Must catch events this weekend

See forbidden love bloom in colonial India. Plus 4 more must-catch events

See forbidden love bloom in colonial India. Plus 4 more must-catch events

On: Today, 6.30 pm
Where: NCPA, Nariman Point.
Call: 66223737

Chinua Achebe fans might be able to strike a chord with Santosh Sivan's directorial debut in English Before the Rains. Characters in the film, with protagonist roles played out by Linus Roache, Nandita Das and Rahul Bose, straddle the great cultural divide, much like Achebe's fictional heroes. Set in southern India in 1930, the story revolves around a British national (Roache) who falls in love with his Indian housemaid (Das). When he is caught in a situation, he seeks help from his farm assistant TK (Bose).u00a0"But in addition to the tragic elements to this story, I also wanted to convey a sense of hope hope for TK's independence and the independence of his people," says Sivan in his direction notes. "Just as the darker themes of the story continue to resonate today, I feel that the theme of hope will resonate most strongly for the audience." What will be the tragic repercussions of this adulterous, cross-cultural affair between an English babu and a pariah? Sivan being a cinematographer too, it is obvious that you will be taken through sweeping vistas shot in gorgeous locales. The Enlighten Film Society screens this film today, and it's your chance to see the story unravel on the big screen.

Play judge to decide about this Landmark Film
On: Today, 6.30 pm
Where: SP Jain Institute, Bhavan's College, Munshi Nagar, Andheri (W).
Call: 32938017
Most film students would have watched DW Griffith's The Birth of a Nation many times over. They might have revered it for its path-breaking cinematic techniques and pioneering technical work, while others might have reviled it for glorifying the Ku Klux Klan, an organisation that advocates supremacy of the whites, along with the vilification of the blacks. But this landmark American film continues to be a matter of intense study, analysis and debate. Watch it to decide what the film should be called a cinematic masterpiece or a politically reprehensible feature.

Electronica goes Folk
On: July 16 and 17, 10.30 pm
Where: Blue Frog, Mathuradas Mills Compound, Tulsi Pipe Road, Lower Parel.u00a0
Call: 40332300
Entry: Rs 500 on both days

Kartick & Gotam (producer Patrick Sebag and sound designer Yotam Agam) were travelling from India to a remote village in Indonesia, on a journey through Asia to record indigenous music forms. An overbooked flight landed them in business class luxury. In Singapore, they applied for Indonesian visas, which took so long that the flight left without them. Three days later, they were still waiting, a bit worried and homesick but mostly making music. This is how Business Class Refugees, their first album was born. Combining contemporary Electronica with World Music, they perform live with the help of four of the musicians featured on their record and a belly dancer.

Experience Poetry in Motion
On: July 17 and 18, 7.30 pm
Where: Ravindra Natya Mandir, Sayani Road, Prabhadevi.
Almost as if one were paying homage to the fluidity of the rain outside, renowned Kathak exponent Uma Dogra's Sam Ved Society for Performing Arts is organising the 20th Raindrops Festival. On Saturday, watch acts by Sanskriti Chatterjee and Priya Rajeev (Kuchipudi), Shivalika Kataria (Kathak), Jyotsana Jagannathan (Bharatanatyam) and Pallavi Mukherjee (Mohini Attam). On Sunday, there's Kathak by young Rachana Parulkar and senior Shama Bhate, Bharatanatyam by Chitra Dalvi and Mandira Joshi and Odissi by Kaustvi Sarkar.

Play real-time Farmville
On : July 17 and 18
Call: 8108133016
Cost: Rs 2,000

In Indian homes, rice occupies a larger-than-life significance. Now, you get to witness the nuances of the ancient art of growing rice, hands-on. What's better, you get to take home a bag full of rice that you helped gather. Grassroutes has organised a tour to Purushwadi (80 kms from Igatpuri railway station) where you can join in the chorus of men, women and children as they till the soil for this staple food source. You can also swim in the river, eat with village folk and help village belles carry water home.