Young Achievers Awards (Tiatr Academy of Goa)

What is the Young Achievers Award of the Tiatr Academy of Goa?

Young Achievers Awards is scheme number 36 in the list of 41 schemes run by the Tiatr Academy of Goa (TAG), the autonomous body set up by the Government of Goa in 2009 under the Department of Art and Culture. Where TAG's Lifetime Contribution awards look backwards at a completed career, this award looks at artistes still building one.

The scheme document explains the purpose: there are young talented artistes who have contributed and still continue to work for the development of tiatr, its song and music, and some of them have enriched Konkani tiatr and song through All India Radio, Doordarshan and other platforms at national and international levels. The award was devised to recognise their achievements in the field.

What the award carries

• A memento
• A citation
• A cash burse as fixed by the Tiatr Academy of Goa

TAG has not published a rupee value for the cash burse in the scheme document. The phrase used is "a Cash Burse as fixed by TAG", so the amount is set by the academy and can change from year to year.

When it is presented

The selected artistes are honoured at a special function on 16 November, the birth anniversary of Regina Fernandes, described in the scheme document as the First Lady of the Tiatr Stage. Rule 6 requires the selected artistes to be compulsorily present in person to receive the award. One male artiste and one female artiste are honoured each year.

Who is eligible and who is not eligible for this award?

An artiste can be considered if:

• They are not more than 35 years of age. The age limit may be relaxed if the health of the artiste is not well.
• As a writer or director, they have written or directed at least 7 tiatrs.
• As an actor, singer, live musician, stage setting designer, background music provider, lights provider or make-up artiste, they have at least 10 years in the field and have performed in at least 15 tiatrs.

An artiste is not eligible if:

• They are over 35 and no health ground has been put forward for relaxation.
• Their record falls short of the 7-tiatr threshold for writers and directors, or of the 10-year and 15-tiatr thresholds for performers and technicians.
• They cannot attend the 16 November function in person. Attendance is compulsory.

Beyond the numeric thresholds, the scheme lists the qualitative aspects the selectors weigh: the applicant's contribution as an actor, script writer, director, singer, lyricist or set designer; whether they have received or won any awards in their field; whether they have done any innovation on the tiatr stage; whether, as a singer or musician, their songs are recorded on CDs, DVDs, All India Radio, Doordarshan or online; whether they have acted, directed, sung, composed music or lyrics, designed sets, provided background music or designed light effects for dramas in other languages or in films; and whether, as a script writer or lyricist, they have published books of their scripts or lyrics.

How to apply or nominate for the Young Achievers Award

1. Watch for the newspaper advertisement. Selection is done through recommendations from individuals and institutions and also through advertisements in local newspapers, so the advertisement marks the opening of the cycle.
2. Download the recommendation form for scheme 36 from the Schemes of TAG page at tiatracademyofgoa.com, or collect it from the TAG office at Campal, Panaji.
3. Fill the recommender section, name, address, landline and mobile numbers, Aadhaar card number with a copy enclosed, and a description of the recommender that must be below 100 characters. Sign it.
4. Fill the nominee section: name, stage name if any, address, contact number and email ID, Aadhaar card number with a copy enclosed, date of birth, number of years in the field, contribution to the tiatr stage for the last five years with proof attached, other cultural hobbies, and any prizes or awards won for singing, music and similar work.
5. Attach proof of age. The form specifies attested copies of birth or school leaving certificates, passport or driving licence, and says the original should be produced for verification.
6. Attach proof of the last five years of contribution. This is the substance of the nomination: recordings, programme sheets, press cuttings, photographs and letters from troupes all help.
7. Sign both declarations — that you have read and understood the rules of the scheme and abide by them, and that the information given is true to the best of your knowledge, date the form, and submit it to the Tiatr Academy of Goa, AS-1, 2nd Floor, Campal Trade Centre, Campal, Panaji, Goa 403001.

How does TAG select the two awardees?

Selection is made on the criteria set out in the scheme, applied to recommendations received from individuals and institutions and to responses to the newspaper advertisement. The Executive Board of TAG may also select deserving artistes from outside the recommended list, so a young artiste who has never been formally recommended can still be picked. Exactly two awards are given each year, one to a male artiste and one to a female artiste.

What are the common reasons a nomination fails?

• The nominee is over 35 and no health ground has been raised for relaxation.
• Short of the tiatr count. Seven tiatrs written or directed, or 15 tiatrs performed in with 10 years in the field, are hard numbers.
• No proof attached for the last five years of contribution. The form's own instruction is "attach proof", and a bare list is weak.
• Original age document not produced at verification.
• Recommender description over 100 characters. The form specifies this limit.
• Missing Aadhaar copies. Both the recommender and the nominee have Aadhaar fields on the form.

Where do I contact TAG about this award?

The Tiatr Academy of Goa office is at AS-1, 2nd Floor, Campal Trade Centre, Campal, Panaji, Goa 403001, phone 0832-2230738, fax 0832-2230739, email tiatracademy@gmail.com. Under the Right to Information Act, the Member Secretary of TAG is the Public Information Officer and the President of TAG is the First Appellate Authority. TAG reserves the right under rule 8 of this scheme to make changes in the rules, so work from the current PDF on the Schemes of TAG page before preparing a nomination.

Key facts to remember

• Scheme 36 of 41 TAG schemes; the award for young Konkani tiatr talent.
• Maximum age 35, relaxable on health grounds.
• Two awards a year; one male artiste and one female artiste.
• At least 7 tiatrs written or directed; or 10 years in the field with at least 15 tiatrs performed in.
• Memento, citation and a cash burse fixed by TAG.
• Presented on 16 November, the birth anniversary of Regina Fernandes.

How to check your nomination status

The Young Achievers Award has no online tracking portal or application ID system. TAG does not publish scheme 36 nominations on a dashboard, so a recommender or nominee has to follow up directly rather than log in anywhere.

1. Call the TAG office first. The number is 0832-2230738. Ask whether the recommendation form for scheme 36 was received and whether it is complete, especially the Aadhaar copies and the proof of the last five years of contribution, since an incomplete file is the most common reason a nomination sits without moving forward.
2. Follow up in writing if the call does not resolve it. Email tiatracademy@gmail.com with the nominee's name and the date the form was submitted, or send a letter to the Tiatr Academy of Goa, AS-1, 2nd Floor, Campal Trade Centre, Campal, Panaji, Goa 403001. Keep a copy of whatever you send, since there is no acknowledgement receipt built into the process.
3. Watch for the announcement around 16 November. Because exactly two artistes are chosen each year and honoured in person at the Regina Fernandes anniversary function, the practical way most nominees learn the outcome is the announcement of that year's awardees rather than an earlier status update.
4. Use the RTI route if a formal answer is needed. Under the Right to Information Act, the Member Secretary of TAG is the Public Information Officer for the academy, so a nominee who wants a documented response about the status or outcome of a specific nomination can file an RTI application addressed to the Member Secretary, with the President of TAG as the First Appellate Authority if the reply is unsatisfactory.

If a health-ground age relaxation was claimed under Rule 6, mention this specifically when calling or writing, since it is a manual exception that the office needs to flag against the file rather than something a standard status check would surface on its own.