In an audio visual message played out at the inaugural ceremony of the national seminar of 'Art vis-à-vis Violence' held at University College, Mangalore, on Wednesday, which he could not attend owing to his ill-health, Mr. Ananthamurthy said that violence has always been portrayed in art, cinema and literature because violence appeals to the public. However, instead of merely portraying violence, an attempt must be made to question whether the altruistic nature of man can triumph, he said.
“The Burmese lady has fought the non-violent battle and triumphed. Nelson Mandela won after undergoing sufferings and so did Martin Luther King. Gandhi won and lost in a way, but he did keep the possibility of the triumph of the altruistic alive”, Mr. Ananthamurthy said, while pointing out that “idealism” resulted in violence post-partition of the country.
Prof. T C Shivashankara Murthy, Vice-Chancellor, Mangalore University, said after inaugurating the seminar that art and violence have always been part of the human civilization. While on some occasions art has incited violence by hurting feelings of certain groups in society, on other occasions, violence has produced pieces of art.
“Violence has resulted in art on several occasions. The two great Indian epics have violence as their theme. The World Wars resulted in several paintings, films and literature being produced discussing its effects. Victims of violence have produced pieces of art and literature such as Afro-Americans, women, and Dalits. Violence continues to be carried out against Dalits and it is reported that 13 Dalits are murdered every week, 6 Dalits are kidnapped every day and three Dalit women are raped everyday”, the Vice-Chancellor said.
The seminar is being organized by the Department of English, University College, in collaboration with the Association of English Teachers and has been sponsored by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
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