The sabha has been hosting this series for the last 16 years and every year, budding young artistes in the field of Carnatic Music and Dance are identified and featured. The fest was inaugurated by dancer Priyadarshini Govind, who also distributed the Bharat Kalachar Cultural scholarships to students of the Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan group of schools. Bharat Kalachar is a wing of this group of schools headed by arts promoter Mrs. Y.G. Parthasarthy. Sixteen students were selected to receive the scholarship, which carries a cash award of Rs. 1000 per annum for three years.

Mrs. Y.G. Parthasarathy told KutcheriBuzz, "We do have an audience for arts. But, most of them are aged above 40. And we want the younger generation to appreciate and understand the arts. Bharat Kalachar has four objectives. To discover and promote young talent, by giving them scholarships and awards. To promote art appreciation among the younger generation. To give a platform for deserving artistes from abroad and encourage international goodwill. And to showcase performances by folk artistes."

She adds, "The students of the PSBB schools are encouraged to attend concerts during the December Season. We give them free passes to attend concerts by top artistes. They are encouraged to write reviews, for which marks are given and added in their academic curriculum. Some of the reviews are published in our annual souvenir."

The scholarships are given to students who are keen and serious in their training in music or dance. And during the December Season, the sabha gives the 'Yuva Kala Bharathi' awards to young artistes. Most recipients of this award are internationally recognised artistes today, who were also featured in the Yuva Utsav festival 10 years ago, like musicians Nithyashree Mahadevan, Unnikrishnan, Vijay Siva, Sowmya and dancers like Priyadarshini Govind, Urmila Sathyanarayanan among several others.

Some of the young talent being featured at this year's Yuva Utsav are L. Athira Krishna (violin), K.L. Koushik (flute), S. Umamaheshwaran (vocal), Raagam Sisters (vocal), Haricharan (vocal), Uma Nambudripad (Bharatanatyam) among over 50 other young stars from Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Chennai.

Also, as part of the fest this year, a 'Guru Vandana' to felicitate veteran vocalist D.K. Pattammal has been organised. The title of 'Sangita Samragni' is being conferred on the senior musician, with a cash award of Rs.10,000 on Friday (Sep. 24).

The Cultural Consultant of Bharat Kalachar is Madhuvanthi Arun and the Secretary is Y.Gee. Mahendra.

Contact: 16, Thirumalai Road, T. Nagar, Chennai - 17. Ph: 28223045.
E-mail: bkygp@rediffmail.com Website: www.ygeem.com/bharatkalachar