Mrs. Sangita Jindal has a long history of supporting cultural heritage and the arts. As Chairperson of the JSW Foundation, she strategizes and oversees social development projects within the JSW Group. A philanthropist who believes in the transformatory powers of art, Sangita set up The Jindal Arts Centre (1992) at the National Center for Performing Art, Mumbai, India which became a hub of interdisciplinary arts activity. She also publishes Art India Magazine which has been a chronicler of record of the Indian Art scene for over two decades.

Sangita is an Eisenhower Fellow and is on the Board of Trustees of the World Monuments Fund and an Advisor on the Khoj Board. She has been inducted as a key member of Tate International Council as well as UN Women Business Sector Advisory Council (BSAC). She has recently won the Golden Peacock Award for Social and Cultural Leadership 2019.

Here’s why Sangita supports cultural heritage and community engagement.

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On the importance of preserving cultural heritage:

A country without a heritage is like a man or a woman who has lost his memory. A nation is lifeless and hollow like empty husks without a rich tradition.

Without a cultural legacy, we grapple in the dark to find ourselves, our origins and our multi-layered identities. Besides grounding us and giving us a sense of belonging, culture and heritage also fill us with wonder, awe and aesthetic pleasure.

On the ability of cultural heritage to change lives:

Imagine a city or a country with only functional architecture, with skyscrapers or studio apartments! In Mumbai, people spend most of the time in local trains to reach their office and then travel back home. Their life is like clockwork. At the same time the city and its layered architecture frame their lives, and there must be moments that despite their busyness their eyes see the intricate details of the CST station, Flora Fountain or the Keneseth Eliyahoo synagogue. They must be gazing at their design and architecture.

A historical site can animate a place with a hoard of echoes from the past. Spaces have a psychic effect on human beings and evoke emotions. I am sure that these monuments provide people with a sense of pride and also inspire them to dream big. Heritage also encourages a new way of looking and being, as your self is mediated, shaped and changed by the space you inhabit.

Global Heritage Fund project site of Amer Fort, India, where we are working with architect Abha Narain Lambah on site management. Photo: Amit Pasricha/Global Heritage Fund

On the importance of engaging civil society in cultural heritage projects:

Communities should know their past. To move forward, one eye should always look back at the past. Our history is quite heterogenous. We have had exchange relationships with several nations right from ancient times. Many traders, travelers, artists, and conquerors have visited our part of the world, some of whom later settled here and made it their home. They all left behind a trace of their presence. Our country is like a palimpsest with overlapping histories that can be spotted in one single monument.

The knowledge of history helps people to embrace variety, difference and not fall prey to narrowness and rigidity. This knowledge of a textured heritage has a strong symbolic power in this era of division, building walls and deep-controlling of borders.

On the importance of women leadership in heritage:

Women have been excluded from making policies and decisions related to statecraft and world politics for ages. Historically women have mostly been in subordinate roles, as agents to powerful male figures. They were relegated to the domestic world, where they performed roles of nurturing, caring and growing families.

Now the situation has changed and many women have come out of the confines of their homes and are performing several functions. But I hope that women don’t forget their role of nurturers. It’s our duty now to lead by example, to provide an alternative vision, to repair what has been severed and broken. Since our participation in erecting and destroying these heritage sites was scant, let’s now weave our stories in the narratives of these places by preserving them!

Global Heritage Fund project site of Amer Fort, India. Photo: Amit Pasricha/Global Heritage Fund

On her support for Global Heritage Fund:

First and foremost, I want to save the future generation from an inheritance of loss. My act is against erasure and the erosion of our legacy. At the same time, acts of restoration and preservation should accompany inclusivity and foster newer dialogues. Recently JSW helped in the restoration of 135-year-old Keneseth Eliyahoo synagogue in Mumbai. For the first time, non-Jews were not only allowed to walk inside to admire the place of worship, but were also welcomed to take part in the prayers. I was the first woman who was allowed to enter the prayer area and deliver a speech from there.

Secondly the vision of GHF matches my own. We both believe in empowering people by making them aware of their diverse pasts and shared history. People should know that communities across divides and fault lines are mirror images of each other. We share too much with each other and only shadow lines separate us.

On a GHF project that stands out to her:

I am partial towards Hampi because of personal involvement in its restoration. In partnership with Global Heritage Fund, JSW has restored the 15th century Chandramouleshwara Temple in Anegundi, while we continue work on the Soumya Someshwar Temple. JSW has also set up an art village called Kaladham on a 10-acre plot at Vijayanagar, 25km from the Hampi World Heritage Site. It is an art and culture precinct that includes major buildings, dance and performance pavilions, and artists’ studios.

Global Heritage Fund’s former project site of Hampi, India.