Young eyes are opened to new culture

Certainly not in the way bigger cities are.

Many youngsters in our local schools are in classes where there aren’t any children from cultures other than white British.

Their understanding and experience of diversity can be limited to those days when parents get notes home from school to say could little Johnny please come to lessons wearing a sombrero next Thursday, prompting a mad rush around the shops of Salisbury attempting to locate such a rare item before giving up and making one out of cardboard.

So it’s great to have such a rich arts scene in the city, including shows such as Sita’s Story, coming to Salisbury Arts Centre at the weekend. Artistic director Jatinder Verma has been working to unite eastern and western culture through his south London-based company Tara Arts for the past 40 years.

And his enthusiasm has taken him to schools around the country to bring the Hindu epic The Ramayana to life for primary school children.

The tale is one that has had a huge influence on Hindu culture – exploring human relationships and values through a love story rooted in tradition.

“The primary aim is for children to enjoy it,” says Verma.

It is a story of a prince who loves a princess but is banished while a rival competes for her affections.

Any child familiar with fairy tales such as Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty will relate to it.

Tara Arts doesn’t aim to ‘preach’ or be worthy, but primarily to entertain a young audience while gently introducing them to something that is an integral part of a culture other than their own.

And theatre can be a very powerful tool in bringing home to young people that others maybe aren’t so different to them after all.

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