10 venues across Panjim will transform Goa into a vibrant cultural space with multiple exhibitions, performances and experiential arts experiences involving over 1300 artists. The festival, India’s first multidisciplinary arts event will be held from December 15 – 22.

Serendipity Arts Festival 2018, India’s first multidisciplinary arts event, begins in Goa from 15 – 22 December and is with over 90 dynamic projects showcasing the visual, performing and culinary arts. 10 venues across Panaji will transform Goa into a vibrant cultural space with multiple exhibitions, performances and experiential arts experiences involving over 1300 artists.

This was announced at a
press briefing recently at the Goa Institute of Management.
ICICI Lombard is the presenting sponsor for the 2018 edition of the festival.

Addressing the press conference, Smriti Rajgarhia, Director, Serendipity Arts Festival introduced this year’s Festival to the Goan press emphasising the importance of arts and culture in India’s society, and the Festival’s commitment to accessibility and arts education, as well as the diversity and artistic integrity of this year’s projects. The event also included the first screening of the Festival curtain-raiser film presenting vignettes of 2017’s projects for the Goa press.

The other panellists included
Subodh Gupta, Visual Arts curator,
Vivek Menezes and Swati S Salgaocar, co-curators, Panjim 175 exhibition and
Odette Mascarenhas, Culinary Arts curator.

Speaking at the event Smriti Rajgarhia said,
“We’re delighted by the huge support we have received from the people in Goa, and are excited to showcase the diversity of projects we’ll have in Goa this December.
The festival truly celebrates our rich artistic heritage, and we hope that this will foster cultural growth and energise contemporary practice not just in Goa but across the country.
”

An initiative of the Serendipity Arts Foundation, founded in 2016 by Sunil Kant Munjal, the Festival’s third edition is focused on fostering cultural development, supporting emerging artists across South Asia and is unique as the only arts event in the country that unites the creative disciplines.

The first two editions of the event transformed Goa and received an extremely positive reception from the public, redefining perceptions of the arts whilst also fostering arts production, awareness and practice across the country. The event has activated Goa’s cultural milieu, attracting more than 400,000 visitors, with dynamic projects that have included internationally acclaimed performances highlighting India’s rich traditions of music, dance and theatre, alongside culinary arts, craft, and visual arts exhibitions.

Unique activations in the core disciplines of Craft, Culinary Arts, Music, Photography, Visual Arts, Dance and Theatre, intend to invigorate dissipating and marginalised traditional artforms, whilst the more contemporary projects will address significant social issues. This year’s event will also have increased international participation aimed at furthering global dialogues with Indian culture.

Addressing the press Vivek Menezes said,
“Serendipity Arts Festival has been a tremendous force for positive developments in Goa’s cultural landscape, and immensely innovative in its use of Panjim’s desperately neglected and underutilized heritage infrastructure. I am so glad this event has given us the chance to celebrate the 175th anniversary of the capital city, which the state itself has largely ignored.”

Swati S Salgaocar added,
”
I am proud to be associated with the Serendipity Arts Festival, a truly multidisciplinary effort by a committed team striving to showcase Goa in the best possible way. SAF has really pushed the boundaries of what an art festival is and its all-inclusive nature (whether it’s the unconventional venues, free entry or variety of art disciplines), For us in Goa access to the top visual, musical, theatre, dance and culinary artists of the highest international standard is unprecedented and I hope SAF finds a permanent home in Goa.”

Odette Mascarenhas said,
“ This is my third year as a Curator of food and every year I have seen the festival grow in size and stature. I have seen visitors and locals come back time and time again because of the variety of options/experiences offered audiences marvel at the fact that so many disciplines are showcased, each one has its own concept and diversity. With regards to food, there is so much to share and the creative thread that runs through each experience is what Serendipity Arts Festival is about.

Subodh Gupta said
,
“It’s been a pleasure and honour to work with the Serendipity team. It is exciting to see the kind of support and platform being provided for contemporary art in India. My aim when putting together the exhibition for Serendipity Arts Festival was to provide a snapshot of the range of conversations happening in contemporary art about pertinent social and political issues around the world; essentially outlining the various roles of an artist in public discourse. People will see a wide range of contemporary art from India and the world.”

Serendipity Arts Festival is the only art event in India which unites the creative disciplines, committed to creating tangible change across the country’s cultural spectrum by engaging the public and increasing awareness of how art can impact society. Projects at the Festival will be further activated by diverse collateral programming including panel discussions, children’s programmes, and workshops for the differently abled.

The 90 projects this year will be accompanied by a series of
Special Projects including
St+art Goa, curated by St+art India Foundation, Out of Turn curated by Asia Art Archive and Meenakshi Thirukode and a Film Programme by Sabeena Gadihoke.

This article was first published on Herald Cafe on 08 DEC 2018