30 April, 2020 | 4:00 - 6:00 PM | Webinar Speakers: Dhruv Sheth - COO, OML, Kathy McArdle - Director for England and Cities, British Council, Rishabh Lalani - Independent Fundraiser, Shubha Mudgal - Musician
The rapidly evolving COVID-19 situation makes it a difficult time for the cultural sector, and we are trying to explore the large-scale impact it's bringing about in the sector in general and the cultural festivals sector, in particular. British Council, in partnership with The Art X Company, designed a series of webinars on areas that need urgent attention.The first of a series of webinars around the topic, Coping with COVID 19: Financial Health and Management for Cultural Festivals was organised on Thursday 30 April 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. The session was introduced by the Director of Arts, British Council India Mr. Jonathan Kennedey where he reminded us of the contribution of arts and culture in these times to humanity and how it is important to keep making art. The first speaker of the session Dhruv Sheth, Chief Operating Officer, OML Entertainment Pvt Ltd, an agency which produces one of the biggest music festivals in India - NH7 Weekender - elaborated on financial planning methods that were useful to festivals in general and underlined the importance of planning much ahead. Dhruv also informed the audiences on how to cut your costs during such times to keep your business afloat.
The second speaker Shubha Mudgal, Musician, brought in another layer of complexity to the discussion by taking the cases of performing artists who might not be able to access technology to pivot in such times. But she also advised how artists should not be averse to change but find ways of integrating their practice with new mediums of cultural consumption to sustain themselves and their art forms. Rishabh Lalani, a fundraiser in the world of arts added to the conversation on how arts and cultural practitioners should leverage the value that arts brings to the eco-system. They should advocate for their causes through such times, but not by turning a blind eye on the graver problems that humanity will be facing. The session was brought to an end by Kathy McArdle, Director for England and Cities, British Council, who left the audience in hope with various case studies she brought from UK on how festivals were successful fighting the pandemic. She also shared her tips on the advocacy methods that could be used by the culture fraternity to bring their case to the state.
The session was well attended by 130 unique viewers from the festival sector who actively engaged with speakers on the many aspects of financial planning and strategies.
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