Sunday, February 16, 2014

7th Delhi International Arts Festival

Delhi’s much awaited prestigious Arts festival is back to entertain Delhiites. This iconic Festival of arts that showcases all art forms from Music, Dance, Theatre, Visual Arts, Films, International performances and traditional arts and crafts from several Countries will be entertaining Delhiities until the 23rd of February, 2014.

The two-week Festival includes several rare and hitherto unseen in the Capital  traditional music and dance groups drawn from remote parts of India, like Singari Melam &Chavinattakam from Kerala, Ankhiya Bhawna and Borgeet from Assam, Karma & Sarfa Dance from Jharkhand, Hirni Birni Ki Katha fromBihar, Fakiri Songs & Mamore Puja & Rampa Dance from West Bengal and several others.
DIAF brings artistes from Spain, Italy, Egypt, and Mexico to enthrall the Delhietes with their amazing and unbeatable performance. Iranian illumination artistes and craftsmen will demonstrate at the National Museum & the Crafts Museum.

The Finale of this Prestigious Festival will be on the 23rd of February at 6.30 pm with a SUFI /QAWWALI NIGHT, which brings on stage the famous WARSI Qawwals of Hyderabad and Bharkat Sidhu from Punjab.

Highlights February 17, 2014
Literary Event
Readings by Children’s Writers/ Bal Sahiti
Gita Dharmarajan/ Chair
Surekha Panindikar/ Hindi
Prakash Manu/Hindi
Kamaljit Neelon/ Punjabi
Venue: Sahitya Akademi, Auditorium 3rd floor, Rabindra Bhawan, Copernicus Marg
Time: 4pm-6pm


Dance & Music
DESAJ presented by Sangeet Natak Akademi as part of the New Delhi World Book Fair
Fakiri Songs/West Bengal                                                             
Kalari/Kerala                                                           
Nachani/West Bengal                                                         
Mamore Puja (Jhumar) & Ranpa/West Bengal                 
Hirni Birni ki Katha/Bihar
Venue: Pragati Maidan, Lal Chowk
Time: 4.30pm - 8pm

Film Festival: Remembering Farooq Shaikha
Katha (Hindi/ 1983/141 mins)
Dir. Sai Paranjpye Cast: Naseeruddin Shah, Farooq Shaikh, Deepti Naval
Rajaram P. Joshi is a middle-class Clerk living in a chawl in Bombay. He is secretly in love with his neighbor, Sandhya karnik but is unable to disclose his love for her. Rajaram’s fast-tallking friend, Bashudev comes for a visit and makes himself at home. Bashudev starts wooing Sandhya and soon both are in love with each other. The karniks decide to marry Sandhya and Bashudev, much to misery of rajaram. But on the day of the engagement, Bashudev disappears, and the engagement is called-off. Rajaram offers to marry the devastated Sandhya, but she tells him that she has been very intimate with Bashudev, and is pregnant. It remains to be seen if rajaram will accept Sandhya or otherwise.

Venue: Stein Auditorium, India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road
Time: 7pm


Magic Show
By Murray Molloy, Spain
Murray Molloy has been performing and travelling all over the world from Australia to Laos and Portugal to Fiji, for more than fifteen years. He has performed on the street, in bares, clubs and festivals, in front of tribal chiefs and in the legendary Jim Rose Circus in America and the Edinbugh fringe festival. One of only fifty sword swallowers actually performing on the planet, and of these fifty one of twenty five that swallow curved swords and one of ten that swallow multiple swords at once! His repetoire also includes: Escapology, clown, comedy, magic, fire manipulation, fakirism, pirotechnics and contortionism.

Venue: Craft Museum, Pragati Maidan
Time: 4 PM



Highlights February 18, 2014

Magic Show
By Murray Molloy, Spain
Murray Molloy has been performing and travelling all over the world from Australia to Laos and Portugal to Fiji, for more than fifteen years. He has performed on the street, in bares, clubs and festivals, in front of tribal chiefs and in the legendary Jim Rose Circus in America and the Edinbugh fringe festival. One of only fifty sword swallowers actually performing on the planet, and of these fifty one of twenty five that swallow curved swords and one of ten that swallow multiple swords at once! His repetoire also includes: Escapology, clown, comedy, magic, fire manipulation, fakirism, pirotechnics and contortionism.

Venue: Select City Walk
Time: 5 PM

Children’s Film Festival
Gilli Gilli Atta/ Dir Pankaj Parashar
Cast: Aarif  Zakaria, Bhavani, Mukesh Ahuja, Johnny Lever & others.
This film using the element of comedy, depicts the triumph of innocence and goodness over everything including the evil.  The film shows that kindness and love are not just mere words but when put into action can result in change for the betterment of society.
Venue: National Museum, Auditorium
Time: 11.30am to 1pm


Lecture Demonstration
Geetha Kuncha/ BKS Verma
Painting to live music and dance is an art that Sri. B.K.S Verma specializes in. He does the painting as a performance to live audiences while responding to poetry or music and dance.
Venue: Lalit Kala Akademi, Regional Centre/East of Kailash /Garhi
Time: 5.00pm



Highlights February 19, 2014
Magic Show
By Murray Molloy, Spain
Murray Molloy has been performing and travelling all over the world from Australia to Laos and Portugal to Fiji, for more than fifteen years. He has performed on the street, in bares, clubs and festivals, in front of tribal chiefs and in the legendary Jim Rose Circus in America and the Edinbugh fringe festival. One of only fifty sword swallowers actually performing on the planet, and of these fifty one of twenty five that swallow curved swords and one of ten that swallow multiple swords at once! His repetoire also includes: Escapology, clown, comedy, magic, fire manipulation, fakirism, pirotechnics and contortionism.

Venue: Crafts Museum, Pragati Maidan
Time: 4 PM

Lecture Demonstration @ Kala Kuteer
Simhanandini/Veena Murthy Vijay
Simha Nandini this dance is the combination of dance and drawing. This unique feature of drawing by the feet while dancing has been practiced by the priests of Kalahasti temple in AP. The lyrics are handed down traditions. The Taala of rhythmic cycle is the combination of six different Taalas with different cycke rounds. The dancer follows this Taala while dancing on a Canvas or Rangoli spread floor. Rare Charis & Karanas are incorporated in this dance.
Venue: Lalit Kala Akademi, Regional Centre, Kala Kuteer/Garhi 
Time: 4.00pm

Lecture Demonstration @ Kala Kuteer
Mayura Kauthuvam/ Oleti Rangamani
“HAMSA (Kalaratna)” awardee Smt. Oleti Rangamani is the daughter of Guru late Sreeman C.R. Acharya, an internationally renowned and dedicated guru of kuchipudi and temple dances and an acknowledged authority in Karnaas, Tandavam and Prenkhini Natyams. Sreeman C.R. Acharya has brough back this ancient culture to lime light after conducting a rigorous research on this subject. His daughter, Voleti Rangmani was closely associated in his research work. Oleti Rangmani will present Mayuri Kauthuvam along with her disciple Dr. Yashoda Thakre. 
Venue: Lalit Kala Akademi, Regional Centre, Kala Kuteer/Garhi 
Time: 3.00pm

Children’s Film Festival
Black Forest/ Dir Joshy Mathew
Venue: National Museum, Auditorium
Time: 11.30am to 1pm

Theater International
Quijote Wallah/based on “Don quijote” by Miguel de
Cervantes A theatre performance coming out from a mural on moving  walls, based on one of  the major works of  the universal literature,  Don quijote, is the starting point of   this multidisciplinary project. Street art, theatre, literature, and much more are involved in the  quijote Wallah Project. The oniric and surreal world not only dreamed but lived by Don quijote is not far away from the real and present world. He is treated by his fellows as crazy man simply because he looks at the world in a different way. His thoughts and his feelings and emotions leads his life through a world which doesn’t understand him, so it sometimes hits him, other times laughs at him, and  very few comprehends him and gives him a peaceful rest.
Venue: Select Citywalk, Saket
Time: 6:00 pm


Highlights  February 20, 2014
Performance
Mayura Kauthuvam /Oleti rangamani with disciple Yashoda Thakore

Simhanandini/ Veena Murthy Vijay with disciple Shama krishna

Geetha Kuncha - BkS Varma

Venue: Lalit Kala Akademi, Regional Centre, Kala Kuteer, Garhi
Time: 6 pm

Children’s Film Festival
Chhutkan ki Mahabharat/Dir Sankalp Meshram
Venue: National Museum, Auditorium
Time: 11.30am to 1pm



Highlights  February 21, 2014

Theatre-National
Chhaya Shakuntalam/Directed by k.N.Pannikar
It is a retelling of kalidasa’s Abhijnana Shakuntalam. The title of  the play contains the word “Abhijnana” which is indicative of  oblivion and remembrance, two psychogenic functions of  the mind experienced by Dushyanta, the protagonist of  the play. The theme of  the play suggests that the limit of  one’s own rights irrespective of  whether one is the ruler or the ruled has to be prescribed by some superimposed sanction, lest the social equilibrium would be disturbed. Whichever age we belong to, the problem repeats in different contemporary dimensions.
Venue: Abhimanch, National School of Drama, Bhagwan Das Road, Mandi House
Time:  6.30 pm

Music-Dhrupad Festival
Pandit Pushpraj Koshti / Surbahar
Ustad Hussain Sayeeduddin Dagar  
Venue: Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, Auditorium I, CV Mess, Janpath,
Time: 6.30 pm


Highlights February 22, 2014
Theatre-National
Jaat Hi Poochho Sadhu Ki/Directed by Rajendra Nath
The play opens with a narrative by Mahipat, who gives a hilarious biographical sketch of his life. His only aim is to become an M.A before bidding good bye to this world. He encounters countless rejections, spends time classifying rejection slips, and ultimately starts his study of  Sifarishim (Nepotism), which he believe the best weapon available today.
Venue: Abhimanch, National School of Drama, Bhagwan Das Road, Mandi House Time: 6.30 pm

Music-Dhrupad Festival
Jyoti Hegde / Rudra Veena
Ustad Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts,
Faiyaz Wasifuddin Dagar / Dhrupad
Venue: Auditorium I, CV Mess, Janpath
Time: 6.30 pm



Highlights February 23, 2014
Music-Dhrupad Festival
Nancy Lesh-Kulkarni / Cello
Pandit Uday Bhawalkar / Dhrupad
Venue: Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, Auditorium I, CV Mess, Janpath, 
Time: 10.30am


Food Court,
Venue: Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts,
Lawns, Rajendra Prasad Road
Time: 12noon onwards

On-going Exhibitions
Amrita Shergil -The Passionate Quest
Curated by Yashodhara Dalmia

Subodh Gupta - Everything Is Inside
Curated by Germano Celant

Venue: National Gallery of Modern Art, India Gate,
Time: 11am - 5pm


Gala Closing
Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts Lawns,
Entry: Dr. Rajendra Prasad Road

Sufi & Qawwali, 6.30pm
Sufi -Barkat Sidhu / Punjab
Qawwali - Warsi Qawwals / Hyderabad
Nazir Ahmed khan Warsi & Naseer Ahmed
khan Warsi