DASTAK 2010: Sensitising Youth to Issues of Gender Equality
The Sangeet Natya Academy, situated on the banks of Gomti river, in middle of old and new city of Lucknow, will reverberate with the voices of young participants at a Youth Festival to be organized from 29th to 31st January 2010.
The youth festival is being organized by Oxfam India and 'Lokayat' to provide them a platform to discuss issues around gender discrimination and to work towards changing stereotypes. This youth festival will use the creative channels to instill among the youth an understanding of aspects related to gender equality and violence against women.
Oxfam India has been working on the issue of violence against women for the past several years, including grassroots level participation with educational institutes. The objective is to provide visibility to the issues of violence against women (VAW) and develop a Gender just perspective in the young minds. Lokayat works through reference centres for developing equity based understanding amongst the youth and enable their active participation to voice out concerns for social cause.
The event is expected to draw an audience of 250 to 300 people ranging from cultural activists, writers, intellectuals, journalists to development workers. The audience will participate in the event as judges, guest, catalysts etc. and will also touch the lives of 2000- 3000 students through associated events.
Dignitaries like Atul Tiwari, (Actor, director and dialogue writer), Malini Awasthi (renowned folk singer) have confirmed their presence among several other eminent feminist writers and people from creative world to confirm their participation.
The festival will promote greater public discourse on women's rights as human rights. The youth participants at this event will subsequently act as thought ambassadors for their friends and peers in college. It will also act as a vehicle for dissemination of information on protection of women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 as well as other laws with regard to women's rights.