Now, a Horniman Circle festival, on the lines of Kala Ghoda festival?

The cultural festival proposed at South Mumbai's Horniman Circle aims to give a boost to amateur artists

On the lines of the famous Kala Ghoda festival, a proposal for hosting a cultural event around South Mumbai's Horniman Circle was recently submitted to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. The civic body will take a call on approving it after evaluating its commercial aspect. Called the Horniman Circle Fiesta, the event aims to provide a platform to art and music amateurs to showcase their talent, along with established artists, and streaming these performances live on the internet.

The BMC ward office was approached by private organisers to conduct this event every weekend on from April to June in Horniman Circle Garden and on Homji Street. The event will also host various art and craft and food stalls apart from artists' programmes. Around 29 stalls are proposed on the Homji street.

According to the civic policy, permissions for such an event can be given by charging a rent amount for the land used, provided No-Objection Certificates are granted by local police, traffic police, fire department and the Medical Health Officer. Also, art, music and cultural events held in such public gardens must be free of charge for the visitors. With the implementation of the National Commission for Art, Music and Culture, NOCs from the commission are mandatory too.

The A ward office has already forwarded the proposal to municipal commissioner Ajoy Mehta after whose approval, it will be sent to the commission. "The BMC generally charges a minimal ground rent but if the organisers make a profit out of the event by setting up food stalls, then the BMC will have to think twice. However, the promotion of amateurs in the field of art and music is also necessary and permissions, if given, will have to be considered carefully, considering the commercial aspect and what the BMC might gain out of this," said a civic official on the condition of anonymity. Mehta confirmed receiving the proposal and said that a decision on it will be taken only " after it is examined and the commercial aspect of it is studied."

Push for amateur talent
While the organisers did not deny to commercialisation of the event by involving sponsors, giving out stalls at a minimal price and roping in established artists who might require to be paid, they also said that the event was not purely a profit-making one. Organiser Jagdish Koli said, "We will be focusing on pushing amateur talent along with getting established artists to conduct workshops for them. The event will also stream live to reach a larger audience."

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