It feels like 2020 all over again. With the number of Covid cases increasing, the weekend curfew — between 10 pm on Friday and 5 am on Monday — is back. With the curbs coming into effect starting this weekend, the decision has heavily affected creative spaces which were looking forward to starting the year with a bang.
Bangalore Creative Circus in Yeswanthpur was gearing up for an Aerial Silk workshop. But now the event stands cancelled. “This workshop is very equipment-based, it’s difficult for us to make it an online session. Some of the events cannot be rescheduled because of the facilitator’s timing issues and we now have to refund those who had pre-booked,” says Manisha Vinod, co-founder. She had planned a farmers’ market for which around 20 vendors were supposed to attend the session. However, a few segments like a Qi Gong event by Sahil Rana and a Hindustani classical music workshop by MD Pallavi have been moved online, Vinod adds.
Even Attakkalari Centre for Movement Arts, which was prepping for their magnum opus two-month event —10th edition of the Attakkalari India Biennial, scheduled to be launched on Jan 8 — has revised the dates.
“We had envisaged challenges for the opening show Sthavara-Jangama and decided to hold it on Friday to mitigate any restrictions. Now, Friday’s opening show will go on without any hitches and the team is working hard to make it an exciting one bringing cheer to Bengaluru’s cultural scene amidst all the anxieties. All other events will go ahead with some small changes in the schedule which will be announced from time to time on the festival website,” says Jayachandran Palazhy, Attakkalari’s artistic director.
Not just creative spaces, places like art galleries are facing the struggle too. MKF Museum of Art was to open an exhibition — Travel Chronicles by artist Nirupam Konwar on Jan 8 — but they have now advanced it to Jan 7. “We, as a foundation, work towards supporting lesser-known artists and our events are mostly day-based and weekend-based. And, since we are closed on Mondays, we advanced it to Friday,” says Shirley Mathew, museum art consultant.