17 August,2024 06:51 AM IST | Mumbai | Team mid-day
Pic/Rane Ashish
Children watch with delight as the wind causes sparks from a bhutta seller's stove to fly like fireworks at Bandra Bandstand
Sujata Bajaj with her artwork in Paris
In Paris-based artist Sujata Bajaj's recent work, France's national motto, liberté, égalité, fraternité, is painted across a canvas featuring a melange of colours from the Indian and French national flags. Bound by the five interlaced rings of the Olympic Games, with the central one encompassing the Ashoka Chakra, Bajaj brings together the two countries in her artwork to commemorate the centennial celebrations at the Olympic Games 2024. "The universality of the Olympics is mirrored within the fill of the circles where the fluidity of the colours suggests world maps, as seen from distant outer space. French and Indian cultures emphatically celebrate tradition and heritage while welcoming the ever-changing modernity. It is this common commitment which is the main inspiration behind my painting," the artist explained. "Did you know that in 1912, art became a part of the Olympics? That means, artists competing received medals just like athletes. This continued till 1948, when art was removed as a category," shared Bajaj, adding that celebrating the 100th anniversary with art felt just right.
The Bandra-based Sister Library is on to something new in September. "We start our first artist residency programme next month, with four representatives from starting with poet Ujjwala Maharjan from Nepal, followed by artists from Kenya and South Africa visiting the library for three months each," shared Aqui Thami (below), founder of the community space. "As a feminist library, we are deeply interested in women's epistemologies. Therefore, for the Sister Residency, we proposed a thematic focus of female indigenous epistemologies," she shared. The creators will have an open studio, and share their research with the community here, and also witness and collaborate with the indigenous people in India.
An earlier performance by Bhatkar's troupe, Metamorphosis Theatre and Films
Bandra-based theatre production, Metamorphosis, is on the move. After six years of performances and readings in the St Andrew's Centre for Philosophy and Performing Arts (SAPP), the production is set to move out this week.
"It is a change of scenery following a change in management," shared artistic director Omkar Bhatkar (inset). For the regulars, the space will host a farewell session today. "We have spent six of the 10 years of our production here. It is only when people started messaging me how they enjoyed our shows that it sank in. We will be performing in collaboration with the NCPA Library soon," Bhatkar shared.
The fellowship will select 10 young women from UP and teach them journalism. PIC COURTESY/Muheem
As the country protests against the Kolkata murder-rape case, it is no secret that the daily abuse of women from all walks of life is a sad reality of India. "There are so many similar cases from rural India that go unreported, and hence, are barely spoken of," shared Nandini Kochar (inset), founder of multimedia storytelling community, Nazaria.
"For the first time, we are venturing out of Mumbai into rural Uttar Pradesh, where our new fellowship, Awaaz, will equip 10 young rural women from Dalit, Bahujan and Muslim communities with the skills and platforms to emerge as grassroot journalists and storytellers in their respective communities," Kochar shared with this diarist. For this initiative, they have collaborated with Varanasi-based NGO Muheem that works to advance the rights of women, girls, youth and marginalised communities in rural areas. Those keen to sponsor an aspiring woman journalist (for one year, three months or one month), can check @nazaria.in for details.
The series features 12 books celebrating birds that are native to India
Every school notebook is filled with flights of imagination. The Nature Conservation Foundation and Youva stationery's new collaboration seeks to add a natural touch to these flights. The new collection, titled Birds of India, features a series of 12 books with photographs that capture India's avian heritage. "The initiative was an effort to highlight India's natural heritage through birds to inspire a sense of wonder among children and adults," shared Jignasa Patel, programme manager, Nature Conservation Foundation. Patel added that the birds featured include the baya weaver, coppersmith barbet, great hornbill, crimson sunbird as well as others. "We facilitated their [the stationery] contact with natural photographers such as Rahul Singh, Albin Jacob, Subhadra Devi and Aseem Kothiala among others. The books are now available across 15 states, including Maharashtra and Goa. Those keen for a copy can log on to youvaworld.com for a copy of their own.
