The Lahore Arts Council (LAC) is gearing up to establish the Alhamra School of Performing Arts for which Rs100 million have been allocated by the Punjab government.

The project is the brainchild of Culture Secretary Bilal Ahmed Butt and work on it started in October. The school would offer a Bachelors in Performing Arts degree in the disciplines of theatre, dance, music, film and creative design.

Administration Assistant Director Syed Khurram Naveel told Dawn that PC-1 of the project is being prepared. The Lahore Arts Council was now applying for the grant of status of college for this upcoming institute and holding talks with the Higher Education Commission and other departments concerned in this regard, he added.

Mr Naveel said syllabus for all five disciplines had been designed and the faculty would be hired after the approval of the PC-1. He said Alhamra would be the first institution to offer a degree in performing arts, which would contribute educated artists to the showbiz industry.

The Punjab Institute of Language, Art and Culture (Pilac) is about to set up a ‘Cultural Bazaar’ offering traditional food, handicrafts and embroidered dresses, bangles and other items.

Dr Sughra Sadaf, the Pilac director, said it was extremely important to highlight the value of handicrafts, food and other such items that were time-honoured. She said she had recently spoken to the culture secretary about establishing the bazaar, which he approved.

“We shall set up some 20 stalls at Pilac and invite shopkeepers from south Punjab as well since many arts and skills belonging to that part of the province were dying out. These stalls will be complemented by a café that is already running in the form of a canteen inside the institute.”

Dr Sadaf further said that Pilac is also establishing a free dispensary where basic medicines for flu and headache would be available to artists, writers and poets. Arrangements have also been made for free medical check-up by a doctor for two hours daily.

She said Pilac was a thriving institute frequented by a large number of artists. “We have taken these steps keeping in view the vibrancy of the place,” she added.

The Institute of Art and Culture (IAC) arranged a dialogue with theatre activist Huma Safdar about enriching traditional Punjabi theatre, according to a press release. The session, held at the main auditorium of the campus, concluded with a performance of the classic play, Heer Ranjha,performed by the talented duo of Sana Jafri and Abuzar Madhu, with the music score provided by singer Shaukat Hussain.

The session was arranged by IAC’s Cultural Talks Committee in connection with its weekly series.

Head of the committee, Prof Shahnawaz Zaidi, commenced the dialogue by highlighting that IAC accorded importance to the promotion of cultural studies, which was why such programmes would remain an integral part of the curriculum.

Sabah Hussain introduced Ms Safdar who enlightened the participants about Punjabi traditional theatre. She read the epic Heer Ranjha animatedly and also gave her insight into various characters of the poetic tale, spiritual love and philosophical features reflected in it.

She said: “Heer by Damodar is the earliest written version of Heer Ranjha. Although Heer by Waris Shah is more popular, the one by Damodar is an equally powerful lyrical narration. The spiritual love that Heer and Ranjha share enables them to defy social and religious sanctions.”

She also spoke about creative awareness about native language, rediscovering roots, traditions and Punjabi folklore.

A stimulating performance by Sana and Abuzar, based on Heer Ranjha, engrossed the audience under the direction of Ms Safdar. Soulful singing of Waris Shah’s poetry just enhanced the performance.

Published in Dawn, December 9th, 2018