The immortal philosopher Plato writes that music is a moral law that gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and charm to the gaiety of life and to everything. It is rather an experiential kind of phenomenon that is the only source of positivity that can unite the mankind. Myriad centuries passed by after Plato and the world situation is getting more volatile year after year. It has become all the more important to carefully create heavens of culture for a brave new world of tomorrow, or else the world that is too much with us would drain out our humaneness. Here the role of music becomes so pivotal. Music creates the harmony in life that is emanated from the true nature of this Universe. As Hans Christian Anderson rightly puts it as when words fail, music speaks. That is the diplomacy of music and it has always been a faculty of mankind to ennoble itself.

This is the idea behind the creation of Indian Institute for Performing Arts over 21 years ago. We want to create a bridge between music and busy expatriate life and thus unwind the stressful life and associated problems customary to a busy human life. It is countered through inculcating a culture that truly reflects the values of humanity and its oneness. But we didn’t reserve our activities within the fold of our classes in music, dance and art only. Society needs to be inspired by great models of this sublime musical culture. We brought many high-quality musical events with world-class artists with this aim to give our society a chance to enjoy good music.

Standing upon the threshold of time I am now thinking about the landmark moments through which the Indian Institute for Performing Arts(IIPA) has gone through over a period of 21 years of its existence in the Kingdom of Bahrain. In such a retrospective mood, what comes to my mind are the moments we spent in IIPA along with my Guruji Dr.M.Balamuralikrishna. That heavenly concert was the realisation of a long cherished dream since the inception of this Institute. The very next year Pt.Ramesh Narayan was brought as a representative of Mevathi Gharana of traditional Hindustani music hailed by the great Guru Pandit Jasraj. Irrespective of the fact whether it is of Northern or Southern style, music belongs to the true sense of oneness within all of us. This is the message we intend to disseminate through these concerts. Our third event in this series was a magnificent classical concert of a true legend of our times, Dr.K.J Yesudas. Our fourth event was a heavenly shower of pure Ghazals of the Velvet Voice of India, late Sri.Pankaj Udhas. This concert was widely appreciated in every aspect of that event. Yet another sublime musical experience followed in 2017 itself.
The most widely-loved style of unadulterated Ghazal music showered in the hearts of music lovers in Bahrain. The one and only Ustad Ghulam Ali, the Emperor of Ghazals, and his full team of musicians made a grand performance in Bahrain. The solemn Ghazals he gifted to the music world are so rich in their emotional texture along with the soulful music they contain. They unite and delight society rather than limit and inhibit. Music is the binding force here that is truly beyond geographical barriers. I sincerely believe that by bringing these all time favourite events to Bahrain, we are moving ahead in our committed path of bringing very high quality music and arts for cultural unity and enlightenment to the society to which we belong.

In English Literature, to evaluate the quality of a poem, one needs to use a touchstone. It is nothing other than comparing it with the great poetic works of all-time masters like Shakespeare, Milton, Byron, Wordsworth, Keats, and Shelley, etc. Likewise, to get the idea about a sublime kind of music, we should have touchstones of our all-time masters available to us. Staying away from one’s Motherland, obviously, it is difficult to get such an exposure to the sublime levels of our classical arts. Our endeavors are aimed at bridging this gap. IIPA’s contribution also play a pivotal role  to music lovers in Bahrain to enjoy the very high quality music and getting their touchstones in place. They are acquiring the essential knowledge that comes in through hearing. I cannot end this message without mentioning the constructive help and support extended by certain contributors, students, friends, well-wishers and above all the Management of IIPA through which only we gain strength to achieve these goals. They are the ones who actually light up our sky. The bondage of IIPA with such contributors is immeasurable. At this juncture of complacency let me take this opportunity to thank one and all for everything they did that helped these musically rich moments to unfold.

I encapsulate the vision and mission of IIPA to culturally serve the society and our earnestness to make IIPA a noble seat of learning. We believe this will result in enhancement of the quality of our lives. This is the basic ideal pursued by this Institution all throughout these 21 years of its existence and will continue to be same.

With thanks and regards,

Ambilikuttan
Indian Institute for Performing Arts (IIPA)
Kingdom of Bahrain
Phone: +973 17231717 / Mob: +973 39055938
E mail : ambilikuttan@gmail.com
Website: www.iipabahrain.com