Geetha KH

This Foundation Project implemented by IFA will engage fifth and sixth grade students of the Government Lower Primary School, in Yelagudige, Chikkamagaluru district in a project titled Beejadinda Battalige (From seed to Coffee Mug). They will learn and document the entire process of coffee production through a series of multidisciplinary activities, connecting their curriculum of science, language and social science. Geetha KH is the Coordinator for this project. 

Geetha KH is an Assistant Teacher from Chikkamagaluru in Chikkamagaluru district. During her earlier project, supported by IFA she engaged her students in exploring Kolata and Kasuti kale - two art forms from the nomadic Banjara community of the region. Given her experience she is best placed to be the Coordinator of this Foundation Project of IFA. 

Coffee is one of the popular beverages in India. It occupies an important place in hospitality, social gatherings, celebrations, picnics, excursions, meetings etc. For the young and old alike coffee is both a traditional drink as well as a contemporary beverage. For millions of people dawn breaks over a cup of hot coffee. Coffee has a journey of transformation: from the plantation to the processing unit, and from roasting to brewing. As the beans are slowly and meticulously transformed into our favourite drink, each step of this journey has ingredients for learning.  

The key objective of this project is to actively engage students in exploring the journey of coffee, the stories associated with it and reflect on the ways in which coffee is associated with individuals, families, and the society. A combination of interviews taken by students, museum visits and workshops conducted by experts with participation from students are planned which will also take into account the cultural diversity of the children enrolled in the school. 

The project has three parts. Firstly students will also get an overview to how the coffee crop first came to Karnataka. They will document the experiences of the owners of Panduranga Coffee and Jayanthi Coffee Works who have been running the coffee industry in Chikkamagaluru for several decades. Secondly, the children will interact with the workers of the coffee estates, most of whom are from the scheduled castes and tribes and are migrants from various states. For four months they work at the estates and then move on to other regions taking their kids with them. The students will collect their stories in all their diversity and turn them into creative writing pieces and small plays and perform them at their colonies. Geetha will also invite women workers, writers, and theatre artists to conduct workshops for students to engage in a series of discussions. Thirdly, coffee will be used to create self-portraits, landscapes and compositions. A public exhibition of these paintings will be organised at the end of the project. It is hoped that the children will understand the community's aspirations and experiences through this project.

The outcomes of the project will be a series of performances, an exhibition and a publication. The Project Coordinator’s deliverables to IFA with the final report will be the publication and photographs and video documentation of the entire project including the performance and exhibition.

This project suitably addresses the framework of IFA’s Arts Education programme in the manner in which it attempts to connect students and schools to the cultural knowledge of the local communities they live in. 

IFA will ensure that the implementation of this project happens in a timely manner and funds expended are accounted for. IFA will also review the progress of the project at midterm and document it through an Implementation Memorandum. After the project is finished and all deliverables are submitted, IFA will put together a Final Evaluation to share with Trustees.