Balanand aims to represent and encourage the creativity in school children from all over the country by providing an opportunity to participate in a fun art competition based on a theme. This year's theme is 'Ahimsa’ in line with 150 years of celebrating Mahatma Gandhi. In collaboration with the Inner Wheel Club Association and Kalanand artists, Balanand patrons fund the workshops.
The Balanand contests were held in a 150 schools across India. View the gallery for more.
Balanand aims to represent and encourage the creativity in school children from all over the country by providing an opportunity to participate in a fun art competition based on a theme. This year's theme is 'Ahimsa’ in line with 150 years of celebrating Mahatma Gandhi. In collaboration with the Inner Wheel Club Association and Kalanand artists, Balanand patrons fund the workshops.
The Balanand contests were held in a 150 schools across India. View the gallery for more.
BALANAND is A creative classroom initiative
cultivating imagination, sensitivity, mindfulness and joy in schools.
Balanand is a creative classroom initiative of the Prafulla Dahanukar Art Foundation dedicated to bringing creativity, mindfulness, and value-based learning directly into schools for children between the ages of 9 and 12. The program creates spaces where children can rediscover their innate imagination, curiosity, sensitivity, and joy through experiential arts-based learning.
More than an art program, Balanand is envisioned as a living and engaging space where creativity becomes a way of learning, relating, and understanding the world. Through carefully designed creative explorations, children are encouraged to express themselves freely, develop confidence in their ideas, and experience art not merely as a subject, but as a meaningful part of everyday life.
The program is facilitated by alumni of the Swahansa Expressive Arts programs, who bring arts-based, reflective, and community-oriented approaches into the classroom. Using accessible, local, and nature-based materials and processes, facilitators guide children through experiences that encourage imagination, emotional awareness, collaboration, and sensitivity to their surroundings.
The curriculum
The Balanand curriculum, developed by Gopika Dahanukar, Swahansa Expressive Arts India, in collaboration with the Foundation, integrates:
01
Creative Imagination
02
Mindfulness through the Arts
03
Sensitivity to Nature
04
Community Values and Inclusion
05
Emotional Expression and Reflection
At the heart of the program
Every child carries a natural capacity for creativity, empathy, wonder, and connection.
When nurtured intentionally, these qualities become the foundation for emotional resilience, ethical awareness, compassionate relationships, and joyful learning.
Explore
their imagination freely and confidently.
Explore
mindful attention through artistic processes.
Develop
sensitivity to nature and their environment.
Practice
kindness, collaboration, and inclusion within the classroom community.
Strengthen
self-expression, listening, and creative confidence.
The classroom
The classroom transforms into a space where creativity is not competitive but collaborative; where differences are welcomed and celebrated; and where children learn to see, listen, and respond with compassion and care.
In a rapidly changing world, nurturing creativity is not optional — it is essential. The Balanand curriculum affirms that art education can shape not only skilled hands, but also sensitive hearts, thoughtful minds, and socially aware young individuals.
Through this initiative, the Prafulla Dahanukar Art Foundation remains committed to building classrooms where imagination flourishes, mindfulness deepens, and community values take root — one child, one classroom, and one school at a time.