Spic Macay International Convention: Young Artists, Veteran Artists Discuss Yoga, Inner Life
Dhrupad, qawwali, Carnatic vocals, Shabad Kirtan, and Kabirvaani sessions were taken by seasoned artists who mentored students in the guru-shishya tradition.
Hyderabad: The second day of the Spic Macay International Convention at IIT Hyderabad brought young delegates, veteran artists, and thinkers in an exploration of tradition and inner life. Around 1,500 participants started the day across yoga studios and halls on campus, some guided through Hatha Yoga by Swami Tyagarajananda, others in Naad Yoga with Ustad Faiyaz Wasifuddin Dagar. Sister Krishnaveni of the Brahma Kumaris led a parallel session on Raj Yoga.
Workshops stretched through the morning. Dhrupad, qawwali, Carnatic vocals, Shabad Kirtan, and Kabirvaani sessions were taken by seasoned artists who mentored students in the guru-shishya tradition. Malladi Suribabu, Manda Sudharani, Jayateerth Mevundi, and Prahlad Singh Tipanya were among those leading these sessions.
Elsewhere, students also trained under living masters of Bharatanatyam, Odissi, Kathak, Kathakali, Kuchipudi, Sattriya, and Manipuri. Folk art sessions featured Madhubani by Shanti Devi, Cherial painting by D. Vaikuntam, Gond by Bhajju Shyam, and Kalamkari by Niranjan Jonnalagadda, among others.
One important moment came when poet-lyricist Javed Akhtar read from his collection ‘In Other Words’. “Woh Kamrah Yaad Aata Hai,” he recited. The conversation that followed travelled across language, failure, secularism, and civilisational thought. “Language is underrated. Religion is overrated,” he said, adding that culture is carried through language rather than defined by belief.
The afternoon moved to Telangana’s forest rhythms as Kanaka Sudarshan and his troupe took the stage for a performance of the Gussadi dance. Dressed in elaborate feathered headgear and ceremonial attire, the dancers evoked ancestral memory through their movements and chants. The evening concerts opened with Hindustani vocalist Begum Parween Sultana, who sang Raag Yaman with a clarity that reduced many in the hall to tears. She was followed by Pt. Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, whose Mohan Veena brought the day to a close in what felt like one sustained raga of learning, longing, and stillness.