Mysuru: Lamenting the lackadaisical attitude adopted by the Karnataka Janapada Academy towards preserving the legacy of folk artistes, scholar PK Rajashekar on Sunday said, “Much needs to be done to encourage original folk artistes, who have enriched the culture of the state. It is the duty of the Janapada Academy to ensure these artistes get their due.”Rajashekar, who participated in the birth anniversary celebrations of renowned folk artiste Kamsale Mahadevaiah , said, “Fake artistes claiming to be trained in various folk art forms are destroying folk culture.”Expressing disappointment over the absence of literature, and audio recordings of Mahadevaiah’s works, he added, “Mahadevaiah was a world-renowned Kamsale artiste, and there is not a single book that talks about him. There are a few cassettes that have his audio recordings, but none that have been converted to the digital format that can help us pass down his contributions to posterity.”Rajashekar said that lack of material on Mahadevaiah was a grave injustice. Urging the academy to convert his analog recordings to the digital format, Rajashekar said that there was a need to publish a book on Mahadevaiah to keep his legacy alive.Dubbing the closure of the publishing department of the Karnataka Janapada Academy a ‘Grave crime’, Rajashekar said, “It has hampered our ability to preserve folk art for the future.”Demanding that the academy confer at least five awards every year, he said, “The academy confers just one award on a folk artiste, which is a joke. If this is the case, an artiste has to live for a thousand years to get an award.”President of the Karnataka Janapada Academy B Takappa Kannuru asked scholars not to halt research once they had obtained their PhD. “Researchers are not bothered about the current status of folk culture or folk artistes. Obtaining a PhD has become the be all and end all for researchers, and this needs to change. Researchers need to be concerned about the current status of folk culture, and folk artistes,” he said.Folk songs and stories are passed on from one generation to another orally. The academy and the state government are recognising artistes, who are now focusing on preserving this rich tradition, said Rangayana joint director VN Mallikarjunaswamy.

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