KOCHI: The education department along the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi had organized 'Kalapadam', a two-day training programme at GGHS Ernakulam on Saturday.As many as 161 students took part in the event, where experts and artists had conducted the programme in Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi from 10am to 4pm."We knew this would be a great opportunity for the students to interact with the experts. Every teacher has their own approach towards an art form and today, my daughter, who has been learning Bharatanatyam since the age of two had an opportunity to look at it from a different perspective," said Sindu Unnikrishnan from Fort Kochi, whose daughter studies in Class II.For many parents, the programme on Sunday was also a chance to introduce their children to the best practices in their respective art form."The problem that most students face is that the school classes and the dance classes clash. So, parents opt to send their children to dance classes near their home, which might not always be the best. During last year's Kalolsavam, my daughter got negative marks for performing wrong steps on stage but the fact was that her teacher had taught her those steps," said Shajan Bhaskaran. He along with his daughter, who studies in class IX, came all the way from Thodupuzha for the training on Saturday.On Saturday, the Bharatanatyam class was conducted by Aswathy Sreekanth and Kuchipudi class was conducted by Sreelakshmy Govardhanan. On Sunday, the department has arranged for classes for Mohiniyattam and Kerala Natanam Both artists, who were conducting the training on Monday, had tried to present the history and myth of their art form to the students. The capsulated format of Kalolsovam performances is harming the students understand the art form, said the artist."A usual Kuchipudi performance is around one-and-a-half to two hours. In Kalolsavam, the performance is around 10 minutes in which they are expected to perform their best and capture the mind of the judges and audience within a short span of time. Furthermore, the art loses its subtly and essence," said Sreelakshmy Govardhanan.Aswathy also made a similar observation. She said, "All the students here were above average and eager to learn. But many were not aware of the depth and seriousness of the art form apart from the competitiveness of the event."

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