Goa is gearing for the fourth edition of the week-long Serendipity Arts Festival that begins tomorrow. What started as a simple platform for the diverse artistic expressions of the region, has grown bigger. Smriti Rajgarhia, director of the festival, says, "After witnessing the response we have received over the years, we feel it's essential to have an accelerator that not only gives a platform to diverse artistic expressions, but also incubates new and innovative approaches to the arts. Our region is rich with multiple cultural practices and we needed scale for these regional expressions to bloom. That is really the force behind this initiative. This not only facilitates the shaping of newer artistic pursuits, but is also an opportunity to uphold the variety of our cultural heritage and connect us to our roots."

With over 100 projects the festival will take place across 10 venues in Panaji, involving over 1,500 artistes across seven disciplines—craft, culinary arts, dance, music, theatre, visual arts and photography. "All the disciplines this year have ambitious projects, not only in terms of scale, but also the conversations that can arise out of them. There is a lot of emphasis on sustainable practices, particularly in the culinary programming. The highlight is also the public-private partnership, and how we can adapt old typologies to new, creating a cultural fabric over the beautiful existing urban structures of Panaji," adds Rajgarhia.