The India Story
Bengal! The enlightened soil, enriched with the essence of a thousand moments, and a million stars of Indian renaissance. The land of the dawn of swadeshi, of nationalist education and the land of Nand Lal Bose. The land alive with the sounds of Hoogli and the chirpings of Hawrah. The land reverberating with the chorus of the dusky naukas, golden nupurs and silvery sangeet. The land of Raja, Rabindra and Ray. What better place to harbour the reflections on Indian arts and aesthetics, what better abode to narrate ‘The India Story’.
The India Story was launched in 2015 in Kolkata, as a platform committed to the augmentation and promotion of creative arts and design. It is a space dedicated to the design minds and beings of artistic disposition across the country. Its primary objective is to free the arts from the monopoly of the niche echelons of the society and democratise it for masses. The vision is to act as a vehicle for imparting aesthetic consciousness. It is an initiative of Neotia Arts trust, headed by Mrs. Madhu Neotia, also the chairperson of IICD (Indian Institute of Crafts and Design), Jaipur, the only Craft Institute of country. The trust aims to reach out to masses nationally and internationally through exhibits, educational initiatives etc to nurture new talent and contextualise Indian art scene.
In its fourth edition it got inspired by the theme Above and Beyond. Design enthusiasts from across the nation joined in. Team IICD with its Faculties, students and Alumni also made its presence felt. IICD’s participation ensured a broader exposure for the fresh generation of designers and art entrepreneurs to the traditional art forms and design language and their present day manifestations. It encouraged its Alumni to showcase their work, thus offering them a platform open to critical scrutiny, meaningful insights and promotional opportunities. Dr. Toolika Gupta, Director IICD, graced the event with her presence. Through many design discourses she impressed upon the importance of an empathetic relationship between crafts and designers. Talking on the nature and orientation of upcoming generations of designers she very confidently said that they are both curators and explorers; they are both preservers and inventors.
IICD displayed its prowess and exclusivity as a crafts design institution offering material based learning, by presenting the unique designs harnessed passionately across the departments of fired material, soft material, hard material and fashion design.
Art events like The India Story hold a great value for Design education. They bring together the older and younger design minds from varied fields and regions, crafting a concoction of experience and innovation, of wisdom and invention and of unity and diversity.
