When I first came to Lucknow University, I was quite sure that there would be very little presence of art or cinema. But to my surprise, LU has continued to grow in art and cinema, despite its politically dominated campus and limited interaction with the outside creative world. The university has many societies working extensively in the field of art. These societies may function under LU’s art and culture wing Sanskriti, or may be independently organised and run by students, like LU Litcore. In any case, art has found its way to grow inside Lucknow University.
Historically, Lucknow is a culturally rich city. Its Nawabi culture and rebellious spirit have produced art that is both refined and confrontational. That spirit is clearly reflected in Lucknow University, where independent societies constantly struggle to find their space on campus and are often overlooked by the administration. But this ignorance does not weaken their courage to create; instead, it becomes the motivation to build something new, to question and explore, and to produce work that stays unbiased in its essence.
Despite all these hurdles, Lucknow University has emerged from administrative politics to become an artistic hub of the city. Wherever you go on campus, you’ll come across groups of students practicing their art, in PMP, near the libraries, around Shivaji Park, or by the old sculpture department. These places have witnessed countless forms of art being born. They have unknowingly become workshops for unknown artists who may not be widely recognised, but who tried. These corners of the campus have silently carried the weight of thousands of creative attempts.
LU has always had a thirst for artistic events. However very few large-scale events happen on campus beyond student-run programmes and, even those must navigate several administrative hurdles. External collaborations are extremely rare, sometimes barely reaching single digits in a semester. This lack of collaboration creates a bubble, limiting artists from exploring beyond Lucknow. Such collaborations could provide new exposure, new experiences, connections, and most importantly the motivation that the University is watching, supporting, and valuing the artists of its own campus. Without this, much of the hard work of student creators remains overlooked.
Very few people who graduated from Lucknow University have built successful careers in cinema or art. Some of these names include Anil Rastogi, Amitabh Bhattacharya, and Raj Bisaria, people who fought their way to where they stand today.
In the end, I would say that Lucknow University is a place where rebellious forms of art have grown silently and are now becoming part of the University’s identity. The administration should support these artistic movements and help them gain a proper space at LU. A university should not only provide education, but also create thinkers, students who question, debate, find solutions, and fight for what is right, even when that struggle is against the institution itself.