Government should not make any investment in arts, as it is a sheer wastage

Government should not make any investment in arts, as it is a sheer wastage


Government should not make any investment in arts, as it is a sheer wastage. It should use that money in public services rather.
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Art is generally described as the application of human creative skill and imagination to create a visual form such as painting, sculptures etc which are appreciated for their aesthetics and emotional connections to a culture or life forms.

Like said by Aristotle “The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance”, I firmly believe that art is one of the biggest heritages of a country and culture. The Governments in the developing countries like India should in fact,
invest more in art. It is not wastage, rather an investment which is done to enhance the cultural heritage of a country and to portray its strong foundations.

Art is a means that allow people to use their personal strengths in meaningful ways and provide opportunities for self – expression. For a healthy nation, it is very important that its people have various means of expressing themselves and art is one of them. Art is responsible for enhancing the social, critical and creative skills of people. It provides a sense of Independence and collaboration, both of which are needed to create a happy and healthy nation.

It is due to its art forms that India is so high on the list of tourism, for tourists from all over the world. Indian paintings which have their roots in the Indus Valley Civilization, Indian pottery, sculptures dating back to the Harappa period, various dance forms like Bharat Natyam, Kathakali , Manipuri etc are responsible for extracting millions of tourists every year and generating huge amounts of tourism income. Not to forget Indian theatre is one of the oldest in the world and world still has number of ardent fans of the same.

It’s true that public services are basic necessities that every citizen has a right on and in developing countries; there is a lot of scope for their improvement and enhancement. But according to me, diverting the investments from the field of arts into public services is not the solution. Both these fields are important in their own ways and need attention but not at the cost of each other. Funds for both should be raised through more effective strategies and financial planning, rather than curbing funds for each other.

Neither can one survive without public services like fire brigade, army, paramedics etc nor can one live in a concrete jungle without colours, patterns, sculptures or to put it together – without art.
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    Discussion

  • RE: Government should not make any investment in arts, as it is a sheer wastage -Teena Bhatia (08/25/14)
  • Art is an integral part of people’s lives. Whether people admit it or reject it, they use art in every sphere of life. Some people use it knowingly whereas some use it unknowingly. Without the existence of art, humans will be another form of a beast with no objective in life. Any society, country or community has got a distinct form of culture and the way of representing art. The forms of art boast the aesthetic side of culture. It has got the power to break the conservative shackles of any society leading to a whole new world of illumination. It broadens the perspective of people and forces the mankind to take out some time to have some quiet time with the inner self. It is, therefore, essential for the government to focus on the art sphere. It will help the mankind to understand the essence of life.

    The economy is continuously trying to battle with the problem of unemployment. People think that a formal education in science and Maths can make a career. A formal degree in art is just a waste of money and time. Well, let us connect it with the facts. Have a look around you and check out the people who are unemployed. Most of them are engineers, MBAs with no jobs in hand. On the other hand, people who have pursued arts find it easy to use their skills in making up their career. Even if they can’t find a job, they are capable enough of starting their own business. So, investment in arts is the way to become an entrepreneur. The more entrepreneurs a country has, the more strong economy it will have. The key is self-dependence, and that comes from the knowledge of art.

    The arts and cultural organization faces tremendous financial pressure. It is not easy for the departments to get the funds. They do contribute in the GDP but still find it tough to get the investment. The need is to understand the impact of art on economy. Remember, it is the art that not only has got the capability to fire the people's imaginations, but also has the power to make them self-sufficient in the competitive world.