A dramatic year ahead

By Shunashir Sen Anindita Paul and Sammohinee GhoshCentenary cheerComing in JanuaryChhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya CSMVS will be commemorating 100 years in January since it opened its doors to the public and while a series of events will line the year as promised by its directorgeneral Sabyasachi Mukherjee the first exhibition that visitors can look forward to will showcase a collection of Tanjore Thanjavurstyle paintings donated by late Kuldip Singh one of the modern architects of Delhi The town planner and collector gifted these paintings to the museum 60 of them will be on display for this muchawaited showAllied for theatreComing in JanuaryA play reading for Taking SidesThe Company Theatre has got a series of 12 shows lined up for a play itrsquos staging at G5A in Mahalaxmi this year Itrsquos called Taking Sides and the plot revolves around the ageold conflict between politics and the arts It is based in a postWorld War II era when the Allied Forces enter Germany to fish out Nazis whorsquod gone into hiding and take a famous music conductor into custody He had refused to flee the country when all other artistes were escaping the Nazi regime and that makes him suspicious in the eyes of the Allied Forces Going undergroundComing in JanuaryRahul left and Monish RohraMumbai has a serious deficit of gig venues with music buffs rotating to the same few places every week for concerts But the good news is that there is a new place Pandora which is coming up in Khar and is dedicated solely to music The owners brothers Rahul and Monish Rohra were inspired by underground venues they had seen abroad and are keeping that same ethos for the spot The space will open only for gigs in the evening and that too only on days when there is an artiste playing It will remain shut on other days The food is a mix of dishes that will be served up from the two cloud kitchens that the Rohras already run in the area and there will also be an inhouse bar serving a variety of cocktailsTime to danceComing in JanuaryInternational electronic DJs have started making a steady comeback to the city and two of the more popular names scheduled for gigs here are Benjamin Damage in pic and Dubfire The former is a British DJ based in Germany who has already landed in India having played gigs at places like Goa Dubfire on the other hand is a Grammy Awardwinning IranianAmerican house music DJ who was part of celebrated electronic act Deep Dish Catch them as they set the dance floor of a Lower Parel venue on fireGetting to know RadhaComing in JanuaryArt historian and scholar of Indian miniature paintings Dr BN Goswamy in pic will speak on Radha Companion Beloved Aaradhya from the viewpoint of an artist and devotee This illustrated talk at NCPA will see Goswamy focusing on a song by Vidyapati where the words are spoken by Vraja a damsel hopelessly in love with Krishna But the question asked towards the end of the song might as well be posed to Radha as she is omnipresent The scholar looks into the concept of Radha as poets and painters of the Subcontinent knew herThrift and the cityComing in FebruaryMarchBombay Closet Cleanse is a Bandrabased thrift storeBandrabased thrift store Bombay Closet Cleanse will host a citywide thrift festival featuring over 50 local thrift stores as well as local FampB brands and small businesses that are focused on sustainability Besides thrifting the festival will involve art shows and performances ldquoOur goal is to make a definite change in consumer behaviour and encourage them to shift towards sustainable shopping mdash and to do so we have to make thrifting exciting The festival will be a community engagement initiative that educates and entertains the lay consumer We hope to make this an annual affairrdquo said Sana Khan its cofounderMixing mediumsComing in MarchThe Harkat Collective will be staging a theatre show with a difference titled Preet It will be a hybrid event that fuses elements of cinema and theatre The stage will have screens that depict certain characters who will also be there live on stage interacting with their own onscreen personas All the sounds are live and the plot follows a tragic story that explores love and griefFairs and retrospectivesComing in februaryMarchThe fair will showcase a range of contemporary handmade productsDr Bhau Daji Lad City Museum is known for striving to support the living traditions of India while promoting creatortoconsumer nonprofit initiatives It will collaborate with Hundred Hands a Karnatakabased notforprofit group to bring a handicrafts fair at the museum The fair will showcase a vibrant array of contemporary handmade products made by traditional artisans The platform will also be used to host talks and workshops by craftsmen and artists In March the museum will also host an exhibition of contemporary works and installations by Reena Saini Kallat It will be a mini retrospective charting out the artistrsquos evolutionHappy tailsComing in JanuaryThe underconstruction site for the new shelter PicBipin KokateAnimal welfare organisation YODA will launch a new larger shelter in Khar This space will accommodate 70 animals dogs and cats at a time and will also include a free OPD for the benefit of strays ldquoThrough our OPD which will be equipped with diagnostic equipment we will serve nearly 400 strays a month We will also have inhouse vets on call and an ambulance service to tend to emergencies Our goal is to be the bestincare hospital for strays in the city and to also amplify our work in the areas of adoptions awareness and educationrdquo shared founder Priya Agarwal The new shelter has been partially crowdfunded by animalloving citizens