Darpana Academy of Performing Arts, Ahmedabad

Established by Ms Mrinalini Sarabhai, the Darpana Academy of Performing Arts, Ahmedabad, has been a centre for research, training and performance in many of India's art forms - be it classical dance and music, or folk dances from across the subcontinent, or the crafts, stories and histories of various communities. Darpana works in many layers of Indian culture at any given time: from teaching and performing the ancient classical and folk dances and music of the Indian subcontinent to creating new fusion works combining art forms from different cultures. Located on the banks of the Sabarmati, the academy has a world class performance venue called Natarani, an open air café, a library and a bookstore.

To cite an example of Darpana's initiatives in reviving folk art forms, Jasama Odan, a play produced by Darpana was intended to bring traditional Bhavai to the urban audiences. The older artists conducted a one year training program to teach traditional Bhavai to contemporary actors. At the end of the training period, the veterans performed with the younger actors. This proved to be a very popular experiment; the show ran continuously for four years in villages and cities all over India. As a result of the tours, elements of Bhavai costume, story, dance, music, character and plot began to show up in modern play productions, films and on television.