Panaji: The Sangeet Natak Akademi has proposed that the Goa govt establish a tiatr-related academic centre in Delhi to promote research and help take tiatr closer to Unesco recognition.Sangeet Natak Akademi deputy secretary (Drama) Suman Kumar said tiatr’s inclusion as the 56th element in India’s National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage should be used as a springboard to take the Goan art form to the global cultural stage. He said the tiatr Academy of Goa (TAG) and Goa govt must intensify efforts to protect its traditional character.At a meeting with a TAG delegation headed by president Anthony Barbosa at the akademi in New Delhi, Kumar said tiatr should be taken to academic and cultural institutions across India and countries where Goans practise the art form.The akademi proposed scholarships for students researching tiatr and collaborations with institutions working in anthropology, theatre and intangible cultural heritage. Kumar asked TAG to approach countries where tiatr is practised and seek recognition for the art form.“Such international recognition could strengthen the case for Unesco recognition by demonstrating tiatr’s presence as a living cultural tradition beyond Goa,” Kumar said.The delegation, which included TAG vice-president Marcos Gonsalves and Rajendra Borkar, officer on special duty to art and culture minister Ramesh Tawadkar, visited the akademi to thank it for its support and discuss the way forward.Kumar suggested an annual tiatr festival in Delhi, comparative studies between tiatr and other Indian theatre traditions, and visits by National School of Drama teams to Goa to study the art form in its traditional environment.“Let others experience what tiatr is,” he said, stressing that its intangible cultural heritage character must remain central to initiatives.Barbosa said TAG was open to suggestions to take tiatr to a wider audience, particularly in academic and cultural circles.
