Karnataka - Bangalore

A day of fun and learning about Carnatic music

Bangalore: “Though I have been learning music for the last seven years, today I got to know first hand how well-known musicians practice,” Sushma Sharma Hindolam, a ninth standard student of Vasavi School of Huliyar in Chitradurga, said.

Stating that she practised for at least one hour every day, she posed several questions and got all her doubts cleared by noted musicians such as M.S Sheela, S. Krishnamurthy and T.S. Satyavathi.

She was one of the 60 participants at “Haadu Hakki Habba”, a fun-filled event organised by Ananya, a cultural organisation for children, on Sunday.

The habba is aimed at inculcating a fresh approach among children who wish to appreciate and learn Carnatic music.

Shravani, an eighth standard student of Sudarshan Vidya Mandir in Jayanagar 9th Block, and Pragna M, a sixth standard student of Bangalore International School in Chikkalsandra, were very excited about the festival. “We participated in the collage contest and made new friends. It was a great opportunity,” Shravani said.

Supported by a grant from the India Foundation for the Arts, “Haadu Hakki Habba” emerged from a 19-episode series that was aired on All India Radio (AIR) across Karnataka. The series comprised simple interactive sessions presenting an overview of Carnatic music. Sunday’s event was a finale of the yearlong programmes, R.V. Raghavendra, Managing Trustee of Ananya told The Hindu.

Several competitions including essay writing, collage, quiz, group events, presentations and interactions with senior musicians based on Carnatic music were part of the festival.

While Meghana Madhusudan and Vandana Kulkarni bagged the first and second prize, respectively, in the English essay writing competition, Pavani Kashinath and Samhita B. Atrey stood first and second, respectively, in the Kannada essay writing competition.

Meghana Ravoor and Sahana D. won the first and second prize, respectively, for collage.

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