Margi feels the crunch as akademi stops grants

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Margi theatre, which has been promoting classical art forms for almost four decades, is now caught in huge financial crisis with the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi (Koodiyattom centre) stopping the salary grant to the former. For the past five months, the Margi office-bearers are forced to shell out money from their own pockets to tide over the crisis.However, they are still unable to make both ends meet.
The authorities have to give salary to the teachers and other staff and distribute stipend to students. The distribution of grant has been halted owing to certain technical hurdles. "We have been holding talks with the academy officials for some time now, but they say that the grant cannot be provided until the hurdles are cleared," said Margi secretary S Sreenivasan. Salary of some of the faculty and stipend for students of Koodiyattam (Rs 1,000 per student) has not been given for the past few months.
Margi theatre has 40 faculties (28 for Kathakali and 12 for Koodiyattam).
The grant received from the cultural department of the state, according to the officials, is too insufficient. "The state government is giving Rs 35 lakh. The fund is adequate only for giving salaries to Kathakali teachers. Salary of Koodiyattam faculties is not being distributed. We had pooled the amount from the administrative members to give away Onam bonus to them," Sreenivasan said.
Meanwhile, minister for culture K C Joseph said he was unaware of the issue. "The officials of Margi have never intimated me about the issue of salary grants being stopped by the Sangeetha Nataka Academi. The issue will be looked into, after which the grant distribution will be resumed," he said.
Devaswom minister V S Sivakumar had also promised the Margi authorities to consider the demand in the cabinet.
Sreenivasan also urged the government to allot land for the theatre. "Margi was launched in 1970. The Kathakali centre at Fort and the Koodiyattam centre at Valiyasala are owned by Travancore Devaswom Board, for which the theatre has to pay rent, which is a burden on us," he said.