Speakers: Prof. G Mohan Gopal, former Director, National Judicial Academy of the Supreme Court of India, and former Vice-Chancellor, National Law School of India, Bengaluru; Prof. Sumeet Mhaskar, Professor of Labour Sociology at the Jindal School of Government and Public Policy, O. P. Jindal Global University; Prof. Vidhu Verma, Professor, Centre for Political Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University; Subhash Ghatade, Independent Researcher, writer, translator and activist; and Prof Y. S. Alone, Professor in Visual Studies, School of Arts and Aesthetics, Jawaharlal Nehru University

Moderator: Suhas Borker, Convener, Working Group on Alternative Strategies and Editor, Citizens First TV (CFTV).

This discussion is part of the series on Social Justice and Empowerment started in 2010 and held every year on 1 May to commemorate the life and work of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar

(Collaboration: Maharashtra Sanskritik ani Rannaniti Adhyayan Samiti and Working Group on Alternative Strategies)

Intimate Conversations: Rabindra Sangeet

Presented by Sounak Chatterjee from Kolkata

Among the foremost vocalists of his generation, Sounak received training in Hindustani classical music from Ustad Mashkoor Ali Khansahab and Mubarak Ali Khasahab of the Kirana Gharana. He received advanced training in Rabindrasangeet from Swagatalakshmi Dasgupta and Pramita Mallick

(Collaboration: Impresario India)

Four books will be discussed: A Grammatical Sketch of Sanenyo: The Language spoken in Chowra, the Nicobar Islands, India; A Grammatical Sketch of LURO: The language spoken in Teressa island, Andaman and Nicobar; Sanenyo Dictionary; and Luro Dictionary

Co-authors: Anvita Abbi, Rahul Pachori and Vyasakh R.

Discussants: Prof. Udaya Narayan Singh, poet, linguist, essayist and translation theoretician, and Chair-Professor of Linguistics at AMITY University Gurgaon; Dr. Ajay Saini; Prof. Anvita Abbi, linguist and scholar of minority languages, and co-author of the books; and Shri Rahul Pachori, co-author of the books

Curator: Prof. Himanshu Prabha Ray

Recentering Southeast Asia

Speakers: Dr. T.C.A. Raghavan, historian and award-winning author, former diplomat and Director General, Indian Council of World Affairs; and Prof. Himanshu Prabha Ray, Tagore National Fellow, Jawaharlal Nehru University

Chair: Prof. Madhavan K. Palat, distinguished historian, scholar of the modern world, and political commentator

The talk will draw on the recently published book Recentering Southeast Asia: Politics, Religion and Maritime Connections (Routledge: 2025) which highlights the ‘restructuring’ of the shared past of India and Southeast Asia through European colonization and the multiple nationalisms of the region in the late 19th and early 20th century. The speakers will present case studies from archaeology and art history; and explore 20th century developments through the lens of political figures like Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964); the role of the Greater India Society (1926-1959); and Buddhism in underpinning post-World War II connections across Asia

An illustrated lecture by Nayan Chanda who was the Saigon-based Indochina correspondent of the Far Eastern Economic Review in 1975; he is presently, Associate Professor of International Relations, Ashoka University

On April 30, 1975, the Vietnam War ended as North Vietnamese tanks entered Saigon’s Independence Palace. Indian journalist Nayan Chanda was one of the foreign correspondents present that day to record that historic moment. In this talk, Chanda will recount his experiences reporting from Vietnam, including conversations with leaders, soldiers, and civilians, and will share photographs he took during that time

Hindi Cinema and Pakistan: Screening the Idea and the Reality

By Meenakshi Bharat (Routledge India: 2024)

Discussants: Shri Amit Khanna, film producer, director, writer and journalist; Dr. Kamayani Kumar, Assistant Professor, Dept. of English, Aryabhatta College, University of Delhi; Prof. Nishat Haider, Professor, Dept. of English, Jamia Millia Islamia; Prof. Ira Bhaskar, film scholar and former Professor of Cinema Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University; and Prof. Meenakshi Bharat, writer, translator, reviewer and cultural theorist; and author of the book

Moderator: Ms Jasleen Vohra
 

Challenges Confronting the Indian Language Media

Panelists: Jomy Thomas, Chief of National Bureau, Malayala Manorama; Mahtab Alam, former Executive Editor, The Wire, Urdu; Paresh Nath, Editor and Publisher, Delhi Press; and Samata Biswas, Academic and Columnist, Senior Research Advisor, Calcutta Research Group

Moderator: Vibodh Parthasarathi, Associate Professor, Centre for Culture, Media and Governance, Jamia Millia Islamia

(Collaboration: The Media Foundation)

Medusa and other poems

By Sangeeta Gupta

Discussants: Prof. Sukrita Paul Kumar, Guest Editor, Indian Literature, poet, academic and critic; Ms Mandira Ghosh, writer and author of several books of prose and poetry; Prof. Radha Chakravarty, poet, critic and translator, formerly Professor of Comparative Literature and Translation Studies, Ambedkar University; Ms Sangeeta Gupta, author of the book

Chair: Dr. Amarendra Khatua, Former Secretary, MEA, Poet & Diplomat

An exhibition paintings by Nilansu Bala Sasamal

Preview on Wednesday, 7 May 2025 at 18:30 hrs