NSD's Bal Sangam to kick-off tomorrow

New Delhi (PTI): Bal Sangam, now in its 11th edition, will make a return in the capital on Saturday showcasing folk and traditional performing arts from 12 states across the country, announced National School of Drama (NSD).

The festival, dedicated to children, will be held here at the NSD's premises. The four-day cultural extravaganza, according to organizers, will begin with an inaugural performance "Rangoli" by folk and traditional child artistes, choreographed by renowned choreographer Bharat Sharma.

"Theatre and folk performances are a great learning medium for exploring and sensitizing children towards issues. Such activities and festivals are a wonderful platform to not just perform, but learn, travel, and share. "NSD believes that theatre makes a person sensitive towards issues and an active participant in society as it boosts powers of communication. Theatre brings in all these qualities and if children are introduced to this wonderful, they become better human beings," Suresh Sharma, Director-in-Charge, NSD, said.

The festival will feature folk dance, martial arts, acrobatics, street play performances and acts like juggling, puppetry and magic shows. Child artistes from 12 states including Assam, Odisha, Rajasthan, Manipur, Jammu and Kashmir and Karnataka will bring to the fore the folk performances and cultural heritage of their regions at the event.

"Bal Sangam is a confluence of folk and traditional art forms performed by children. When the child artistes imbibe these folk and traditional art forms with the mastery of their art and their innocence then the performance becomes magic," Abdul Latif Khatana, Chief, Theatre-in-Education, said. The cultural festival will come to an end on November 12.