Shanmukhananda Sabha will celebrate 60 years this month

Former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru would often point out that despite Mumbai's cosmopolitan nature, it lacked a large community hall for cultural activities that could house thousands at a time.

Former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru would often point out that despite Mumbai's cosmopolitan nature, it lacked a large community hall for cultural activities that could house thousands at a time.

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Taking note of Nehru's comment, three local fine art institutions came together to create the Shanmukhananda Fine Arts and Sangeetha Sabha in 1952, and set up one of the largest auditoriums in Asia.

As the Sabha entered its 60th year this month, 60 programmes have been slated for its diamond jubilee celebrations, starting with a classical musical concert on July 14. "The Sabha has been a cultural edifice in the city, giving people the benefit of art and culture" said V Shankar, president of the Sabha, which was formed when three institutions providing training in classical music - Shanmukhananda Sabha, Indian Fine Arts Circle, and South Indian Sangeetha Sabha - merged.

The Sabha set up the 3,000-seater Shanmukhananda auditorium in Sion in 1963 at a cost of Rs31.38 lakh. The auditorium has since hosted close to 15,000 programmes, including performances by artistes such as Pandit Ravi Shankar, Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, MS Subbulakshmi, and Zubin Mehta. "The Shanmukhananda Hall has the biggest seating capacity in Asia," said Shankar.

The auditorium has also regularly served as a political platform. "Every political party in the country has conducted meetings in the hall," said Shankar. In 1990, a fire destroyed the hall. "Though the fire was disastrous, we took it as an opportunity to revamp the acoustic system and bring in better technology," said Shankar.

The Sabha wants to set up similar cultural centres across the city over the next six decades to reach out to more people. "We also have plans to set up a centre for research in fine arts, as well as a centre for excellence in theatre," said Shankar.