Calendar
Following is a list of events that IFA held or is planning to hold in Mumbai:
March 26, 2015 | Every Time you Tell a Story | Venue: Sakshi Gallery
A film by Ruchika Negi and Amit Mahanti, that offers an interpretation of history, a way of understanding the shifts that the Tsungkotepsu shawl-making tradition has experienced when confronted with the certitudes of history – colonialism, new religion and assimilation in the Indian State. Through histories that have written themselves onto its fabric, how does the story continue to resonate today?
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March 25, 2015 | Across, Not Over | Venue: Sitara Studio
A performance by Vikram Iyengar, choreographed by Preethi Athreya, that engages with the Kathak dance form in an essentially material way, challenging the verticality of the form and the hierarchy of the feet.
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October 09 and 11, 2014 | IFA Film Festival | Venue: Somaiya Centre for Lifelong Learning and The Hive
A showcase of films supported by IFA in association with Somaiya Centre for Lifelong Learning. The festival featured City of Photos by Nishtha Jain, Out of Thin Air by Shabani Hassanwalia & Sameeran Farooqui, The Nine Months by Merajur Rahman Baruah and The Other Song by Saba Dewan.
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June 27 and 28, 2014 | u-ra-mi-li | Venue: Somaiya Centre for Lifelong Learning and The Hive
A film-screening and presentation of the u-ra-mi-li project by Anushka Meenakshi and Iswar Srikumar. The duo travel through landscapes bringing together rhythms and songs of train singers and cattle herders, songs of embroidery and those of protest from Himachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Assam, Mizoram, Tamilnadu, Kerala and Kutch. Partly funded by a research and documentation grant from the IFA, 'neihi mozo hanü dizo le (without you I am nothing)' is a film about the polyphonic music that accompanies paddy cultivation in the village of Phek in Nagaland. This film takes an in-depth look at the form of the work song, and the context in which these songs have thrived.
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May 9 and 10, 2014 | Cultural Re-imaginations: Experiments in Creative Placemaking, Indrani Baruah | Partner: Mohile Parikh Center | Venue: Somaiya Centre for Lifelong Learning and The Hive
A presentation on Indrani Baruah's project to construct a raft-like structure in collaboration with bamboo artisans and boat-builders in Guwahati and travel along the River Brahmaputra, collecting, sharing and documenting stories, songs and local knowledge about the region, thus creating a mobile space for collaborations and conversations, attracting artists and performers from all the across the region.
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March 21 and 22, 2014 | Guftagu: An Exploration into Urdu's Popular Culture | Partner: Project 88 and Percept Art Gallery | Venue: Project 88 and Percept Art Gallery
A presentation by Gautam Pemmaraju on the Hyderabad/Deccan comic-satire poetic tradition known as Dakhani Mizahiya Shairi, Dakhani vernacular history and traditions, and the decline of Urdu and the composite culture of the region and a talk by Yousuf Saeed on the historical and socio-political relevance of printed images from popular Urdu literature produced in the first half of the 20th century, and the stories they reveal of Urdu's transformation from a language, reflecting the cultural plurality of North India, to one associated with Islam.
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March 20, 2014 | Presentation by Amrita Gupta Singh | Partner: Sir JJ School of Art | Venue: Sir JJ School of Art
A presentation by art historian and writer, Amrita Gupta Singh, on her project to create an online archive that documents the visual cultures of the Northeast, focusing on contemporary arts practice in Shillong, Guwahati and Silchar.
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December 18 and 19, 2013 | Film Screening: Wall Stories | Partner: Sakshi Gallery and Temperance | Venue: Sakshi Gallery and Temperance
A film by Shashwati Talukdar, on the syncretic culture of the Garhwal region of India as depicted in the murals adorning the walls of various religious shrines and homes in the region.
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November 7 and 8, 2013 | Surpanakha & Muharram Songs | Partner: Project 88 and The Art Loft | Venue: Project 88 and The Art Loft
An audio-visual presentation by Epsita Halder on her study of the narrative of the Battle of Karbala across different districts of West Bengal and a lecture-demonstration by Ashavari Majumdar on her experiments with Kathak through a performance based on the story of Surpanakha.
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July 25, 2013 | Artist in the Archive: History as Muse | Partner: CONA | Venue: CONA
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July 11-31, 2013 | Beyond Pain: An Afterlife, Vasudha Thozhur | Partner: Sakshi Gallery and Project 88 in collaboration with Himmat | Venue: Sakshi Gallery and Project 88
‘Beyond Pain: An Afterlife’ is an exhibition of drawings, paintings, posters, prints, books and videos realized during a decade-long project undertaken after the Gujarat riots in 2002.
Broadly speaking, ‘Beyond Pain: An Afterlife’ examines the role that art practices can play in a collective trauma such as that which gripped Gujarat in 2002 and addresses a range of issues from personal loss to displacement and the possibility of mobilization and the economic revival though the use of the visual language.
This project was made possible in collaboration with Himmat, a women’s collective formed by those widowed in Naroda Patiya in 2002, with the initiative of Monica Wahi and Zaid Ahmed Shaikh. It was funded by two successive grants from India Foundation for the Arts, Bangalore, and supported by Khoj International Artists’ Association, New Delhi.
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June 28, 2013 | Image + Word: Recent Developments in Indian Storytelling Traditions | Partner: Godrej Culture Lab | Venue: Godrej Culture Lab
A presentation and talk by Vidyun Sabhaney, moderated by Parmesh Shahani, Head, Godrej Culture Lab
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June 27, 2013 | Chilka: The Story of an Epic and the Quest it Sparked | Partner: Kitab Khana | Venue: Kitab Khana
A talk featuring images and experiences from the collaborative practice of comic book writers/artists Vidyun Sabhaney and Shohei Emura - specifically, their comic 'Chilka' which was featured in the Pao Anthology (2012).
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June 14 and 15, 2013 | Once Upon a Time in Nagaland | Partner: ARTIndia Magazine and False Ceiling Gallery | Venue: Artisans' Centre and False Ceiling Gallery
A presentation and talk by Aditi Chitre and Seno Tsuhah on their storytelling workshop with the children of Chizami village in Nagaland. Abhay Sardesai, Editor, ARTIndia Magazine will be present to moderate the event.
An informal conversation with Aditi Chitre and Seno Tsuhah about their work with the children of Chizami, followed by a discussion with Sumana Chandrashekar, Programme Executive, IFA.
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December 6, 2012 | Film Screening: City of Photos by Nishtha Jain | Partner: Last Ship | Venue: Last Ship
Screening of the IFA supported film City of Photos by Mumbai-based documentary filmmaker Nishtha Jain.
City of Photos explores the little known ethos of neighborhood photo studios in Indian cities, discovering entire imaginary worlds in the smallest of spaces. Desires, memories and stories all so deeply linked to photographs all come together as a part of the personal journey into the city of photos.
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November 2 and 3, 2012 | Workshop and Grantee Showcase | Partner: Mohile Parikh Center | Venue: Studio X
A workshop by comic artist, illustrator and IFA grantee Gokul Gopalakrishnan on November 2 on how to plot and design a comic. The theme of the workshop was the close link between comic art and the development of urban centres.
This was followed by a discussion of the work done by IFA grantees Subhendu Dasgupta and Gokul on November 3, moderated by cultural critic and author Girish Shahane, on the evolution of vernacular comic art in India between the 1950’s and 1970’s and its role in shaping socio-political discourse.
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August 24, 2012 | Grantee Showcase | Partner: Project 88 | Venue: Project 88
A showcase of two IFA grants, both seeking to give fresh context to vanishing artistic and cultural traditions.
M V Bhaskar, was given an IFA grant to photograph, scan and digitally trace the 16th century murals of the Chengam Venugopala Parthasarthy temple in Tamil Nadu, parts of which are badly damaged. Through his novel method of conservation Bhaskar plans to give these ancient images new life by using them in animation and for kalamkari work. Through his work, Bhaskar has provided a fresh lexicon of images for kalamkari artists in the region while ensuring the survival of the beautiful murals in contemporary society.
Justin McCarthy received an IFA grant to study the Kshetrayya padam, a form of 17th century erotic, love poetry in the Carnatic music and Bharatanatyam traditions composed by Telugu poet Kshetrayya. Composed at a time when Devadasis performed Bharatanatyam, the padams underwent changes post independence to match-up to the lofty ideals of a young nation, newly infused with Victorian morality. As a consequence, Devadasis were progressively marginalised and Bharatanatyam and Carnatic music were systematically ‘cleaned-up’. Through a film on a Bharatanatyam dancer’s exploration of these specific padams, Justin seeks to study their transformation post independence, their association with the Devadasi system and the socio-cultural factors that influenced their present day representation in music and dance. Part of his project involves the study of temple murals depicting scenes from these padams, which is where his work coincides with that of Bhaskar.
Both projects seek to re-energise traditional art forms. Through their presentations, Bhaskar and Justin will describe as well as identify historical and cultural links between their projects.
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July 6, 2012 | Open House with Clearing House | Partner: ArtIndia | Venue: National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai
A discussion on the origins and literary contributions of Mumbai’s own poetry collective – Clearing House. This event is moderated by journalist, author and poet Jerry Pinto, who received an IFA grant to write a book on the Collective. The other discussants are Gieve Patel, one of the contributing members of the collective and Abhay Sardesai, the editor of ArtIndia magazine.
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June 14, 2012 | The Curatorial Digest – Exhibition as Text: Archiving the Studio Project | Partner: Mohile Parikh Centre | Venue: National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai
A discussion of an exhibition, an archive of the studio of artist Ranbir Kaleka, curated by Akansha Rastogi, the Associate Curator of the Kiran Nadar Museum. Akansha inhabited and archived the studio as part of a curatorial residency in November, 2011, which was supported by IFA. Her work has opened up the discourse on curatorial practices in the country by raising critical questions on the relationship between artistic autonomy and curatorial practice.
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April 7 and 8, 2012 | The IFA Festival, Mumbai | Partner: Prithvi Theatre | Venue: Prithvi Theatre
A two-day festival showcasing the work of some of IFA’s grantees to mark the launch of our Mumbai chapter. The event featured performances by Aasakta Kalamanch and Moushumi Bhowmik, screenings of Family Album by Nishtha Jain, Out of Thin Air by Shabani Hassanwalia and Samreen Farooqui and Nine Months by Merajur Rahman Baruah, puppetry workshops by Varun Narain and Dastangoi among other things.