delhi culture
Laughter In The Dark
The 18th National Festival of Creative Arts is a celebration of music, drama, dance, and other performing arts. The three-day event, organised by Impresario India, begins with Chandra Upasana, or the tale of Chandra, told through lesser-known forms of yoga and Odissi. An evening presentation of hand shadowgraphy—Spark and Dark—a piece of fiction told through shadows and complemented with music will also enthral. The second day has Banshee, a rare amalgamation of Bharatanatyam and Kathakali, based on Rabindranath Tagore’s songs, expressing a connection between the divine and the devotee. Then, buckle your belts for some Kalaripayattu—the ancient martial art of Kerala. The festival ends with Natua dance, a traditional folk form from Bengal, with martial origins; it is not so much a dance as a display of vigorous, physical feats to the beating of drums. The end is on a happy note, with poems of comedy and satire by ‘hasya kavi’ Shri Surendra Sharma. Mar 29-31, IHC
mumbai film
Gypsies And Vagabonds, Unite!
Osianama presents its annual International Film and Arts Festival, called Womanhood—celebrating the cinematic journey of women from girlhood to adolescence, marriage and motherhood, ever in the pursuit of individuality. From women protagonists to women filmmakers, the festival stays true to its theme—there are films by Agnes Varda to Jane Champion, Vera Chytilova to Aparna Sen and Larisa Sheptiko to Lynne Ramsay. Womanhood brings together women in Indian, Iranian, African and Japanese cinema, with a focus on the cinema of Chantal Akerman, Deepa Mehta, Trin T. Minh-ha, Aparna Sen; and actresses Ava Gardner, Glenda Jackson, Meena Kumari, Kamini Kaushal and Kangana Ranaut. Then there are women of rock and pop—Patti Smith, Madonna, Kate Bush, Amy Winehouse; and a section on women dancers. Plus, an exhibition on womanhood through contemporary Indian art. Till Mar 25, Marine Lines
This Too
Chennai Music Rock ’n Roll Chennai, a musical night for charity, will have scintillating performances by the likes of Usha Uthup, Chennai-based pianist Anil Srinivasan, and playback singers Chinni Jayanth and Saindavi.
And Also
hyderabad art
Divergent Run
Aunique depiction of Jogen Chowdhury’s artistic journey from 1986 to 2006, Touch and Gaze brings together his calligraphic work—from Tiger in the Moonlit Night to works depicting the social imbalances of recent times. Once inspired by Picasso’s Guernica, Chowdhury’s art has long straddled the conventional boundary that separates the graphic from the painterly to splendid effect. This selection is crafted from the skilful orchestration of diverse and even divergent media; Chowdhury operates in a mixed-media idiom, with an experience of working with graphite, ink, oil, watercolour and improvising combinations of these, giving him a special place among contemporaries. Till Mar 20 Mar, Trident
calcutta theatre
Return Act
Phera, by Poulomi Bose, is a play based on The Visit by Freidrich Durrenmatt—about a woman who returns to her village after 30 years. The run-down place is running on aid. She decides to help, but wants the villagers to kill her ex-lover, who betrayed her when she was pregnant, forcing her into prostitution. The villagers agree. Exacting revenge, she too kills herself. The play features Soumitra Chatterjee, Anirban Chakraborty and Debnath Chatterjee. Mar 22, Sarat Sadan
