NK'S POST

NK SINGH The Bharat Bhawan controversy has taken a political turn, with one of its life trustees, noted painter J. Swami Nathan, launching a thinly veiled attack on the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr Motilal Vora. The bearded painter said in a press interview that he apprehended a conspiracy by some "politically influential persons' behind the current "smear campaign" against Bharat Bhawan in the wake of the sensational Vibha-Karanth affair. In an obvious reference to the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr Swaminathan said the "conspiracy" was aimed at Mr Arjun Singh, the AICC-I vice-president and Bharat Bhawan Trust chairman, and Mr Ashok Vajpeyi, the culture secretary of Madhya Pradesh and Bharat Bhawan's trustee-secretary. Mr Swaminathan, who was 'lured' to Madhya Pradesh during the regime of Mr Arjun Singh, is considered a supporter of the former chief minister. "We will quit the trust," he had earlier told newsmen when asked wha...

NK SINGH With the Vibha-Karanth affair taking a back seat with the passage of time, the focus of attention is now shifting towards Bharat Bhavan, the sprawling lakeside cultural complex that employed both the principal characters of the highly emotional drama enacted in Bhopal last month. When the Bharat Bhavan management yesterday formally announced an inquiry into the functioning of the “house of arts” by its trustees, Ms. Pupul Jayakar, a number of cultural organisations in the city reacted strongly to the announcement, saying that it was like asking a thief to catch a thief. A press note issued on behalf of the Bharat Bhavan Trust said that any person or organisation wishing to lodge a complaint against Bharat Bhavan may send complaints or allegations “directly in a sealed cover” to Ms. Jayakar by June 15. The handout said that Ms. Jayakar, the Government of India nominee on the trust, had been appointed to inquire into complaints against the trust. About two dozen cultural and lit...

NK SINGH With the Vibha-Karanth affair taking a backseat over time, attention is now shifting toward Bharat Bhawan, the sprawling lakeside cultural complex that employed both principal figures in last month’s highly charged controversy, which left Miss Vibha with 80% burns. On Saturday, the Bharat Bhawan management formally announced an inquiry into the institution, to be conducted by one of its trustees, Mrs. Pupul Jayakar. However, several cultural organizations in the city strongly opposed this decision, likening it to “asking a thief to catch a thief.” A press note issued on behalf of the Bharat Bhawan Trust stated that any person or organization wishing to file complaints against Bharat Bhawan could send them “directly in a sealed cover” to Mrs. Jayakar by June 15.  Around two dozen cultural and literary organizations in the city have reacted sharply to the decision, criticizing the appointment of a trustee to investigate the trust’s affairs. These groups have been demanding a...

                                       NK SINGH The Bharat Bhawan Trust has requested Mrs Papul Jayakar, the government of led nominee on the trust, to inquire into the allegations against the functioning of Bharat Bhawan, the multi-arts complex at Bhopal, and the trustee secretary, Mr Ashok Vajpeyi, a senior IAS officer. Disclosing this here on Thursday, the trust's chairman, Mr Arjun Singh, AIC- CIT) vice-president, told newsmen that Mrs Jayakar would conduct the in-house inquiry into the allegations level. Led in the wake of the Karanth affair, B. V. Karanth, one of the Bharat Bhawan trusters and director of its repertory, was arrested last month by the Bhopal police on the charge of trying to burn to death an actress of his drama troupe. Mr Arjun Singh, who came here on Thursday to attend an organisational meeting, also visited the lake-side bouse of arts and addressed a gathering of ...

                                    NK SINGH The dramatic arrest of the prominent 57-year-old theatre director, B. V. Karanth on a charge of attempting to burn to death Vibha Mishra, the pretty 27-year-old heroine of his drama troupe at Bhopal last week has rocked the world of art. He had joined Bharat Bhavan, the lake-side House of Arts' at Bhopal, four years ago.  Although Karanth has dabbled in films and produced nationally-acclaimed works like "Chomana Duddi" and "Kedu", he is better known as a theatre director and playwright. A diploma-holder from the National School of Drama, Delhi, and the Asian Theatre Institute, he started his career with the famous "Gubbi" company in his native Karnataka. He has directed world classics not only in, Kannada and Hindi, but also in Punjabi, Gujarati and Sanskrit. He was director of the prestigious National School of Drama from 1977 to 1981 when he was p...