AMI Arts Festival, Kolkata\’s very own art festival, is held by Kolkata Centre for Creativity in association with Rabindra Tirtha, NKDA & HIDCO, and with the help of the CSR Initiative of Emami in order to promote, support, sustain, and provide opportunities for artists. The AMI Arts Festival, which began as a one-day event at the Kolkata Centre for Creativity three years ago, has grown into a nine-day spectacle at the Nazrul Tirtha in Newtown, featuring a variety of performances, exhibitions, and workshops. The event, which honours Bengal\’s rich cultural heritage via art, music, food, and more, continues until December 25. In keeping with the festival\’s theme, actor Anirban Bhattacharya and director Riddhi Sen created an anthem that captures the evolving significance of art in modern society. The song, which was made available on social media on December 10, tells the story of how art can be found everywhere, in ordinary life, ordinary objects, and most importantly, in different views. Anirban Bhattacharya, Subhadeep Guha, Ranjita Chakraborty, and Jayanta Saha are among the singers who have sung it.
“A golden shaft of sunlight breaks through the lull on crisp wintry mornings as a vibrant crowd gathers — building bonds and memories while revelling in the festive spirit. The promise of beautiful art, meaningful interactions, good music, joyous times and a lot more is what AMI Arts Festival brings” says KCC about its event on their website. A variety of folk acts, like as Qawwali, Kattaikkuttu, and more, will contribute to the spectacle while famous performers like Anjan Dutt, Iman Chakraborty, Arko Mukherjee Collective, and others will spice up the evenings with their music. The Visual Archives of Kulwant Roy, Living a Dark Night by renowned printer Paula Sengupta, and The Afterlife of Performance ft. Nikhil Chopra is just one of the domestic artists whose exhibitions will be a treat for art lovers. There will also be online and in-person discussions as well as workshops for the visual and performing arts. On December 23 and 24, the AMI Arts Festival will also feature a Canadian Film Festival, which will screen four films with Canadian and Indian connections that address subjects such as LGBTQ rights, the environment, violence against women, and other topics. The AMI Arts Award, which is given to recognise efforts by young artists and artisans in the fields of craft, contemporary art, and performing arts, will mark the festival\’s conclusion.
“I am very excited. What we started as a personal dream has grown to what KCC is today. The kind of events we are doing and participation we get is incredible. Quite obviously it’s not the optimum level that one would look at but it’s an eventuality. Even AMI Arts Festival was started at a very small scale. We did it on one floor of Emami Art building and this year it has grown to a nine-day festival with so much of participation, theatre, talks films; it’s growing and I am looking forward,” says Richa Agarwal, chairperson, Kolkata Centre for Creativity. Kolkata Centre for Creativity encourages participation in Arts, Culture and Creativity through multi-disciplinary exchange. Arts comprises here of Visual, Performing, Music, Design, Photography, Architecture and Crafts not limited to either traditional, modern or contemporary. Kolkata Centre for Creativity encourages participation in Arts, Culture and Creativity through multi-disciplinary exchange.
