Encouraging readers to concurrently focus on the need to live mindfully, this book also highlights key learnings from the pandemic…reports Asian Lite News.
Most of us have experienced loneliness in some form or the other and more so during the Covid lockdowns. As people navigate their way towards growth and success, they find themselves ‘busy’ and others around them ‘unavailable’.
This urban existence with its multidimensional challenges has led to an upsurge in experiencing loneliness and taking stock of the issue remains crucial.
To this extent, “Alone In The crowd: Overcoming Loneliness of Urban Living” (Rupa) by mental health Experts Dr Samir Parikh and Kamna Chhibber go beyond highlighting the existence of the problem to enlisting ways in the midst of the current pandemic, can be tackled.
Encouraging readers to concurrently focus on the need to live mindfully, this book also highlights key learnings from the pandemic.
“We recognize that there is a growing disconnect that many people experience within their families, communities and workplaces. This has a strong negative impact on their sense of well-being and can be a precursor towards the development of mental health related problems,” Parikh, Director, Department of Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences, Fortis Healthcare, said.
“As a result, it is critically important that we emphasize the development of approaches to combat this state of loneliness,” he added.
“The book has been written to help develop a comprehensive understanding of where loneliness can stem from and the ways in which people can engage in caring for themselves, while focusing on living more mindfully in the urban spaces they occupy,” Chhibber, Head, Department of Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences, Fortis Healthcare, said.
“Research suggests that loneliness in the longer run can affect the mental health of people. It’s time that people and societies come forward to discuss about the much-ignored issue, which has engulfed the society be it children, adolescents, adults and the old generation. A multi-stakeholder approach needs to be adopted to reduce the growing burden of mental health which stems from loneliness and other related issues,” she added.
Releasing the book Dr Ashutosh Raghuvanshi, CEO & MD, Fortis Healthcare said: “In today’s time, particularly given the context of the pandemic, we recognise the huge detrimental impact that loneliness can have upon people by impacting their mental health. It is critical that people, individuals and communities, take active steps and measures to understand and assess this growing problem and go beyond simply acknowledging it in the direction of inculcating proactive measures to tackle it effectively.”
All the more so as the book seeks to explain AI and provide readers with both the questions we must face in coming years and the tools to begin answering them…writes Vishnu Makhijani
Artificial Intelligence already transcends human perception through chronological compression or ‘time travel’ and it’s time to define both our partnership with the new frontier and the reality that will result, says a path-breaking book by three leading thinkers that offers an essential roadmap to our present and our future – an era unlike any that has come before.
“Enabled by algorithms and computing power, it analyses and learns through processes that would take human minds decades or even centuries to complete. In other respects, time and computing power alone do not describe what (it) does,” Henry Kissinger, Eric Schmidt and Daniel Huttenlocher write in “The Age of AI And Our Human Future” (John Murray/Hachette).
“Are human minds and AI approaching the same reality from different standpoints, with complementary strengths? Or do we perceive two different, partially overlapping realities: one that humans can elaborate through reason and another that AI can elaborate through algorithms? If this is the case, then AI perceives things that we do not and cannot – not merely because we do not have the time to reason our way to them, but also because they exist in a realm that our minds cannot conceptualise,” the authors write.
The human quest to know the world fully will be transformed, they contend, “with the haunting recognition that to achieve certain knowledge that we need to entrust AI to acquire it for us and to report back. In either case, as AI pursues progressively fuller and broader objectives, it will increasingly appear to humans as a fellow ‘being’ experiencing and knowing the world – a combination of tool, pet, and mind”.
“This puzzle will only deepen as researchers near or attain AGI – Artificial General Intelligence that will not be limited to learning and executing specific tasks; rather, by definition, AGI will be able to learn and execute a broad range of tasks, much like those humans perform,” the book says.
“Developing AGI will require immense computing power, likely resulting in their being created by only a few well-funded organisations. Like current AI, though AGI may be readily distributable, given its capacities, its applications will need to be restricted,” the authors caution.
Limitations could be imposed by only allowing approved organisations to operate it. Then, the questions will become: who controls AGI? Who grants access to it? Is democracy possible in a world in which a few “genius” machines are operated by a small number of organisations? What, under these circumstances, does partnership with AI look like, the authors ask.
If the advent of AGI occurs, it will be a signal, intellectual, scientific and strategic achievement. “But it does not have to occur for AI to herald a revolution in human affairs,” the authors note.
Noting that AI’s dynamism and capacity for emergent – or unexpected – actions and solutions distinguish it from prior technologies, the authors write: “Unregulated and unnoticed, AI could diverge from our expectations and, consequently, or intentions. The decisions to confine, partner with, or defer it will not be made by humans alone. In some cases, it will be dictated by AI itself; in others, by auxiliary forces.”
“Humanity may engage in a race to the bottom. As AI automates, processes, permits humans to probe vast bodies of data, organises and reorganises the physical and social worlds, advantages may go to those who move first. Competition could compel deployment of AGI without adequate time to assess the risks – or in disregard of them,” the authors state, adding: “An AI ethic is essential.”
All the more so as the book seeks to explain AI and provide readers with both the questions we must face in coming years and the tools to begin answering them. The questions include:
What do AI-enabled innovations in health, biology, space, and quantum physics look like?
What do AI-enabled “best friends” look like, especially to children?
What does AI-enabled war look like?
Does AI perceive aspects of reality humans do not?
When AI participates in assessing and shaping human action, how will humans change?
What then, will it mean to be human?
This makes it imperative for each major technologically advanced country to understand that it is on the threshold of a strategic transformation “as consequential as the advent of nuclear weapons – but with effects that will be more diverse, diffuse and unpredictable”, the book says.
Therefore, “each society that is advancing the frontiers of AI should aim to convene a body at a national level to consider the defence and security aspects of AI and bridge the perspectives of the varied sectors that will shape AI’s creation and deployment”.
This body “should be entrusted with two functions: to ensure competitiveness with the rest of the world and, concurrently, to coordinate research on how to prevent or at least limit unwanted escalation or crisis. On this basis, some form of negotiation with allies and adversaries will be essential”, the authors maintain.
At the bottom line, human intelligence and artificial intelligence are meeting, being applied to pursuits on national, continental, and even global scales.
“Understanding this transition, and developing a guiding ethic from it will require commitment and insight from many elements of society: scientists and strategists, statesmen and philosophers, clerics and CEOs. This commitment must be made within nations and among them. Now is the time to define both our partnership with artificial intelligence and the reality that will result,” the authors conclude.
The show, presented by the Delhi Art Society, is curated by art critic Uma Nair and will continue till December 18…reports Asian Lite News.
The third chapter of the sculpture show titled ‘iSculpt for Delhi’ featuring works by 20 artists that opened in the national capital recently has transformed the Gandhi King Plaza at IIC into a sculpture court.
A number of artists, in their involvement with the environment and the place, have created works that are born of an ecological echo.
‘Heaven and Earth’, a monumental elephant with pots, is Neeraj Gupta’s ode to the elephant which stands as an endangered species. Gupta extols the beauty of the gentle giant and its place in the habitat with this majestic sculpture. The show, presented by the Delhi Art Society, is curated by art critic Uma Nair and will continue till December 18.
An ode to the environment is Satish Gupta’s ‘Conference of the Birds’, an elegy to the 5,000-year-old Sufi poem that spoke of finding truth amid hardships in the dialogues between two birds. Linking the ecological system in many ways and telling us the importance and imperative role of trees in the world is Dhannanjay Singh’s ‘Man and the Tree’ as well as a ceramic artist and National Award Winner Keshari Nandan’s ‘Tree of Life’.
Taking us beyond the context of nature and man is Rahul Modak’s ‘Monumenta1’ that holds terracotta leaves with a holistic pillar in the intensity of leaves of time and decay, and death and despair.
National award winner Arun Pandit’s ‘Head’ is an amalgam of pathos and pain. Pandit has merged man’s role in the world of technological advances with his work that makes us think of Errors and multiplicity. Yet another head of a different dimension is the marble head of Parmod K Mann entitled ‘Nymph’ which is a beauty to behold for its prismatic brilliance. In fibreglass and quaint is the head of Rakesh Kumar Gupta’s made of fibreglass. Bhola Kumar creates another large head done in stone which has a primitive aura in expression and compositional contours.
Hexagram Origami artist Ankon Mitra shares ‘Fountain of Folds’ for this show. Mitra shares a unique vision of a universe forming and dissolving from acts of folding. To him, the ancient art of Origami is not only a child’s craft but a cutting-edge cross-disciplinary technique that is being deployed by robotic engineers, space scientists, biotech researchers, mathematicians, computation experts, botanists, architects and artists to create solutions for the real world in the 21st Century.
Biman Bihari Das has Lord Buddha created in bronze which brings in an aura of deep spirituality and tranquillity. Rita Datta’s ‘Madhav’ is a veneration of Lord Krishna in bronze. The cape with the alphabet Om is every bit a work of deep contemplative idioms. Seema Kohli’s sculpture ‘Riding the Waves of Wind and Water’ is yet another meditative work. Kohli’s work will connect with the master Atul Sinha’s rosewood masterpiece Aradhak (Worshipper) which reflects a universal aesthetic.
“At the Gandhi King Plaza, the configuration between sculpture and the space it inhabits and shares with the viewer will contribute to this sensation. Sculpture should always be understood as having been placed and should be read in relation to the area it occupies. An exhibition is always a testing ground, an integral space for both the viewer and the artwork,” said curator Uma Nair.
Its goal is to develop itself as one of the most authentic and original traditional saree platforms in India’s INR 38,000 crore sari business.
Local artisans in Kutch now have a platform to promote and sell their most authentic works on a newly launched e-commerce platform.
Kutchi Bazaar sells one-of-a-kind handcrafted products made with love by local artisans. They organise a craft fair to introduce the Kutch culture’s festive atmosphere into the lives of clients. The platform offers indigenous products that are entwined with folklore and mythology from Kutch culture.
Ajrakh block painting, Bandhani printing, Bhujodi weaving, Rogan art, leather art, and wood carving, among other crafts, are available, indicating Kutch’s prominence as a thriving location of crafts. The firm employs skilled artisans from Kutch, either directly or indirectly, to provide the most authentic crafts and prolific artists from Kutch’s soil to the rest of the globe.
“We are extremely happy to have developed a platform to promote Kutch handicrafts and art on a national and worldwide scale. For our clients, we select the most unique and local crafts, which tell compelling stories and are a reflection of intangible Kutchi tradition. Purchasing from Kutchi Bazaar would provide buyers with the satisfaction of supporting the artists with the respect and value they deserve. It not only allows people to earn a living, but it also raises awareness about the need to conserve and exercise their hereditary abilities, “said Juned Khatri, Co-Founder and CEO of Kutchi Bazaar.
The e-commerce platform provides a venue for local craftsmen to sell their items directly to buyers all over the world. Within a year, the company realised that several traditional art forms, such as Ajrakh and Bandhani, need more attention from art enthusiasts or they would perish with the passage of time. Genuine Bandhani, Banarasi, Bhujodi, and Ajrakh sarees, dupattas, stoles, suit pieces, and other items are available on Kutchibazaar.com.
All of these items are handcrafted by top artisans and painters, and they are all fairly priced. Its goal is to develop itself as one of the most authentic and original traditional saree platforms in India’s INR 38,000 crore sari business.
‘In the post-Covid-19 period, we looked at innovative measures to improve market opportunities and empower Kutch artisans and handloom weavers who had lost their jobs due to the epidemic.” “Through Kutchi Bazaar, we provide these businesses with the necessary support, and we intend to continue reaching out to more local artists and handicrafts in the Kutch region in the future to assist them in reaping the benefits of e-commerce,” said Sufiyan Khatri, Co-Founder of Kutchi Bazaar and Master of Ajrakh Hand Block printing.
The site has a large selection of lovely, timeless handmade products. The aroma of Kutchi soil and the artists’ devotion are inscribed on the craft’s textures and patterns. The brand strives to bring the most unique and creative products to market, showcasing Kutchi artists’ exceptional craftsmanship. The company has a one-of-a-kind and regional craft that conveys amazing stories and embodies intangible Kutchi culture.
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is pleased to announce that Balkrishna Doshi will receive the Royal Gold Medal 2022, considered to be one of the world’s highest honours for architecture conferred by the Royal Institute of British Architects.
Given in recognition of a lifetime’s work, the Royal Gold Medal is approved personally by the British monarch Queen Elizabeth II and is given to a person or group of people who have had a significant influence on the advancement of architecture. It has been awarded since 1848 and will be presented to Balkrishna Doshi at a special ceremony next year.
RIBA said: “With a 70 year career and over 100 built projects, Balkrishna Doshi has influenced the direction of architecture in India and its adjacent regions through both his practice and his teaching. His buildings combine pioneering modernism with vernacular, informed by a deep appreciation of the traditions of India’s architecture, climate, local culture and craft. His projects include administrative and cultural facilities, housing developments and residential buildings. He has become internationally known for his visionary urban planning and social housing projects, as well as his work in education, both in India and as a visiting professor at universities around the world.”
Born in 1927 in Pune to an extended family of furniture makers, Balkrishna Doshi studied at the JJ School of Architecture, Bombay (now Mumbai), before working for four years with Le Corbusier as senior designer (1951-54) in Paris and four more years in India to supervise projects in Ahmedabad. He worked with Louis Kahn as an associate to build the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, and they continued to collaborate for over a decade.
Doshi founded his own practice, Vastushilpa in 1956 with two architects. Today Vastushilpa is a multi-disciplinary practice with five partners spanning three generations and has sixty employees. The practice invites dialogue and its philosophy of pro-active participation even applies to their office space – which has an open door, inviting passers-by to drop in.
RIBA added: “On hearing the news that he will receive the Royal Gold Medal in 2022, Balkrishna Doshi said: ‘I am pleasantly surprised and deeply humbled to receive the Royal Gold Medal from the Queen of England. What a great honour!”
RIBA President Simon Allford said: “It was an honour and a pleasure to chair the committee in selecting Balkrishna Doshi as the 2022 Royal Gold Medallist. At ninety-four years old, he has influenced generations of architects through his delightfully purposeful architecture. Balkrishna Doshi’s outstanding contribution to the art of architecture, the craft of construction and the practice of urban design establish him as a most deserving recipient of this award and I greatly look forward to him being presented with the medal next year.”
📐Balkrishna Doshi, Premio Pritzker 2018 recibe medalla de oro de arquitectura del Royal Institute of British Architects (@RIBA) 2022.
In recognition of his distinguished contribution as a professional and as an academician, Balkrishna Doshi was made a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 2021.
He is the recipient of the Padma Bhushan; Pritzker Architecture Prize (2018); French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (2011); Global Award for Lifetime Achievement for Sustainable Architecture, Institut Francais d’Architecture, Paris (2007); Prime Minister’s National Award for Excellence in Urban Planning and Design, India (2000); Aga Khan Award for Architecture (1993-1995); and the Gold Medal, Academy of Architecture of France (1988).
Citation on Doshi by the 2022 RIBA Honours Committee read:
Balkrishna Vithaldas Doshi has been practising architecture and designing and delivering outstanding buildings and places for over seventy years. Trained in Mumbai he began practice in Europe working closely with Le Corbusier. He returned to India in his late twenties to help supervise Corbusier’s projects in Ahmedabad before setting up his own?studio to work collaboratively with Louis Kahn on the Indian Institute of Management campus, also in Ahmedabad.
His personal influence as a practitioner and educator has grown from there. Through his teaching and his practice he has helped define the direction of architecture in India and much of the adjacent regions. But even more importantly his development of and advocacy for an architectural language of material economy and elegance and delight – is ever more relevant to all architects working in today’s challenging times. Doshi is a visionary constructor of ideas who works with form and light.
He is also a constructor of an appropriate vernacular for and of the places in which he works. His many wonderful buildings celebrate the local technologies and crafts as well as the natural habitat to create environments that are legible, hard-working backdrops joyfully accommodating the theatre of everyday life.
Veteran Architect and pioneer of modernist architecture in India, Balkrishna Doshi, also winner of the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2018 – awarded ‘The Padma Bhushan’ for his exceptional and distinguished service to the Nation. #PadmaAwards2020#PeoplesPadmapic.twitter.com/EBSMRBGUvu
Once visited and studied it is soon apparent that they are also wonderful essays in the careful interplay of formal themes and technologies. Importantly building and nature are always intertwined to create a brave, confident and on occasion challenging architecture of purpose and delight. Architecture as background and foreground.
Doshi, now in his nineties, works every day and remains as prolific as he is inspirational. A living testament to the potential of an architectural history of ideas, passed through practice and education from one generation to the next. An architecture that is always evolving to help define a better future.
Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri will join as Chief Guest on the concluding day…reports Asian Lite News.
The Kalinga Literary Festival is back with its 8th edition and will witness around 300 prominent personalities from the fields of literature, cinema, media and politics, who will deliberate on the theme ‘India at 75: Commemorating the Republic of Letters’, in Bhubaneswar, from December 10 to 12.
The announcement was made by Rashmi Ranjan Parida, Founder, KLF in the presence of Prof. Sachitananda Mohanty, Advisor KLF and Debasish Samantaray, Co-Director KLF during a press meet.
Veteran Odia writer Shrinavas Udgata, poet Arun Kamal and actress and writer Divya Dutta will be conferred with the Kalinga Literary Awards of 2021. Young writer Taro Sindik will be conferred with the Kalinga Literary Youth Award of 2021.
Odisha’s Tourism Minister, Jyoti Prakash Panigrahi will be the chief guest during the inauguration of the festival. Ram Prasad Subedhi , Rajya Sabha MP Dr. Amar Patnaik, Dr. Sitakanta Mohapatra, Ramakanta Rath, Jayanta Mahapatra, Haldhar Nag will join the inaugural ceremony. Public intellectual and former Governor Prof. Gopalkrisnha Gandhi will give the keynote address.
Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri will join as Chief Guest on the concluding day.
Srinivas Udgata will receive the Kalinga Literary Award while the Kalinga International Literary Award (English & Hindi language) will be given to Arun Kamal. Divya Dutta will get the Kalinga Literary Award (women writer) and Kalinga Literary Youth Award will be given to Taro Sindik from Arunachal Pradesh.
For the last eight years, Kalinga Literary Festival has set a national benchmark in literary festivals.
Leading writers, poets, speakers and performers likely to join the festival include Gajendra Singh Sekhawat (Minister,Jal Shakti), Hardeep Singh Puri ( Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, and Housing and Urban Affair), MP Amar Patnaik Jyoti Prakash Panigrahi (Tourism Minister) and Principal Secretary, Tourism Surendra Kumar.
Those from the Embassy of Nepal in India include Amb. Krishna V. Rajan, India’s former Ambassador to Nepal and Chair, India-Nepal Centre, PHDCCI & Editor/Author, The Ambassador’s Club; Amb. Ranjit Rae, India’s Former Ambassador to Nepal & Author, ‘Kathmandu Dilemma: Resetting India-Nepal Ties’, Anukool Bhatnagar, Chief General Manager & Head-Nepal Desk, State Bank of India.
The three-day festival will cover several dimensions of the interconnections between literature, freedom, republican values, cultural diversity and social equity.
The key sessions will be on topics including Atmanirbhar Bharat, Ayodhya, democracy, cultural nationalism, Generation Y, Indian Languages, Puri, Kashmir, Nepal, publishing industry, ancient history, Media, Market, Children, Women, Transgender, Citizen Engagement, Cinema, Hockey, Covid-19. There will be several one to one sessions with celebrities and leading experts like author Amitav Ghosh and actress and Divya Dutta, entrepreneur and management guru Subroto Bagchi, and historian Dr. Vikram Sampath. There will also be a session on the British Council report on the Indian Publishing Industry.
Apart from the above, more than 30 new books and monographs will be released during the three-day festival. The delegates and speakers of KLF will have a unique opportunity to participate in Heritage Walk called Mystic Walk and participate in plantation and Mystic Mic.
KLF Book Awards 2020-21 in various categories were also announced in different categories including Non-fiction Book, Fiction book, Poetry Book, Hindi Book, Book in Translation, Bhasa First Book, Business Book, Strategic Affairs Book, Environmental Book, Biography/Autobiography Book, Children Book, Sports Book, Life Style and Emerging Trend Books & others. The books were selected from books submitted by publishers all across the categories. 49 books were selected for the years 2020 and 2021.
Rashmi Ranjan Parida, the founder-director of KLF said: “Kalinga Literary Festival (KLF) 2021 returns with the promise of hope and optimism. Our return emphasizes resilience. We are delighted to bring back the joy of the literary spirit to the temple city Bhubaneswar. We welcome our delegates and performers and look towards a great festival amid all Covid-19 safety protocols. We are inviting all literature lovers to watch the festival live on our social media handles.”
Amb Krishna V Rajan, Abhay Mishra, Abhay Kumar Dubey, Aditi Maheshwari, Alka Saraogi, Asit Mohanty Ameya Prabhu, Anindita Ghose, Anshul Chautrvedi, Anu Chaudhary, Anuj Lugun, Anushakti Singh, Archana Soreng, Arun Kamal, Arun Maheswari, Arunava Singh, Ashok Kaul, Ashok Maheswari, Ashutosh Bhardwaj, Atul Thakur, Balendu Diwedi, Basant Chaudhary, Bembem Devi, Bhaskar Mishra Bhavina Patel, Bishnu N. Mohapatra, Boria Majumdar, Chandan Pandey, Debashish Samantaray, Debasis Samantray, Dharmendra Sushant, Dilip Tirkey, Divya Dutta, Dr. Krishna Mohan Thakur, Dr. Amar Patnaik, Dr. KM Thakur, Dr. Liaqat Jafri, Dr. Nazir Azad, Dr. Susma Sharma Gurumayum, Gautam Chintamani, Geet Chaturvedi, Gopalkrishna Gandhi, Goutambuddha Das, Gulzar, Guru Prakash Paswan, Khajur Singh Dogri, Hrishikesh Sulabh, Haldhar Nag Jairam Ramesh, Jayanta Mohapatra, Jayanti Rangnathan, Jyoti Nanda, Kaveree Bamzai, Kedar Mishra, Koral Dasgupta, Mr. Gulham Nabi Haleem Mr. Arif Iqbal MalikMalashri Lal, Malini Awasthi, Mamta Kalia, Manoj Kumar Pandey, Meena K Iyer, Mmhonlumo Kikon, Namita Gokhale, Nandini Krishnan, Navajyoti Ray, Neelesh Raghuwanshi, Neha Sinha, P.R Sreejesh, Santosh Singh, Pallavi Rebapragada,Paresh Patnaik, Pankaj Rag, Paul Waters ,Perumal Murugan, Poonam Vasam, Prabodh Rout, Pradeep Srivastva, Prateek Pattanaik,Pratibha Ray, Pravin Kumar, Priya Kapoor, Priya Sahgal, Priyanka Chaturvedi, Prof. Prabhakar Singh, Prof. Ashok Kumar Kaul, Prof. Banibrata Mahanta, Prof. Prabhkar Singh, Puja Changoiwala, Rahul Singh, Rajdeep Saradesai, Rajeev Kumar,Rafeeq Soz, Raj Rahi Dogri, Rama Pandey, Ramakant Rath, Ranjan Mallick, Ranjit Rae, Rajat Sethi,Rasheed Kidwai, Rashmi Dhanwani, Rishabh Kothari, Rohit Supkar, Ruchira Chaudhary, Sabin Iqbal, Sachidananda Mohanty, Sai Swaroopa Iyer, Sandeep Bamzai, Santanu Kumar Acharya, Santosh Singh, Satish Padmanabhan, Sekhar Pathak, Raheem Rehbar, Shafey Kidwai, Shantanu Datta, Shekhar Pathak, Shibani Sibal, Shirish Khare, Shubha Sarma, Sunita Bhadwal, Swami Anterneerav, Shri Ram Sharma, Shubhrastha, Sailaja Rabi Shuchi Kulshreshtha, Sitakant Mahapatra, Subroto Bagchi, Sudha Menon, Subas Pani Sanhati Pani, Susmita Bagchi, Swati Chopra, Shriram Sharma, Siddheshwar Mohapatra Tamal Bandyopadhyay, Tarana Husain Khan, Taro Sindik, Tathagat Satpathy, TM Krishna, Trisha De Niyogi, Utpal Banerjee, Uday Pratap Singh Vaishali Mathur, Vandana Rag, Vibha Rani, Vikarant Pande, Vikram Sampath, Pallavi Rebbapragada, Vineel Krishna, Vyomesh Shukla, Yatindra Mishra, Yatish Kumar, Yugal Joshi and Zorawar Daulet Singh will be part of the festival.
It’s an absolute delight to showcase the rich art and legacy of the country to a live audience. All artists desire to perform in front of live audiences…reports Asian Lite News.
Known for its exchange cultural programmes in India and abroad, non-profit NGO, Routes2Roots recently held ‘Three Generations of Lucknow Gharana’, a Masterclass by Kathak grandmaster Pandit Birju Maharaj. We just caught up with the legend at the sidelines of the event to discover his thoughts on the guru-shishya parampara: Read Excerpts:
Do you agree that the Indian education system does not give importance to classical dance, music or the performing arts in general?
The Indian education system was devoid of classical, culture and performing arts; however, this void has been fulfilled with the new education policy. Hopefully, the schools will be able to introduce performing arts in their curriculum soon. Routes 2 Roots is doing a wonderful job of making our traditional art forms reach the children and the future generations of the country through Virsa.
During the pandemic it was not the Government that stepped in to help artists, it was the people who enabled and empowered each other in whichever way they could to help artists in need?
Pandemic was a disaster beyond imagination, and the whole world was struggling to survive, and so were we. The Government was fighting on many fronts, especially the health infrastructure and therefore help to artists was not forthcoming. I am proud that the citizens got up and helped everyone in need in those tiring times.
Are you happy that things are back to normal and one can perform in front of a live audience?
It’s an absolute delight to showcase the rich art and legacy of the country to a live audience. All artists desire to perform in front of live audiences. I am happy that the hardships of the artists now are over, and live performances have started though slowly. I pray to God that the coming time will be safe and healthy for us.
Do you feel in the performing arts, it’s only those with the patronage of a guru-shishya relationship who succeed?
Any art form cannot succeed without a Guru imparting the knowledge, and it also holds suitable for performing art. The Guru-Shishya parampara has been an inevitable part of education in ancient Indian culture and has continued until today as there can be no substitute for a Guru to impart knowledge to his Shishya. The guru-shishya tradition has been the backbone of many generations in the past. It has honed several great icons in the country. The guru moulds the shishya’s character, versatility, confidence, strength and overall vision of life which help them to succeed.
Last but not least, share your thoughts on this event with Routes2Roots.
Routes 2 Roots event was unique as we were invited to address children from all over the country and with my son and granddaughter-three generations on one stage showcasing the Lucknow Gharana of Kathak. It was an opportunity for me to guide the children with real-time interaction and that too in so many numbers from different parts of the country on one stage.
Generally, in Kathakali, even the characters of women were enacted by men and with girls being admitted to Vesham course, a sea change is expected in the performance and style in Kathakali…reports Asian Lite News.
Kerala Kalamandalam Deemed university is synonymous with the art form of Kathakali — the Kerala art form, the glory of which is spread far and wide.
In a revolutionary change, the Kerala Kalamandalam founded by Kerala’s noted poet Vallathol Narayana Menon, 91 years ago, had decided to admit girl students in its “vesham” course in both northern and southern kalari forms.
The girls students have outnumbered boys in the southern style with 3 girls joining the course while only one boy has opted for it.
In the northern style also, 5 girls and a boy is admitted to the course and here also, girls have outnumbered boys. The head of the Vadakkan style or northern style of Kalari, Kalamandalam Suryanarayanan told: “Five girl and a boy were admitted to the course and classes have started since Wednesday. Girls are participating with much enthusiasm and I find them performing exceedingly well.”
Generally, in Kathakali, even the characters of women were enacted by men and with girls being admitted to Vesham course, a sea change is expected in the performance and style in Kathakali.
One of the doyens of Kathakali , who has unique style for himself and has fans across the globe, Padmasri Kalamandalam Gopi who is also in the advisory board of Kerala Kalamandalam, told: “I had given a suggestion to admit girls for Kathakali course in an experimental basis. This was accepted by the board and we have commenced classes for girl students. If other similar art forms of Kerala like Ottanthullal and Koodiyattam can have girl students, why not Kathakali?”
The students are admitted for vesham courses — both, northern and southern styles, at class 8, and they can continue up to post-graduation for ten years at a stretch.
Noted art critic and writer Rajani Varrier told: “It is indeed a revolutionary decision by the Kalamandalam. If women can perform and excel in all fields, why not in this? Girls will prove in the days to come that they are masters in the art and the feminine characters if played by women will have more natural flair than men enacting it.”
The actor’s book ‘My Experiments with Silence’ that hit the stands on November 27…reports Asian Lite News.
Actor Samir Soni, who has turned an author with his ‘My Experiments with Silence’, which stems from diary entries, gives a glimpse of what goes in the mind of an introvert like him, in a world that is inherently outgoing given the social nature of human beings, and how he made his way through it.
The actor’s book ‘My Experiments with Silence’ hit the stands on November 27.
In case you missed it, we spoke with actor and director Samir Soni (@samirsoni123) about his new book My Experiments with Silence (@ombooksdelhi)
Talking about the book, Samir said: “These diary entries are an introvert’s entries of how I look at the world, how I have gotten my way through showbiz despite being someone who is not very outgoing. I have put together my heart in this book. At a time where people seek validation, I chose to turn to my safe place, my diary, and that’s how I discovered my real self”.
Explaining how being an introvert had its share of disadvantages and benefits.
He added: “I haven’t been someone who is socially very active and that might have been a disadvantage on most instances, but as an actor, it was an advantage for me because it enabled me to connect with my character better”.
Through his diary, the actor provides an insight on how healing is never a linear process and hopes that the book will help the readers with answers to the questions that have long agitated the human mind.
Speaking about one instance where his diary bailed him out of the troubled waters of uneasy days, he concluded: “When I received my first award and my name was announced, it was rock silence, there was no one clapping for me but my diary helped me get through such days. I have put myself out there despite such lows, but in the end, I am also thankful for my highs, and my diary has truly helped me through all of it.”
Published by Garuda Prakashan decades after the original manuscript, it puts all pieces of the story together with maps and photographs and offers a unique insight into what really happened during the War of 1857…reports Asian Lite News.
Drawn from the details provided by a Brahmin-turned-amateur-historian, this is a real story that follows two learned men as they traverse India during the 1857 uprising on foot, unearthing history from a new vantage point
As the First War of Independence raged, a Brahmin from Maharashtra, Vishnubhat Godse, on a pilgrimage found himself caught right in the middle of the action. He, along with his uncle Rambhat, went through a series of adventures, including barely escaping hanging.
Upon his return home, Godse wrote it all down in Marathi so that his forthcoming generations could have an idea of how things were during that tumultuous period. “The Walking Brahmin” by Maneesh Madhukar Godbole retells that journey, which is a rare eyewitness account from a common Indian’s point-of-view.
Published by Garuda Prakashan decades after the original manuscript, it puts all pieces of the story together with maps and photographs and offers a unique insight into what really happened during the War of 1857.
This tale starts in 1857, as the protagonist duo starts on a ‘teertha yatra’ from Varsai, a small Maharashtrian village, and walk smack in the middle of the mutinous upheaval of 1857. Having the misfortune of being at the wrong place at the wrong time, they were caught in the crossfire between the loyalist Indian troops and the British.
Narrativising historical incidents through an Indian lens, such as the fall of Jhansi, they survived the aftermath of British savagery, were robbed of all their belongings multiple times, and even managed to avoid getting hanged twice. Being on the road for over two years, they finally returned to Varsai, which was where Vishnubhat penned down his adventure for his descendants.
“His original manuscript, which ran into 297 pages, comprised two notebooks and twenty-two individual pages. It was eventually published as a Marathi book in 1907, a few years after Vishnubhat’s death. This is probably the only known instance of a document that talks about 1857 from an Indian perspective,” the Pune-based Godbole said.
“Not only does it give us the story from the perspective of the vanquished, but it is also more reliable as it is a first-hand account of experiences and not based merely on hearsay. Thus, the value of this book, in the annals of history, is quite priceless.
Vishnubhat Godse undertook a pilgrimage amid the 1857 War of Independence, where he witnessed British brutality first hand. He wrote down his memoirs when he came home.
Maneesh Godbole retells the story in "The Walking Brahmin".
“Vishnubhat’s book offered me a unique and authentic insight on how our ancestors lived. What they believed in, the social structure of those times, the hardships, the never-give-up attitude, their fortitude, their beliefs and their ability to even put their lives at risk to fulfill their responsibility,” added Godbole, who learnt about this lesser-known story when he was busy writing blogs related to his travel to northeast India and subsequent research.
Sharing his insights on the book, Uday S. Kulkarni, historian and author of “The Extraordinary Epoch of Nanasaheb Peshwa”, said that it “gives us a graphic account of the cruelty perpetrated by British forces in cities such as Jhansi, where troops looted and massacred the populace in retaliation for the stiff resistance the city offered the attacking force. It’s a short book, which brings alive the times, the dangers, the smell of war and of death…a first-rate historical account of those turbulent times.”
