. Ushni Dasgupta extended awarm welcome to all participants, and congratulated them on the success of the Filmit Project, despite the circumstances of the pandemic. She also welcomed and introduced the Chief Guest, eminent film-maker Mr. Shivendra Singh Dungarpur.Following this, Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH, briefly introduced the Filmit Project and thanked all participating schools, especially teachers, for their proactive participation in such a difficult year. She also discussed the significance of the Filmit Project, which began in 2008with the support of Helen Hamlyn Trust in Delhi and eventually spread to other cities.
Mr. Dungarpur briefly shared that he looked forward to seeing all films. Given the neglect shown to heritage, despite its importance, over the years, he hoped that the students could bring it back to life with their films.
Ms. Ushni Dasguptathen conducted the Festival, and invited student representatives from all participating schools to share their Filmit experience. The student presentations were followed by the screening of some of the Best Films submitted from all across the country.
After all the presentations and film screening, Mr. Dungarpur addressed the students. Hediscussed the evolution of filmmaking and how film shooting had become easier and cost effective with time. Mr. Dungarpur emphasized on theimportance of connecting with the subject that is being shot and how close-ups could be used in filmmaking. He spoke about the power of films, and how it was a visual language and experience. He discussed, in detail, the films that were screened and gave valuable feedback to the students. Mr. Dungarpur concluded by sharing that he was happy to see such wonderful films.
The chief guest’s address was followed by the virtual awards ceremony.Students were also shown the books and certificates they would be receiving, as well as the trophies for the Overall Best Film Awards.
The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms.Sanjoli Mathur, followed by a group photograph.
Filmit experiences shared by students:
Our Journey:
It started with a meeting and we were informed
There was a festival coming and we all had to perform
We got our teams and and topics to start
It was all in a hurry and I couldn’t understand a part!
Our team got together and planned a meeting
But no one was coming and neither was anyone sitting
Our deadline came closer so we had to start
but it was a pity that no one knew their part!
We got together, made a script,
finished the shoot in two days and edited the clip
It was about a family recipe one of us made,
It turned out so good I wish I could taste
I had no hope in this team before and everyone was at rest
but the way we came together I was very sure we did our best
We went through alot and it unforgettable
but this a lesson of my life and it is memorable
- Riddhi Parmar, Smt. RamdeviSobhraj Bajaj Arya Vidya Mandir, Juhu
Hello Everyone,
My name is Atishaya Gupta and I am from Grade 7th B in Podar International School. For this event, I made a short video on Ganpati coming to my home after almost 12 years. I submitted this video under Theme 3 - Family Stories
I would like take this opportunity to thank my school and my principal for short listing me for such a golden opportunity. I am truly very grateful to everyone for giving me this stage to showcase my skills in video making. I would also like to thank Komal Ma’am for guiding me throughout the process. I would also like to thank my family for helping me throughout the process.
Making a video is a challenging process but thanks to the FILMIT workshop that I attended it got easier. My viewpoint on filming and editing a video completely changed. I learnt about how one should organise the shots / scenes before filming and then go ahead. I also learnt on how to take different shots to make the video visually attractive.
Editing is always my favourite part of making the video
- Atishaya Gupta, Podar International School (IB & Cambridge International)
The filmit workshop was a new experience for me. When we were explained our assignments,I was not sure how to do it considering the lockdown conditions. But the topics were quite interesting and I decided to try them out. During the making of the video, I realised how observant and careful I needed to be. I actually learnt a few new facts about my pets on which i made my video. I also learnt to be patient as I needed quite a bit of raw footage to get a good video. To sum it up, it was a fun learning experience. I would like to thank the filmit team and our teachers, for this chance. They were ready to help at any time of the day. So, thank you for this enriching opportunity
- Joel Thomas, The Somaiya School
An online College Heritage Volunteer Workshop was organized in collaboration with the INTACH Nagpur Chapter for Tulsiramji Gaikwad-Patil College of Architecture on 12th February 2020. The workshop was attended by over 70 participants including students, faculty members, INTACH Nagpur Chapter members and HECS team.
The programme began with an Introduction by Ms. Prachi Paunikar followed by a welcome address by Ms. Vandana Khante, Principal of Tulsiramji Gaikwad-Patil College of Architecture. Ms. Khante provided a brief introduction to the college and its association with INTACH. She also shared that the workshop was organized to understand the importance of heritage, and how architecture can help in the conservation of heritage structures.
Ms. Paunikar gave a brief introduction to INTACH. This was followed by a brief address by Dr. Rathod who shared with the participants the activities of the chapter and encouraged students to show their enthusiasm towards heritage conservation and apply their theoretical lessons practically. Dr. Rathod thanked HECS team for its pan-Indian project to create awareness about heritage.
Ms. Ramani further shared the activities being undertaken by INTACH Nagpur Chapter in detail.
The first session was about INTACH and Indian Heritage. Ms. Datt shared about INTACH and the activities undertaken. She shared that education is one of the primary objectives of INTACH and it is at the heart of every endeavor. Through an illustrated presentation Ms. Datt discussed the various kinds of heritage of India at length. Ms. Datt also highlighted the activities that can be undertaken by students to preserve our heritage.
The second session was conducted by Ms. Nitika Ramani on Nagpur and its heritage. Ms. Ramani discussed at length the heritage of Nagpur right from its establishment upto the modern period. The main topics discussed were the planning of the city, the various dynasties that ruled the city, architecture of significant buildings of the city, the folk culture of Nagpur and the ways of preserving it.
The third session was by HECS team on the topic of Volunteerism and how to promote heritage in institutions. Ms. Datt talked about the importance of volunteerism which is an essential and an on-site job experience and training, and how such initiatives can be taken up in college spaces. She also shared about the volunteer training workshops conducted by INTACH all across the country.
Mr. Abhishek Das, Sr. Programme Coordinator, HECS discussed the importance of heritage walks and how heritage can be promoted in one’s educational institution through various means. Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Programme Coordinator, HECS discussed the online resources by HECS such as Young INTACH website and Young INTACH Youtube Channel. Ms. Sanjoli Mathur discussed the social media pages of INTACH, and the initiatives undertaken.
The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Nitika Ramani.
Filmit is a multi- cultural project funded by Helen Hamlyn Trust (UK). The project aims at nurturing cultural understanding, care and concern amongst school children through the exciting experience of making films. INTACH Filmit Delhi Festival was held virtually on 10th February 2021. Over 30 schools of the National Capital Region participated in the project. Our school was awarded in the following category: Best Animation Film- ‘Virtual Tour-Qutub Complex’ made by Sai Shrishti Hariharan of class VII.
The Delhi Filmit Festival was conducted on 10th February 2021. The festival was held in two sessions with a total of 30 schools participating.
The Chief Guest for Session 1 was Dr. Mike Pandey, renowned wildlife filmmaker and Mr. Vinod Sreedhar, Music composer and filmmakER. Mr. Kujeet Singh, Actor, Founder and Creative Director of Atelier Theatre was the chief guest for Session 2.
Session 1
The programme began with a welcome by Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Programme Coordinator, HECS. This was followed by a brief introduction to Filmit programme by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH. Ms. Datt appreciated the hard work of students and teachers and the enthusiasm they showed even during the pandemic. This year the programme was held online entirely.
This was followed by student presentations wherein students from each school shared their Filmit experience through the medium of songs/videos/poems/speeches. Some of the best films from all over the country were also shown to the participants.
Dr. Mike Pandey, then addressed the students. He appreciated the diversity of topics that the films had been made on and also the different methods used. He congratulated them on putting forward good stories at such an young age. Dr. Pandey also shared his experience as a wildlife filmmaker and about the various important species of India.
Mr. Vinod Sreedhar appreciated the efforts of students during the pandemic and using limited resources and putting forward beautiful stories on varied topics.
This was followed by a virtual awards ceremony. Each school was awarded certificates and trophies and also HECS publications.
Session 2
The programme began with a welcome by Ms. SanjoliMathur, Programme Coordinator, HECS. This was followed by a brief introduction to Filmit programme by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH. Ms. Datt appreciated the hard work of students and teachers and the enthusiasm they showed even during the pandemic. This year the programme was held online entirely.
Maj. Gen. (Retd.) L.K. Gupta, Chairman, INTACH also addressed the participants. He shared that through heritage one imbibes wisdom and hoped that students will learn about their heritage through this programme and wished them all the best.
This was followed by student presentations wherein students from each school shared their Filmit experience through the medium of songs/videos/poems/speeches. Some of the best films from all over the country were also shown to the participants.
Mr. Kuljeet Singh, then addressed the students. He shared that heritage is often considered to be old and not useful, however without understanding the past one cannot think about the future. Mr. Singh appreciated the films and congratulated the students.and HECS for conducting the programme.
This was followed by a virtual awards ceremony. Each school was awarded certificates and trophies and also HECS publications.
The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Vaishnavi Singh.
INTACH HECS organized the Kolkata Filmit Festival on 9th February in collaboration with INTACH Kolkata Chapter through an online platform. 12 schools from across the city participated. The programme began with a welcome by Mr. Abhishek Das, HECS followed by a brief introduction to Filmit by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH. Ms. Datt gave a brief outline about the project and appreciated the effort of students and teachers in making the films. The workshops and festivals were held online. Mr. B.D. Sharma, IPS Officer was invited as the Chief Guest. Mr. Sharma shared his experience as a police officer and also shared about the culture therapy initiative for prisoners. This was followed by student presentations where students from each school shared their experience through the medium of songs/poems/speeches. Some of the films from across the country were also screened. This was followed by the virtual awards ceremony. The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Ushni Dasgupta. Some of the experiences are shared below.
Students Experiences:
Good afternoon everyone. Participating in Intach has really been a wonderful experience for my team at Modern High School for Girls. The workshop and the video creation has given us some much needed hands on experience and has enabled us to explore and nurture our imaginations and creativity. Keeping that in mind I would like to share this poem by Jade Stone entitled 'Come with me'.
COME WITH ME -by Jade Stone
Come with me,
Let’s take a flight,
We can go in the morning,
Or in the middle of the night.
The destination is yours,
Just close your eyes,
The pleasure will be mine,
To take you to that place and time.
- Shivani Patodia_Modern High School for Girls
A very good afternoon to the august members present here. My name is Shaivi Kumar and I am a student of Sri Sri Academy studying in class VII. It is a privilege to be a part of this esteemed gathering and recite a poem which I have crafted to pay a tribute to a torch-bearing organization of our society- INTACH.
The Show Must Go On!
It was almost a year ago,
When we had gone into confinement.
But, the indomitable spirit of INTACH and its members,
Brought in a sense of refinement.
The unimaginable monotony,
Was broken by the FILMIT Workshop.
An initiative of INTACH, Which was, for us, almost like a chirotony.
During a period when people thought only of sanitizers, masks and soaps:
Elements that defined that period for us,
INTACH came up with this wonderful idea of educating children virtually.
Our young minds were ignited with a radiant ray of hope.
A session on film-making,
Which was absolutely enriching.
A session which taught us about actors, lenses, frames and shots;
Innumerable tips on the art of film-making,
A session which left us in complete awe.
Let us rise to tender a standing ovation to INTACH,
For proving once again, That the show must go on!
-Shaivi Kumar, Sri Sri Academy, VII D
The Ahmedabad and Vadodara FilmIt Festival was held through an online platform on the 8th of February, 2021. 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, INTACH Vadodara Chapter and Mr. Pavan Bakeri Convener, INTACH Ahmedabad Chapter. The programme was attended by around 80 participants including students and teachers from 4 schools from Vadodara and 8 schools from Ahmedabad, Surat and Jamnagar. The chief guest for the festival was Dr. Arjun Singh Mehta, who is an Environmentalist, an Entrepreneur and a Short Film Maker based at Baroda. INTACH Member Secretary Dr. C. T. Misra also graced the occasion.
The festival started off with an introduction by Ms. Christina Shangne (HECS representative) which was then followed by a short welcome address by Mr. Sanjeev Joshi who thanked the entire team of HECS INTACH for keeping up the spirit and working diligently in difficult times and appreciated the fact that despite the pandemic, INTACH was able to organise the festival.
Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH then talked about the FilmIt Project. She talked about how the idea of FilmIt was conceived in the year 2008, and how it has grown into a network of successful events, spreading across other states with a total of 146 schools currently. She congratulated all the students for their participation and expressed her appreciation for making excellent films despite the pandemic.
INTACH Member Secretary Dr. C T Misra also congratulated all the students for their efforts and asked them to be creative at home and indulge in activities to understand heritage and culture. Mr. Pavan Bakeri from the Ahmedabad chapter talked about the need to sensitize children towards the heritage in order to preserve it for the coming generations. He then introduced the chief guest Dr. Arjun Singh Mehta. Then short presentations were presented by the students about their experience of film making through the Filmit India project through poetry and speeches. This was followed by the screening of the overall Best Films.
The chief guest, Mr. Arjun Mehta also shared that it was an absolutely wonderful experience to watch films. He shared that the platform has become the best medium of connecting and mediating and it was good to see children getting involved. The art of expression and creativity was beautifully portrayed by the children.
The festival concluded with the announcement of the awards and prizes won by the students and a group photograph.
The Filmit Festival was organized on 5th February 2021 for schools of Chandigarh and Ambala. Over 70 students and teachers from 10 schools were part of the event.
The programme began with a welcome by Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Programme Coordinator, HECS. Ms. Purnima Datt gave a brief introduction to Filmit programme. She shared the journey of the programme since its initiation in 2008. This year the programme was held online entirely. Ms. Datt appreciated and thanked all students and teachers for their efforts in these difficult times.
Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH then talked about the FilmIt Project. She talked about how the idea of FilmIt was conceived in the year 2008, and how it has grown into a network of successful events, spreading across other states with a total of 146 schools currently. She congratulated all the students for their participation and expressed her appreciation for making excellent films despite the pandemic.
Mr. Virinder Kapoor, Convenor, INTACH Chandigarh Chapter, addressed the students and gave a few words of encouragement. Col. R.D. Singh, Convenor, INTACH Ambala Chapter also appreciated the efforts of students and wished them all the best for the future.
This was followed by presentations by students on their Filmit Experience. Students from each school shared their experience through the medium of songs, poems and speeches.
Best films from all over the country were also screened. This was followed by the virtual awards ceremony. Each school was awarded with certificates and trophies and HECS publications. The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Christina Shangne, Programme Coordinator, HECS.
Ms. Sanjoli Mathur, welcomed all participants and congratulated them on making this year’s Filmit a success, despite the pandemic. This was followed by a brief introduction to Filmit by Ms. Purnima Datt, Prinicipal Director, HECS, INTACH, who thanked the Varanasi Chapter for their support in all HECS programmes. She spoke about the importance of the Filmit programme. It began in 2008, with the support of Helen Hamlyn Trust in Delhi and spread to other cities eventually.
Mr. Ashok Kapoor, Convenor, Varanasi addressed the students and shared his experience of being part of INTACH. He thanked HECS for its support in all initiatives taken by the Chapter.
Ms. Sanjoli Mathur, then introduced the chief guest, Mr. Vyomesh Shukla. She then conducted the Festival. This was followed by a round of presentations by students on their Filmit experience. The participants were also shown the Best Films from all over the country.
The Chairman, Maj. Gen. (Retd.) L.K. Gupta then encouraged the students. He said that our heritage imparts wisdom and we must cherish it and that education through such creative mediums is as important as academics.
After all the presentations, Mr. Shukla spoke to the students. He said that creativity requires patience; it is not an easy task. He encouraged the students to learn new technology to stay creative and keep growing and said the films changed my perspective on heritage. Mr. Shukla shared his views on the films made by the students and discussed them in detail.
Following this was the virtual awards ceremony. Students were also shown the books and certificates they'll be receiving, as well as the trophies for the Overall Best Film Awards.
The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Geetika Gunjan, followed by a group photograph.
Filmit experiences shared by students:
In the darkness , black and hazy and dim
Sat we alone , unhappy to the brim
Hearts full of longing , minds itching to create
Something which would wipe boredom right off the slate
Then came HECS with Filmit , setting our world alight
And so we set to work , full of hope and might
Thinking we knew all there was , but finding so much more to learn
Like a shot from a scene - how to discern ?
Firstly , we explored the wrongs done to trees
Which , when convenient , we prayed to and when not , from the environment we'd seized
Improvement looked little even when all the harms had been disguised
Guilt eating at us , for our grave errors we apologised
Then all the legendary ghats of Varanasi we set to explore
Excitedly checking nooks and crannies for all the epic secrets they bore
Understanding the heritage and culture of our city - so deep
Made us feel almost as if we had taken in time a leap
As the marvelous wonders of Maharashtra we began to scout
Our theories on dear Benares's superiority began to
browse and inturn make everyone feel proud!
There's so much to shoot in my house
I got this idea when I was sitting and thinking on my couch!
- The Aryan International School
There's so much to shoot in my house
I got this idea when I was sitting and thinking on my couch,
The flower pot on the table top and that very used floor cleaning mop,
The outstanding showpiece and that utopian masterpiece,
I can shoot my ceremonial deeds
I can shoot what my turtle feeds.
There's so much to shoot in my house
I got this idea when I was sitting and thinking on my couch,
The picture wall at my house and that monstrous mouse,
How my mother cooks in the kitchen and what's down there hidden.
Our wall hung clock and our precious lock.
There's so much to shoot in my house
I got this idea when I was sitting and thinking on my couch,
And finally I made Film It movie on my terrace garden , the flowers which we used to make garland
My brother raghav encouraged gardening ad his hobby,and he has also occupied our lobby.
He has grown a lot of plants and because of it he gets compliment from our aunts.
These all I encountered because of shooting movie at my house
Thanks to INTACH film it who made me
- Vidhi Shukla (W.H Smith Memorial School) :
Our theories on dear Benares's superiority began to reroute
As this film takes one all the way from a puran poli making session to the traditional nath
Not to forget the Peshwa's fortifications and his precious raths
Then we landed upon Kawa , a beverage from Kashmir
Proclaimed as the best by many an experienced seer
Transported we were to beautiful valleys with our hands around this drink
Into more pleasing fantasies , our brain doesn't sink
Last but not the least , we went for Kerala on the Malabar coast
With attractions so many , of which to boast
Be it nature's bounty or food or fest
We discovered the state which outruns them all , one of the best
Standing at the end of this journey , with the nostalgia so extreme
I remember how this reality we have made was once just a dream
With teachings and teamspirit which helped us soar so high
We bid Filmit 2020 the sweetest of all goodbyes
- Gunjan Singh
Good afternoon and jai hind to all the teachers , friends and organisers . I am Aanya Agrawal from DPS varanasi and me and Pahal would love to share our experience of film it. It was an amazing and a totally new experience . I never thought that we ll be making movies some day . All the topics provided were wonderful and i really enjoyed making films on them . As we are connected in a virtual mode due to lockdown , it thought it was difficult making movie but Kajal maam , and my family members made it possible . My mother and grandfather helped me in my movie and I got to know alot about my culture and personal heritage . Thank you so much everyone for giving me this chance to be a part of film it .
- AANYA AGRAWAL DPS VARANASI :
A very good afternoon to everyone present here.
Today I Pahal Rupani feel really happy that I am able to share my journey of Film it with all of you.
Film it for me has been a stage which throughout has helped me to describe my thoughts and keep my point.
Not only this filmit according to me is a complete stage that provides you a different way of seeing the world as well helps young budding artists like us become more creative and better thinkers for life.
Also I would like to add on that film it also taught us that impossible is nothing as even being so far from each other wr all could collaborate and make the movies successfully.
Movies,I would also want to add on something for the movies that wr have created through the time.
In all the movies we had tried to show how important togetherness is and even above then that how important our nature and the natural resources our to us.
Also without the help of our collaborators and of course the support of our family members, it wouldn't be possible.
At the end I would want to say thank you to the ones who have listened us without judgement,spoken without prejudice, helped us without entitlement, understood without pretension and helped us throughout without conditions.
Once again a big thank you to such a great stage
- Pahal Rupani, DPS, Varanasi
We chose to create videos about the Heritage of Varanasi because we really want to preserve it.
We all know that Varanasi is older than history older than traditions and even older than the legends and we Sunbeams want to preserve and protect our heritage as it's the most important aspect out of everything. It is our duty as active citizens of our country.
Movies,I would also want to add on something for the movies that wr have created through the time.
We made two movies first one was About Saving the Ganges, as Varanasi exists only because of the Holy Ganges. Second movie was about the Handloom of Varanasi, the famous Banarasi Silk Saree.
I'm so happy that I got a chance to speak my heart out on such an amazing platform. I thank all my teachers for no giving me this golden opportunity. Last but not least, we hope that our movies would instill a hope in saving our Heritage and make India Proud
- Sudeeksha Pandey, Sunbeam Bhagwanpur
INTACH celebrated its 37th Foundation Day on 27th January, 2021 at the central office, New Delhi. On this special day, the entire office gathered together for a small ceremony which was chaired by Mrs. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH. Member Secretary INTACH, Dr. (Mrs) CT Misra and Chairman INTACH, Maj. Gen. (Retd) L. K. Gupta gave a short speech on the occasion. They expressed their thanks to all for all of their hard work and dedication shown especially during the times of the pandemic and that INTACH as an organisation has tried its best to take care of every needs of its employees. Special thanks was also given to the maintenance staff for carrying out their duties with sincerity and commitment during the lockdown. The day gave a chance for the entire INTACH family to reflect not only the works of the organisation and its founders, but also on the significant developments the organisation has done since its inception.
There were quite a few publications that were released from the department of HECS, Natural Heritage, Heritage Academy, Intangible Cultural Heritage, Art and Material Heritage. Following are some of the books that was released-
1. My Little Book on Andaman and Nicobar Islands
2. Young INTACH Anniversary Issue- Compilation of 15 years of Young INTACH Newsletter
3. Young INTACH Newsletter ‘Monkey Tales’- January to March, 2021 issue
4. INTACH Calendar
5. INTACH Journal of Heritage Studies Volume 4, Issue 1
6. Heritage Awards 2017- Excellence in Documentation of Unprotected Heritage
7. Meghalaya CookBook
The books were released by Member Secretary INTACH, Dr. (Mrs) CT Misra and Chairman INTACH, Maj. Gen. (Retd) L. K. Gupta. The celebration ended with a short poem on INTACH logo, read out by Mrs. Purnima Datt, then followed by the HECS pledge which was joined by all present.
An online zoom meeting on ‘Nature in Danger’ awareness programme was conducted in collaboration with HECS and INTACH Thanjavur Chapter on 26 January,.2021. The resource person for the session was Dr. Rammanohar, secretary, Clean Thanjavur Movement (CTM) & Life members Mr. Selvaraj, Mr. Ramanathan Er. Rajendran, Mrs. Vijayalakshmi, Mr. Muthukumar, Mr. Manivannan participated & guided the students. K. Swaminathan, Heritage Clubs coordinator organised it. We received a very good response. 50 students eagerly participated in the webinar. Details of the project were explained to the students. Students interacted & asked related questions. Another meeting to clarify their doubts is planned on 06.02.21.
The Chapter also received the participating certificates for INTACH hHeritage Quiz competition. School Principal Mr. Balasubramaniam received Gandhi 150 Competition certificates from K. Swaminathan, co-ordinator Heritage Clubs, Intach Thanjavur. Intach members also observed World Mother Tongue Day and took an oath.
On 25th January 2021 a Heritage Club Awareness session was held with the educators of JBNS Society, Faizabad, Ayodhya. Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, Heritage Education and Communication Service, INTACH conducted the session.
The participants were given a warm welcome by Ms. Datt and were shown the INTACH film and were introduced to the work done by INTACH. This was followed by a presentation from Ms. Datt on Heritage Education and its importance and How to set up Heritage Clubs. Ms. Datt shared how education is at the heart of every endeavor of INTACH. The importance of heritage education, ways of incorporating it into the curriculum were also discussed. The process of setting up of heritage clubs, number of members, and kinds of activities that could be conducted were discussed at length.
The session concluded with an interactive Q&A session where the speaker addressed queries by the teachers.
The programme concluded with a brief address by Mr. Ashok Kapoor, Convenor, Varanasi Chapter. Mr. Kapoor thanked HECS for their initiatives and shared about the activities planned for the future.
The Nature in Danger illustrated talk and discussion was held on 21st and 22nd January 2021 through the online platform ‘Zoom’ for schools in Delhi. The programme began with an introduction by Abhishek Das, HECS. Ms. Purnima Datt, in her address welcomed the students and teachers and spoke about the national programmes that HECS has been conducting over the years. She explained in brief about the current year’s competition and how it will be different than previous years as this time it would be in the form of a project. Ms. Sanjoli Mathur introduced Ms. Rachel Ann Kerr, the resource person from CHINTAN, an NGO dedicated to environmental conservation and sustainability.
Rachel, had an interactive session with the students. Her talk focused mainly on plastic use. She began by asking if the there been an increase in the use of plastic. Advantages and reasons for the increased use of plastic were discussed. Students responded by saying that there is a lack of alternatives, and plastic is cheaper, durable, handy, lightweight, mouldable, can be used in any shape and size, therefore used in a lot of products, laptop, cling wrap, etc. She asked students what biodegradable means, and why plastics are not biodegradable. She then went on to explain how plastics cannot breakdown even over years. Plastics are made from fossil fuels and fossil fuels take millions of years to me made. She mentioned that almost half of all plastics are single use, which means they are - use and throw and can't be recycled. Examples include, straws, containers, bags, boxes, etc. She stated a very important point by saying that the reason they are not recycled is because they are not collected to be recycled later. She spoke about the importance of segregation of waste right at home. A local dump is where all waste from homes are kept. By law, we are all supposed to segregate waste from home, and then at the dump, they are to be hyper segregated. But at local dumps, animals and birds end up eating plastics, which they cannot digest and this leads to illness and death. Therefore, it is important to segregate wasteOur landfills are already functioning beyond their capacity and there have been cases when they have collapsed and issues like - spontaneous fires, toxic air pollution, pollution of groundwater take place.
She showed powerful images of a tortoise which grew up with a plastic bottle holder stuck around its shell, a picture of a bird, with plastic bottle caps inside its stomach. She said that we must not get disheartened and not have a sad attitude, but be focused and determined.
She asked students to remember the 5 R's: Refuse plastic bags, straws, etc. reduce plastic, in case you cannot refuse, reuse, in case you cannot reduce, repurpose things that have been used enough and recycle, which should be the final option, as it uses a lot of energy, time, etc. The students took a pledge to try their best to make a change to not use single use plastics.
This extremely interesting and informative session was followed by a session by the HECS team where the guidelines of the competition were explained and various topics with the help of examples were explained. This was followed by a question-and-answer session. The workshop came to an end by a vote of thanks by Geetika Gunjan and a virtual group photograph.
The Heritage Education and Communication Service Division of INTACH launched its new national competition for the schools of Delhi and Noida. The competition for this year focuses on documentation of efforts done to save natural heritage, the project report has to be an individual student’s efforts in identifying the threats to natural heritage at the local level and making efforts towards its conservation.
The objective of the webinar was to explain to the students about the competition, its various rules and regulation, a discussion of topics was also undertaken. The webinar also saw two experts in the field of natural heritage and biodiversity conservation interacting with the students. 68 students from 17 schools of the city along with their teachers participated in the meeting.
The programme started with Mr. Abhishek Das, (HECS Representative) welcoming all the students and teachers to the webinar and briefly introduced the speakers.
Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director then addressing the students, welcomed all the teachers and students, she then spoke to them about the national programmes of INTACH and its outreach over the years, she then moved on to explaining as to why this year’s competition is focused on “nature” and how nature has acquired a central space in our day to day lives in the pandemic induced lockdown. She then invited Dr. Manu Bhatnagar, Principal Director, Natural Heritage Division of INTACH to address the students.
Dr. Bhatnagar welcomed all the students and expressed his happiness over being part of the initiative, he explained to the students the two main parts of his address and began his sharing with a quote from Pope Francis on lessons humans can learn from nature. His session on Bio- Mimicry was focused on the things humans can learn from nature as its evolution over a period of time has enabled man to learn a lot of things from it and provides outstanding solutions to problems of human kind. His talk was interspersed with numerous examples from nature, for instance – termite hill, woodpecker’s pressure when hitting the tree’s bark and the learning’s humans have already adapted lessons from their interactions with different aspects of nature such as birds, animals, shark skin, etc.
Dr. Faiyaz Khudsar, addressing the students welcomed all participants to the webinar. He thanked Dr. Bhatnagar for his engaging talk and spoke of the lessons he has learnt in his professional career in his interactions with nature. He also shared with students how as a child he was a keen observer and expressed his pleasure on being invited to be speaking to the students. He also shared with students the numerous natural experiences he observed during the lockdown.
His session comprised of numerous anecdotes and viewpoints that he shared with the students, for instance he shared the responses he got when he asked people from different walks of life about what is a river? He shared with the students the responses he got and explained the responses to the students in a very interesting manner. He spoke of the River Yamuna and its condition in Delhi and said that Delhi’s existence is only possible because of two things – which are the River Aravali and the Yamuna River.
This was then followed by a presentation cum discussion on the “Nature in Danger” by the Heritage Education and Communication Service Division. Ms. Datt firstly explained the students about the about and the general guidelines of the competition. She also explained to the students the various components of the project report.
Ms. Teresa and Mr. Abhishek then explained respectively, the various topics of the project by means of giving examples via a power point presentation. The presentation was designed to make clear the different topics of the project report.
Ms. Madhura Rathod, Co-Convenor, Nagpur Chapter expressed her happiness about the efforts put in by students. Ms. Rathod said that reaching upto National levels was also an achievement. She also thanked INTACH and its programmes helping young minds getting on such platforms and encouraging them to discover their heritage.
The session was then opened to question and answers and teachers and students were able to ask their doubts regarding the project and other such details. The session ended with a Vote of Thanks and a Group Photograph.
Photographs
A Teacher Training Webinar Workshop was organised by HECS INTACH in collaboration with INTACH Gurugram Chapter on 12th January, 2021 for various schools of Gurugram. The programme was attended by around 80 participants comprising School teachers, members of INTACH Gurugram Chapter and the HECS team. The resource person for the session was Major Atul Dev, Convenor, INTACH Gurugram Chapter. The workshop started off welcoming all the participants and an introduction by Mrs. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS INTACH and Major Atul Dev about INTACH and the workshop, which was then followed by the screening of the INTACH Film.
The first session of the workshop was taken over by Mrs. Purnima Datt, who gave an elaborate presentation of the heritage of India covering all the four aspects of Heritage- Build, Natural, Material and Living Heritage. She also shared about the work of INTACH and the importance of heritage education in schools and on the role of young students in taking this forward to preserve and protect our heritage.
In the next segment, the resource person Major Atul Dev spoke about Gurugram’s tangible and intangible heritage. He spoke in detail through a PowerPoint presentation about the various interesting build heritage of Gurgaon and the surrounding areas. Talking about the important places in Gurugram, he told the participants that the school can adopt the monuments with the help of the chapter and that the schools can always reach out to the chapter for any heritage walks. He also expressed how the young people have to value their historic environment and think about what will happen in future, that it is time to take monuments out of their history books and make them a part of their everyday life. The resource person also shared the various works taken by the chapter.
Post this session,a talk on ‘Establishing Heritage Clubs and HECS Educational Resources (Online & Publications) was presented by Ms. Purnima Datt and the INTACH HECS Team. Ms. Purnima shared the three important components of heritage education- Cultural history, critical judgement and action and creative expression. Ms. Datt spoke about the importance of heritage education and 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 heritage clubs and the activities that could be organised for them were also discussed. Information regarding HECS publications was also shared with the participants. Mr. Abhishek Das spoke about experiential learning methods such as Heritage Walks and Museum visits and their benefit for students. He also shared about the importance of interactions with experts of various fields for students and about the Filmit project. Ms. Christina Shangne then spoke about the Young INTACH website which serves as an important educational resource. Ms. Geetika Gunjan spoke about the Multimedia resources, Young INTACH YouTube channel and the monthly e-newsletters. Ms. Sanjoli Mathur spoke about the social media initiatives. Ms. Teresa Walter shared in brief about the national programmes such as art awareness workshops, essay and painting competitions, India Heritage Quiz etc.
The session concluded with an interactive Q&A session, vote of thanks by Ms. Ruchi Rai, member of INTACH Gurugram Chapter, followed by a group photograph.
The INTACH Heritage Quiz 2020 was conducted online via webinars over 45 cities of the country. After National Eliminator Rounds which was conducted in the month of December 2021, for qualifying top teams of each city, 2 semi finalists were selected from 9 eliminator rounds. These semifinalists were then divided in groups based on a randomizer and were invited to participate in the semi-final. The four semi finalist teams who won their respective semi finals proceeded to the national finals. The following teams qualified in the finals - Hollotoli School,Dimapur, Shri Satya Sai Vidyalaya, Jamnagar, Centre Point School, Katol Road, Nagpur, Teja Vidyalaya, Kodad, Telangana.
The programme began with a welcome by Mr. Abhishek Das, Sr.Programme Coordinator. This was followed by an introductory session to INTACH by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH. Ms. Datt shared about the various activities undertaken by INTACH and also thanked the Chapters for their support and effort in organizing the quiz in these difficult times.
Maj. Gen (Retd.) L.K. Gupta, Chairman, INTACH also addressed the students. He shared his appreciation for the students for participating and taking interest in the quiz. He spoke about the importance of the quiz in creating heritage awareness.
The finalists were then addressed by Mr. M.Gopalakrishna, State Convener, INTACH Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Chapter. The speaker congratulated all students for qualifying to the finals. He expressed his happiness on teams qualifying from almost all corners of the country and said that every individual should be aware of their country's heritage, alertness; attention, concentration; observation and memory are some extremely important points for quizzing.
The quiz was conducted by Mr. Arindam Bhattacharjee from Cradle Solutions supported by his team members Mr.Deepak and Mr.Shreyas. Mr. Bhattacharjee welcomed students and shared personal anecdotes about quizzing. He shared that quizzing is a continuous process which has seen many changes with regards to format, preparation etc. This was followed by the four rounds of the quiz, based on 4 main aspects of India’s heritage.
The quiz was won by Shri Satya Sai Vidyalaya, Jamnagar followed by Centre Point School, Katol Road, Nagpur in second place and Teja Vidyalaya, Kodad, Telangana in the third place. Hollotoli School, Dimapur secured the fourth position. Mr. Bhattacharjee congratulated the teams and also shared some tips with the students for quizzing. Ms. Purnima Datt congratulated all students and shared a few words of encouragement. Students were shown the prizes they would be receiving.
After this the event was opened to comments and suggestions.
Mr. M.Gopalakrishna congratulated all winners. He shared that practice and preparation and 'I can do it' mindset are really important.
Mr. S.S. Tyagi, Convenor, Jamnagar Chapter congratulated all winners and participants. He appreciated the interesting questions of the quiz. Mr. Tyagi shared a few words of encouragement and said that passion, sincerity and dedication are important for winning.
Ms. Anuradha Reddy, Convenor, Telangana Chapter. Ms. Reddy expressed her happiness on seeing young talents and being able to connect virtually. Ms. Reddy congratulated all students and thanked Mr. Bhattacharjee and Ms. Purnima Datt and HECS team for their efforts.
Ms. Madhura Rathod, Co-Convenor, Nagpur Chapter expressed her happiness about the efforts put in by students. Ms. Rathod said that reaching upto National levels was also an achievement. She also thanked INTACH and its programmes helping young minds getting on such platforms and encouraging them to discover their heritage.
Ms. Datt thanked all convenors and HECS teams for their efforts. She congratulated all students and appreciated their efforts and being able to adapt to the new online method. She emphasised on adopting values and practices to protect their heritage which also affects the country's future. The programme concluded with the vote of thanks by Ms. Teresa Walter, Programme Coordinator followed by a commemorative group photograph
The semi-finals of the INTACH Heritage Quiz 2020 were held on 6th – 7th January 2021. Eighteen teams competed to qualify for the national finals. The highlight of the entire quiz has been that all the quizzes were conducted online due to the restrictions caused by Covid 19. The programme began with a welcome by Mr. Abhishek Das, Sr. Programme Coordinator followed by a brief address by Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director, HECS, INTACH. Ms. Datt congratulated all the students and appreciated their efforts. She shared that about 45 chapters of INTACH took part in the quiz and thanked all convenors for their efforts in organising the programme online. She also shared the instructions for the quiz. Ms. Teresa Walter, Programme Coordinator introduced the participating teams - Little Angels High School, Gwalior, Centre Point School, Katol Road, Nagpur,Akshara Public School, Kakinada and PKR Jain Sr. Sec. School, Ambala. Mr. Arindam Bhattacharjee, from Cradle Solutions was the quizmaster. Mr. Bhattacharjee addressed the students and then shared the instructions in details.This was followed by four rounds of intense quizzing on Indian Heritage. The first semi-final of the day was won by Centre Point School, Katol Road, Nagpur. Ms. Datt, congratulated all students and shared what they would be receiving as prizes. Col.R.D. Singh, Convenor, Ambala Chapter congratulated the students and also shared his appreciation for the format and conduct of the quiz. The quiz concluded with a vote of thanks given by Ms. Sanjoli Mathur, Programme Coordinator followed by a commemorative group photograph.
After a short break, the last semi-final was held to decide the final team to qualify for the grand finals. Mr. Abhishek Das again welcomed all the participants and wished them luck. Ms. Datt thanked the team from Cradle Solutions. She reminded the participants that it is important to do things the right way and be honest to themselves. She then introduced Ms. Anuradha Reddy (Convenor, INTACH Hyderabad Chapter) and thanked her for her efforts. Mr. Arindam complimented the INTACH team for putting this quiz together and explained the rules and format of the rounds. After another 4 rounds of questions, Teja Vidyalaya, Kodad emerged as the winners followed by Jodhamal Public School, Jammu as the first Runners up. RR School, Khamam, Sunbeam School, Lahartara, Varanasi and Jayshree Periwal High School, Jaipur stood 3rd, 4th and 5th respectively. A teacher from Jodhamal Public School shared that it was one of the finest quizzes and was a truly enjoyable quiz. Another teacher appreciated the work INTACH has been doing. Ms. Datt shared with the students the prizes they will be receiving - medals, book on Delhi, Heritage Club Passport and badge, Young INTACH 15-year Anniversary Issue, which will be helpful for quizzes in the future, and a certificate. She thanked the Cradle Solutions team and HECS team for doing this quiz in a completely new format. Ms. Geetika Gunjan, Programme coordinator, gave the vote of thanks. The semi- finals ended with a group photograph of all the participants.
The INTACH Heritage Quiz 2020 was conducted online via webinars over 45 cities of the country. After National Eliminator Rounds which was conducted in the month of December 2021, for qualifying top teams of each city, 2 semi finalists were selected from 9 eliminator rounds. These semifinalists were then divided in groups based on a randomizer and were invited to participate in the semi-final.
The event began with Mr. Abhishek Das, HECS Representative welcoming all finalists and their teachers. He wished them luck and congratulated them for making this far in the quiz. After the introductory session, Ms. Purnima Datt, Principal Director HECS, INTACH addressed the participants and welcomed them all. She thanked all teachers, students and conveners of INTACH city level chapters for their efforts and commitment towards the programme. She then spoke to students about the importance of heritage education and the work of INTACH. She also acquainted students with the Heritage Quiz programme of INTACH and highlighted aspects of this unique programme which is based on heritage and is open to all students irrespective of language, as the INTACH Heritage Quiz is conducted in local languages as well.
HECS with the support of the team from Cradle Solutions conducted these Semi- Finals and the National Final. Mr. Arindham Bhattacharya of Cradle Solutions, also the quiz master for the semi – finals then spoke to the students and explained them all the rules of the competition.
The first semi final on the 6th of January saw Hollotoli School, Dimapur, Army Public School, Beas , Anand Niketan School, Ahmedabad and St. Anthony School, Udaipur competing. The winner of the first semi final was Hollotoli School, Dimapur
Questions based on built, natural, material and living heritage of India featured in the Quiz. Some questions based on INTACH was also included in the format of the Quiz.
After the results were declared Ms. Datt shared with the participants the prizes that the students would receive and the event was opened for comments.
Teachers accompanying the semi finalists also appreciated the quiz and said that this was a learning experience for them too. Shri BP Bhatnagar, Convener Udaipur Chapter also attended the quiz and appreciated the work of HECS and the Heritage Quiz programme and said that the programme was conducted in all fairness, he also congratulated all participants.
The event concluded with the Vote of Thanks from Ms Teresa, HECS Representative and a group photograph. The Second Semi Final of the Quiz Semi Finals conducted, after the end of the first semi final of the day. The quiz was attended by 5 schools - MGM School, Trivandrum, Modern School Barakhamba, Delhi, Mahesh Ramakrishna Ashram, Hooghly, Shri Satya Sai Vidyalaya, Jamnagar and Presidency School, RT Nagar, Bangalore. The session started off with an introduction by Mr. Abhishek Das, followed by Mrs. Purnima Datt. She welcomed all the participants and congratulated the teams to have made this far and wished them best of luck. She also shared how this INTACH Quiz is one of the largest heritage quizzes as it covers all the schools across the country and what makes it more special is that the quiz is conducted in the local language as well. Mrs. Datt then shared the instructions to be followed by the participants at all times during the quiz. Ms. Teresa Walter then announced the list of the participating students.
Mr. Arindam the quiz master from Cradles Solution welcomed all the participants, the teachers and all the honourable guests at home. He shared his journey with INTACH and expressed his absolute honour for being associated with INTACH for this quiz. He also talked about the challenges of quizzing online as it has its own challenges and strengths. This was then followed by a randomizer by Deepak Kashyap also from Cradles Solution. Mr. Arindam then shared the rules before starting the quiz.
Mrs. Purnima Datt shared the prizes and books that the winners will be receiving.
Mr. Krishnan congratulated all the participants and expressed his thanks and gratitude to INTACH in conducting the quiz.
Ms. Antara, Chapter Member from Hooghly also shared that the quiz was interesting and it was a great experience. She expressed that all the students should read more as there can be no replacement to books and wished them all the very best.
Teachers from MGM Trivandrum and Sri Satya Sai also shared that the quiz was enjoyable and were happy to be a part of it. The quiz was won by Shri Satya Sai Vidyalaya, Jamnagar.
The quiz concluded with a vote of thanks by Ms. Christina Shangne, followed by a group photograph.
