Eklavya School to Host Artzopia Festival for Children and Families in Bengaluru
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On March 8, the campus of Eklavya School in Bengaluru will look very different. Paint on hands. Clay on wheels. Songs in the air. Small children running from one corner to another.
The school is hosting Artzopia Eklavya Festival, a half-day arts event for young children and their families. It will run from 9.30 am to 1 pm.
The idea is simple. Let children touch, sing, paint and listen. Not just watch.
One of the main attractions is “Messy Art.” Children will paint using hands, feet and even elbows. There are no strict lines to follow. The focus is on free play.
Music will also be a big part of the morning. Danish from Bangalore Flash Jam will lead a one-hour community choir. Parents and children will sing together. No stage. No audience. Just a group singing in one voice.
There will be theatre too. Goshtarang, a troupe from Maharashtra, will perform short plays for young viewers. The shows are planned to be simple and easy to follow.
Folk art finds space at the festival. Anjali from Studio Tvastra will introduce children to Gond art. They will learn patterns and try painting on their own. Another activity, flower pounding art, will use leaves and plants to create natural prints.
Teachers from the school will guide wet-on-wet painting, a style often used in Waldorf classrooms. The method is slow and quiet. Colours blend softly on paper.
Clay lovers can try pottery with Dhanya Verghese from Passionfruit Pottery. Children will get to feel the clay and use the potter’s wheel. Origami sessions by Pooja Ugrani will show how simple folds turn into shapes.
Ria from Sparklesound, an early childhood music educator, will host storytelling and music sessions for both parents and children.
There is also a film corner. Parallel Film Club will screen short films from earlier years. After the screening, children will take part in small activities linked to the stories.
Niyati Handa, co-founder of the school, says the festival is about shared experience. “We want parents and children to sit, sing and create together. Not just drop in and leave.”
The festival brings together music, theatre, folk art and film in one place. For a few hours at least, the school plans to slow things down and let children explore at their own pace.
