“‘Stree Desh’ is celebration of gender justice and all that India stands for”. Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi

New Delhi: Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, Ministry of Culture, GOI, organized a dance drama production on the forgotten legendary women of Jammu and Kashmir conceptualized by Dr. Sonal Mansingh, Padma Vibhusan , Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha at Kamani auditorium, Copernicus Marg ,New Delhi. The Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts is visualised as a centre encompassing the study of all the arts which lie within a dimension of mutual interdependence, interrelated with nature, social structure and cosmology. Kashmir is considered as the crown of India and has also been called – ‘Paradise on Earth’. The docu-drama “Stree Desh”, is based on the research monograph written by Dr. Ashish Kaul based on his research on the lives and times of 13 legendary women from Kashmir, under the project of IGNCA. On this occasion English translation of “Stree Desh” book was also launched. The chief guest present at the event was Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi, Hon’ble Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture. The other prominent guests were Dr. Sonal Mansingh, Guru, Scholar, Thinker, Padmavibhusan, Member of Parliament Rajya Sabha, Dr. Sachidanand Joshi, Member Secretary, IGNCA and Shri S. P. Singh Baghel, Minister of State for Law and Justice.
Speaking at the event Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi, Hon’ble Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture, said that “Stree Desh” is about bringing narratives of conduct of 13 women rulers of Kashmir through storytelling to the common people. She added that this is a beautiful story developed and conceptualised by none other than Dr. Sonal Mansingh as she had envisioned about telling the story about benevolent rulers of Kashmir and she had put her sensibilities into the dance drama. She reiterated that codification of dance forms and ‘Natyashastra’ happened much before Christ. She concluded by saying that “Stree Desh” is celebration of gender justice and all that India stands for.
Dr. Sachidanand Joshi while deleivering his welcome address said that “Stree Desh” is a monumental work on women rulers of Kashmir, which is spread in a span of 1000 years. Dr. Joshi also felicitated the guests and the writer of book Dr. Ashish Kaul on his key and instrumental work in the field. He thanked the audience who were present in large numbers in the Kamani auditorium to attend the event.