Illustrated lecture by Ritika Kochhar, author, art writer, and founder of ArtRadio, a platform dedicated to engaging audiences with art history and culture through podcasts, masterclasses, and curated walthroughs

Chair: Shri Sohail Hashmi

This lecture will focus on the rich tradition of miniatures from Timur to Bahadur Shah Zafar II (focussing mostly on Humayun, Akbar, Jahangir, Mohammad Shah Rangila, Shah Alam II and BSZII), especially the mythological narratives, and masnavis, or poetic epics, under Akbar. Also the Gulshan Album that Nadir Shah carried away and the famous artists that worked in the royal tasvir khana. It will highlight how these artworks not only served as historical documents but also as expressions of cultural and spiritual imagination in the Mughal era.
 

Andretta, a village in Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh, has long been home to a vibrant artist community, including renowned figures like Sardar Gurcharan Singh, Shoba Singh and B.C. Sanyal. Over the past four decades, it has attracted students, artists, and enthusiasts, many of whom chose to settle down in the village and become a part of Andretta’s creative community.

The exhibition showcases the work of the Andretta artists, potters, printmakers, and musicians. On display are works by Mansimran Singh, Mary Singh, Gauri Sharma, Sheila Sedgwick, Lipoklemla Ao, Shubham Sankhyan, Manish Arora, Yamini J. Paul, Bianca Bellantyne, Suchika Rathode and Arjun Sen

Inauguration on Thursday, 20 February 2025 at 18:30

PTA (80 min)
 

Play in English written and directed by Chandini Agarwal and Jonas David
Presented by Wings Cultural Society

A poignant and heart-wrenching exploration of grief, misunderstanding, and the desperate search for answers in the wake of unimaginable tragedy. The play unfolds during a parent-teacher conference between Meera, a mother who has just lost her son to suicide, and Karan, his teacher.

(Collaboration: Wings Cultural Society)
 

Carnatic Vocal Recital
By R. Anirudh Subramanian from Chennai, disciple of Shri Abhishek Raghuram and Shri Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna

At 19:00
Bharatanatyam Recital
By Swarnali Kundu from Delhi, disciple of Smt Rama Vaidyanathan
 

Edited by Arundhati Virmani, Jean Boutier and Manohar Kumar (Routledge, New Delhi: 2025)

Short presentation on the book by the Editors of the book – Prof. Arundhati Virmani, EHESS, Norbert Elias Centre in Social Sciences, Marseille; Prof. Jean Boutier, Directeur d’Etudes, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Marseille and former Director of the Norbert Elias Centre in Social Sciences (2002-2011); and Prof. Manohar Kumar, Assistant Professor, Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology, Delhi (IIIT); and Shri Namit Arora

Panelists: Shri Manish Tewari, Member of Parliament; Prof. Rajiv Bhargava, noted political theorist, Honorary Fellow and Founder Director, Parekh Institute of Indian Thought, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies; Prof. Zoya Hasan, National Fellow, Indian Council of Social Science Research and Professor of Political Science and the Dean of School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University; and Namit Arora, public historian and author, former IIT and Silicon valley engineer

Moderator: Ms Shweta Kothari, journalist

Discussion based on the proceedings of an IIC Seminar organised in collaboration with EHESS, Centre Norbert Elias, Marseille and Centre de Sciences Humaines, New Delhi in January 2020

S.H. Raza: The Very Essence (India)
(51 min; English & with English subtitles)
Director: Laurent Bregeat

The film will be introduced by Shri Ashok Vajpeyi

The film captures the essence of one of India’s most compelling modernists, Raza. A founder member of the Progressive Artists’ Group, Raza’s style evolved over the years from the early expressionistic landscapes of his childhood in the forests of Madhya Pradesh, to more geometric representations of French landscapes after he moved to Paris. The film traces this journey to his final non-representational style that expressed itself in the iconic ‘Bindu’

(Collaboration: The Raza Foundation)
 

Poetry Readings
 

By Amarjeet Kaunke (Patiala); Vinay Vishwas, Raki Garg and Anil Analhatu (Delhi NCR)

(Collaboration: The Raza Foundation)
 

An evening of Lama Doboom Tulku’s poetry

Reading and reflection by Dr. Maya Joshi, Associate Professor of Literature. Lady Shri Ram College for Women
Dancing Eloquence by Zuleikha, StoryDancer

Introduction: Dr. Sudhamahi Regunnathan, academic

(Collaboration: World Buddhist Culture Trust)
 

Lead presentation by Prof. Rajinder K. Dhamija, Professor of Neurology and Director, Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences, New Delhi and Chair, National Task Force on Brain Health, Govt. of India

Discussants: Prof. K. Srinath Reddy, former President, Public Health Foundation of India; Dr. Yuta Nemoto, WHO SEARO, New Delhi; and Dr. Rajendra Pratap Gupta, Chairman, Dynamic Coalition on Digital Health, Internet Governance Forum

Chair: Shri K.N. Shrivastava, Director, IIC

WHO has passed a resolution in its 65th General Assembly on Intersectoral Global Action Plan on Neurological Disorders. India is also a signatory along with 190 member states. Further, India has taken the lead in constituting a National Task Force of Brain Health with neurologists from AIIMS, NIMHANS and other institutions as well as policy makers from the Ministry of Health, Govt. of India, ICMR, Social Justice and Disability and by Niti Aayog. The talk and discussion will discuss and deliberate about brain health and its impact on the Indian economy

ART MATTERS

Panel discussion on Looking at Art
 

Panelists: Nitin Bhayana; Vandana Kalra; Jyoti Kathpalia; and Anubhav Nath

(Collaboration: The Raza Foundation)