The SPICMACAY Movement

When we first heard of SPICMACAY certain questions automatically came to our minds. There is no reason why you should not ask the same questions. And may be some more. So here it goes...

What is SPICMACAY?

    • The primary aim of this voluntary movement, run totally by students, is to expose today's young students to the beauty and grace surrounding Indian Art forms.

Started in 1977 this movement has now spread across the length and breadth of the country with more than 200 chapters in various cities, towns and villages. All programs of SPICMACAY are held only in educational institutions and are free and open to all.

What are the various activities of SPICMACAY?

    • The major thrust is on lecture-demonstrations in the various Indian Music, Dance and Theatre forms. The other activities are Batiks, Talks, Workshops and Yoga.

Gurukul scholarship is yet another major activity of SPICMACAY, where enthusiastic students are chosen from all over the country to spend a month of their summer vacation at a Gurukul anywhere in the country. The objective here is to expose the student to the Guru Shishya relation as it existed.

SPICMACAY enjoys the patronage of all the country's major artists.

All this sounds so pseudo... You know khadi kurtas and all the involved talk about Ragas.

    • You would be surprised! SPICMACAY is a highly informal setup without any hierarchies. Most of us cannot differentiate one Raga from the other. Our attire too is normal. What brings us together is the common urge to explore, to discover and to enjoy the heritage.

All this is very good but I cannot enjoy Indian Classical Music. I'm much happier with Bryan Adams, Bon Jovi, or even Indian pop stuff.

    • We too like them. We also listen to Metallica, Michael Jackson, but appreciation of Indian Classical music or any other art form need not occur at the cost of your existing interests. Anything of depth, which Indian classical music certainly is, given that it is a distillate of all the experiences and experiments done over the centuries requires a little patience. All we ask is that you give Indian Classical Music and other art an honest and patient try for a period of a year. And then decide.

But how can I work for SPICMACAY? I know nothing about Indian Art forms.

    • Neither did most of us, when we started working for SPICMACAY. It is definitely the end result. SPICMACAY is a movement by, for and of the students. It has so far thrived due to the drive and dedication of generations of students.

 

The Beginning

In Delhi in 1978, four young people got together and organized a concert by the Dagar Brothers (Hindustani vocal) at I.I.T.

They called themselves SPICMACAY - the Society for the Promotion of Indian Classical Music and Culture Amongst Youth. Their aim was to revive Indian cultural tradition and music among the youths.

They worked on a fairly simple principle. If Mohammed won't come to the mountain, the mountain must go to Mohammed. They got in touch with major artistes- musicians and dancers-famous enough for cultural novices to recognize. These artistes went to schools and colleges and perform free of cost.

The initial response was disheartening. A whole generation of Indian youth had turned its back on the five thousand years of Indian culture. To get them reacquainted with it, SPICMACAY had to work against a massive tide of ignorance and apathy.

But we are making it. Today SPICMACAY operates in over two hundred cities and towns. Our activities include Lec-Dems, Fests, workshops on music and dance and , recently, a scholarship program in which students from all over the country were sent to famous artistes to imbibe the Guru-Shishya Parampara.

Our activities are funded by sponsors, cultural organizations, national trusts and major industrial houses. We have received invaluable support from artistes and recognition from all those people who are concerned about the future of Indian culture.

We still have a long way to go. On the average campus you still get a more of response when you say 'Backstreet Boys' or 'Spice Girls' than if you mention 'Flute Mali'. But then we are not trying to force young people into becoming 'Culture Vultures'. And we don't want to pick out 'N Sync' out of your music collection. We'd just like to add some Indian classical to it.

Growth of SPICMACAY

The movement caught the imagination of the young and began to grow geographically and numerically. While on one hand, the idea had to be painstakingly introduced in minor doses on the other, there was a clamoring for programs in schools and colleges. A combination of both has resulted in a network of 200 chapters in India and abroad.

Change within growth:

During the 20 grinding years of its work, the movement has had moments of joy and painful introspection. These have led to exciting process of expressing potential and self-discovery. While the fundamental agenda of SPICMACAY continues within the same framework thus retaining its thought and character, diversification of thought and activity had to find a place to prevent boredom and stagnation. In the area of thought, the commitment of movement's relatively large network should ideally embrace a role as agents of social change seeking to understand the totality of culture.

In the area of activities, the scholarship scheme, The EYE magazine and lectures are some examples.