Kiran festival

Well, I have quite a lot of catching up to do. The last two weeks since our “quarantine” have been especially eventful.

The most important event for the Kiran community was undoubtedly the 20^th anniversary festival which was held on 2^nd and 3^rd October.

Ever since our arrival in Kiran in September there had been a great sense of anticipation about the festival. We had been warned that there would be nothing “normal” about the routine in Kiran until after it was over. In fact many of the daily activities, including lessons, were frequently interrupted as certain staff members were very much involved in the drama production that was going to be put on.

The play, entitled Sawa Ser Gehu  and written by Shri Munshi Premchand, a famous novelist and playwright here in India, deals with the theme of social injustice and inequality in rural villages in India. Not exactly a very cheerful subject for an anniversary festival, however, wonderfully arranged music and dance segments were added which made the production as a whole not only thought-provoking but also entertaining.

A drama teacher had been hired especially for the program and he was clearly a very talented man – he raised the quality of the acting to a professional level. Rehearsals went on continuously everyday for a month and I would often stop to watch. The age groups of the actors were mixed –  from the primary school children to the young-adult vocational training students. They all worked together with extraordinary dedication, commitment and hard work.

In the final ten days leading up to the festival weekend there was a great collaborative effort to make the Kiran grounds especially beautiful for the occasion. Gardeners were out pruning trees, trimming hedges, cutting tall grass, pulling weeds, raking up leaves and sweeping – and all this was done without lawn mowers, weed-whackers or chainsaws. Everything was done by hand with the simplest of tools.

The Kiran arts and crafts and woodworking units were very busy preparing all the invitations that would be delivered personally door-to-door to over 1500 people! And finally the grounds were decorated with flags, balloons, murals, and signs depicting the history of the centre. In the final days some staff members were up all night making the final touches for the big event.

I couldn’t help but feel so very fortunate to be here for this occasion. The opportunity to help with the preparations was a real bonding experience that allowed Petra, the kids and I to feel part of the community.

The first night of the festival was open to all the families and friends of Kiran and so the atmosphere was joyous and informal. A couple hundred children sat on the floor in front of the stage, rows of people were seated just behind them, while the rest of the audience viewed the show from two large screens placed just outside the theatre. The actors, dancers, singers and musicians had everyone’s full attention throughout the two hour program. The combination of sumptuous costumes, mesmerizing music and choreography, and compelling acting made for such a wonderful show that the wheelchairs and crutches faded from view.

The second night on the other hand was a more formal affair. Several special guests were received: the Swiss Ambassador to India, the Representative for the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, the District Magistrate of Varanasi, and the Bishop of the Diocese of Varanasi, to name but a few.

This was an occasion to give Kiran some political exposure, in the hope of gaining the much needed funding from the national and local governments. Presently more than 90% of the funding comes from foreign countries, primarily Switzerland, but as India is being seen as having more and more economic potential it is also becoming less of a priority when it comes to receiving foreign aid. So it is becoming essential to have the local authorities recognize the essential contribution Kiran is making to the wider community and convince them to foot the ever-increasing bill. And so speeches were given, candles lit, gifts exchanged, and garlands of flowers draped around the necks of the VIPs.

But once the formalities were over and the show began, it was the energy and enthusiasm of the performers that prevailed in everyone’s hearts. At the end of the program when the guests had all gone home there was a great spontaneous release of tension when actors, dancers, musicians, teachers and staff all got on the stage in a wonderfully wild dance.

Paul