Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (The World Is One Family) second edition

Conference: January 24–26, 2020

Film programme curated by Anand Patwardhan: January 26–March 8, 2020

Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (The World Is One Family) is an annual exhibition and conference exploring our relationship to the environment. For the second edition, renowned filmmaker Anand Patwardhan has curated a series of documentaries exploring human impact upon the environment and acclaimed critic and cultural activist Dr. Ganesh N. Devy will present a keynote lecture on the theme of sustainability and languages. Dr. Thomas Wide, founding curator of The Museum for the United Nations — UN Live in Copenhagen will launch a new interdisciplinary project relating to the theme of the conference. 

Participants include Aaron Cezar, Anupam Sah, Aric Chen, Bandana Tewari, Dr. Deepika Sorabjee, Dinesh Vazirani, Dr. Kalyan Chakravarty, Saloni Doshi, Ellie Harrison-Read, Feroze Gujral, G. R Iranna, Dr. Gayatri Sinha, Meera Menezes, Mir Mukhtiyar Ali, Noorie Sadarangani, Noelle Kadar, Parul Zaveri, Prof. Rashmi Sawhney, Ramanjit Kaur, Ravi Agarwal, Reena Dewan, Richa Agarwal, S. Anandan, Shalini Passi, Siddhant Shah, Dr. Tara Douglas, Dr. Thomas Wide, Vikas Dilawari, Vinod Raja and Wol Balston. 

The second edition of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam [VK II] invites contributions from leading practitioners to explore this Upanishadic concept in light of the United Nations 2030 “17 Sustainable Development Goals” (UN 2030 17 SDGs). The initiative is an effort to build high quality partnerships in civil society with individuals and groups who have joined contemplation with action, advocacy with engagement, to promote the sustainable and inclusive society, sought in the UN 2030 17 SDGs. These goals aim at inclusive economic growth and human development through reduction of inequalities within and between countries and among human beings, by combating climate change, and by nurturing heritage, tangible and intangible. This is proposed to be achieved through viable patterns of industrialisation, production, consumption, water and energy use, and, management of environment, terrestrial, oceanic, underwater resources and ecosystems, education, infrastructure, human settlements and urbanisation. The aim is to attain a balance between nature and culture, technology and ecology, quantitative and qualitative indices. The UN 2030 17 SDGs are indissolubly interconnected, animated by a sense of solidarity of partnerships, forms, living and non-living, and perception of the universe, as a web of relations. 

VK II is conveyed by Dr. Kalyan Kumar Chakravarty and Shwetal A. Patel and is conceived as an open and accessible platform to investigate and probe the meaning and philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam in the light of growing environmental degradation and resource depletion. What is the role of the arts and artists within this paradigm? As we consider what is universal today, we see that climate change, pollution, environmental degradation, corruption in public office, violence and terrorism are universal; the market, commoditization and homogenization are universal, extinction of identities and species is universal, the current rate of extinction being many times the background rate of extinction. The human being is in control and there has been a reduction of sacred and ecological categories to economic and production categories. Successive Prime Ministers and Presidents of India have used the theme of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam as a platform for making statements for invoking peace and cooperation to combat problems that assail humanity. We must put behind us the platitudinous and hypocritical distortions to which Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam has lent itself over the years. We know that Dīrghakarṇa and Kshudrabuddhi, the jackal and cat in the stories associated with this dictum, were both duplicitous. The stories in both texts, Panchatantram and Hitopadesha, which feature them and quote the above shloka through them, were written to warn the human being about duplicity in public transactions. In an era of post-truth we may have forgotten the original context of the Maha Upanishad, which infers to communion, pantheism, and interdependence of all communities. If we are quoting Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam as our title and mascot, we should restore its authentic context and remember the pristine conversation, frozen in time, which may acquire new meanings, tones and cadences today.

About Kolkata Centre for Creativity (KCC)
A unit of Anamika Kala Sangam Trust (AKST), Kolkata Centre for Creativity (KCC) is a multi-disciplinary interactive art and creativity center located in Kolkata, West Bengal. The 70,000 sq. ft. Centre champions the art and cultural landscape of contemporary India since 21st November 2018. It comprises of an Amphitheater, Exhibition & Learning spaces, Dance studio, Conservation lab, Books & Materials Library, Creative Culinary space- Grace, Craft & Design outlet and a Skill Development Maker’s section.

Showcasing several expressions of art and design to highlight their common creative core—KCC encourages visitors to explore, interact and design ideas on various art forms.  KCC works in the areas of Capacity Building, Well-Being, Conservation & Restoration, Craft & Design, Culinary, Visual and  Performing Art. We aim to establish KCC as a platform for Artistic enhancement through Displays, Presentations, Fellowships, Laboratories, Residencies, Conservation, Research and Discourse. Our programs are designed on the principals of Cultural Diversity, Gender Equality, Conservation of Environment and Inclusion of people with disabilities. 

The Centre offers free entry to the public and is open between 11am to 6pm from Tuesday to Sunday.