Thirteen-year-old Dhwani S reels off all that she had done during her summer classes in one breath. “We are practising some Kalari moves to warm up for Kambadavukali (rhythmic dance with sticks). Last week, there was origami and folk music. Today I had an acting session too.” The teenager is one of the participants of a summer camp at Theatre Academy for Media and Performance (Thamp), Peroorkada. It is her third year at the annual camp organised by the contemporary art and acting collective.
Summer camps are no longer confined to options such as music, dance, yoga, fine arts, performing arts, swimming, sports, languages and theatre. Children [and parents] are spoilt for choice as organisers of summer camps come up with innovative, offbeat sessions. Educational institutions, individuals, coaching centres, cultural centres and the like have curated numerous activities for children in different age groups.
So now, there are classes in carpentry, soldering, plumbing and furniture-making. Cooking classes (no gas, no fire) have become the norm. Training in managing expenses, shop management, publishing magazines, public speaking boot camp, filmmaking, garden designing, training in Artificial Intelligence, adventure activities, new-age hobbies and art programmes…the list goes on.
