Ninasam: Perform or Perish, That is the Question

This case is about a small organization in a remote part of Karnataka working in the arena of performing arts and culture. The case asks the essential question of sustainability for organizations without a strong economic model, while having a zone of influence through grant funds. The research examines voluntarism frugality as a strategy for receiving philanthropic money. It also examines the organization in the analytical frame of being a contextual organization as against a conceptual organization in the not-for-profit sector. The organization runs Ninasam Theatre Institute (NTI); organizes culture appreciation courses and has a repertory. Though small, it has a considerable influence on the cultural landscape of Karnataka. Ninasam is into the 75^th year of establishment and a new and young Executive Committee (EC) has taken over the reins of the organization. It went into a bit of a limbo during the Covid 19 pandemic, and as the activities are getting back to normal, the future course of action needs to be decided. The pivot of the activity has grown around a theatre building, which building needs significant upgrade currently. The other activities also need re-definition and a good look at the revenue model of Ninasam. With these challenges, Siddartha Bhatt, the President of Ninasam, had to work his way through the EC to give it new meaning and definition, while answering the question on whether the organization continued to be relevant.

The objective is to understand the considerations that drive social and cultural enterprises that are driven by considerations other than economic considerations, and how they could continue to be relevant and find new sources of support for the purpose they represent.