BOOK DISCUSSION on

Princestan: How Nehru, Patel and Mountbatten Made India
By Sandeep Bamzai

ABOUT THE BOOK: In the run-up to independence, a vile plan was devised by a handful of powerful princes to not join either India or Pakistan. The plan was led by the Chancellor of the chamber of princes, Nawab of Bhopal, who was operating under the patronage of Mohd. Ali Jinnah, Lord Wavell and British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill. The idea was to create a third dominion called Princestan where the 565 princely states would stay outside the ambit of the two free states and retain paramountcy under the aegis of the departing British. The success of such a malevolent plan would have made the newly independent nation unstable and vulnerable. However, three persons stood in the way of the nefarious British plan to balkanize India. This is the hitherto untold story of how Jawaharlal Nehru, Lord Mountbatten and Sardar Patel battled the rulers of the princely states at every twist and turn to foil that cunning plan, even as the process of decolonization had begun.

CHAIR: Shri Gurcharan Das, Author, Commentator, & Public Intellectual

PANELISTS: Prof. Rajendra G. Harshe, Former Vice-Chancellor, Central University of Allahabad & Visiting Prof, South Asian University; Shri Ashok Bhan, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India; Shri Sandeep Bamzai, CEO and Editor-in-Chief, IANS &  Author of the Book

6th Lecture and Discussion under the
IIC/OPEN HEALTH SYSTEMS COLLOQUIUM SERIES

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Doug Engelbart (1925 – 2013), engineer and inventor was an early computer and Internet pioneer best known for his work on founding the field of human-computer interaction, which resulted in the creation of the computer mouse and the development of hypertext, network computers the precursors to graphical user interfaces. 

LEAD SPEAKER: Dr. Jim Spohrer, computer scientist, Director, Cognitive OpenTech for IBM Research - Almaden and directs the Center for Open-Source Data and AI Technologies (CODAIT).

DISCUSSANTS: Christina Engelbart, daughter of Doug Engelbart, and co-founder and Executive Director of Doug Engelbart Institute; Daniel Araya, Senior Partner, the World Legal Summit and Senior Fellow, Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI); and Mei Lin Fung, Co-founder of People-Centered Internet (PCI) and Vice-Chair, Internet Inclusion, Institute for Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE). 

CHAIR: Dr. Nandini Kannan, Executive Director, Indo-U.S. Science & Technology Forum (IUSSTF)

Time: 7:00am — 8:30am (PDT)/ 7:30pm — 9:00pm (IST)

Open Health Systems Colloquium is a collaboration between the Open Health Systems Laboratory (OHSL) and the India International Centre (IIC). Its goal is to bring together leading thinkers to present and discuss life science issues in an effort to provoke innovative, holistic, and ultimately paradigm shifting approaches to life sciences. By making the latest developments in biomedical sciences accessible in the public domain, the goal is to stimulate debate and deliberation across disciplines. 

SPEAKER: Cmde C. Uday Bhaskar, Director, Society for Policy Studies, New Delhi

CHAIR: Shri N.N. Vohra, President, IIC

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[96 min; 2009; Arabic & English with English subtitles]
Director: Cherien Dabis

Click here to watch this film.

Multiple award winner including FIRESCI Prize, Critics Week, Cannes Film Festival 2009; Best Arabic Film & Best Screenplay, Cairo International Film Festival 2009; Woman of Worth ‘Vision’ Award, Tribeca Film Festival 2009; among others.

Following a Palestinian single mom and her teenage son who immigrate to small town Illinois during the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, Amreeka follows the two dealing with the realities of living in the United States as a Palestinian, tackling racism and economic hardship. The film was hugely acclaimed in the year it came out, voted one of the top 10 independent films of the year by the National Board of Review.

To celebrate the centenary year of Satyajit Ray, legendary filmmaker, writer, illustrator and music composer, a series of programmes will be organised in virtual and physical mode throughout the year. The programmes will include exhibitions, films – documentary and features, talks and discussions to try to present both the known and lesser known aspects of Satyajit Ray.

Satyajit Ray
[136 min; 1985; English]
A film by Shyam Benegal
Produced by Films Division

Satyajit Ray is seen on the sets and at home through the lens of film director Shyam Benegal. In conversation with a fellow artist for whom he has considerable respect, Ray opens up in a manner rarely seen, reminiscing about his childhood and growing years, discussing his oeuvre, responding to questions on his craft and exploring memories immortalized in his films. The result is a discovery of the private person as much as a look at his work – a close-up of a major presence in world cinema.

The film brings together a rare selection of visual material documenting Ray as designer, illustrator, film director and scriptwriter.
 

A 2010 Discovery Channel Smini science documentary series with Stephen Hawking. The world's most famous living scientist explores the greatest mysteries of the cosmos. In three landmark instalments he reveals the wonders of the universe as never seen before. Definitive, provocative, surprising, and beautiful, Into the Universe with Stephen Hawking is a fascinating look through the mind's eye of one of the finest brains on the planet.

EPISODE 2: Time Travel [43:31 min]
"Is Time Travel Possible?" Hawking explores the world's favourite scientific 'what if?' He explores all the possibilities, warping the very fabric of time and space as he goes. From killing your grandfather to riding a black hole, we learn the pitfalls and the prospects for a technology that could quite literally, change everything.

[60 min; 2011; English]
Director: Mick Csàky

During the 19409s, 50s and 60s, Sister Rosetta Tharpe played a highly significant role in the creation of rock and roll, inspiring musicians like Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, Little Richard and Chuck Berry. She may not be a household name, but this flamboyant African American gospel singing superstar, with her spectacular virtuosity on the newly-electrified guitar, was one of the most influential popular musicians of the 20th century.

[59 min; 2009; English]
Director: John Trefor
A BBC production

Click here to watch this film.

Dan Snow travels to Mexico to investigate the history, character and legacy of Montezuma, the last great ruler of the Aztecs of central America. He uncovers the extraordinary story of the Aztecs themselves, a cultured and civilised people whose lives were governed by elaborate ceremony and blood-curdling ritual.

Dan Snow also discovers how, in a titanic clash of cultures, their leader Montezuma faced up to a mortal threat from another world – the weaponry, gold-lust and greed of 16th century Spanish conquistadors.

[56 min; 1987; English]
Director: Aviba Slesin

Recipient of the Oscar Award for Best Documentary, Features, Academy Awards 1988; and Lilian Gish Award for Excellence in Documentary, Los Angeles Women in Film Festival 1987.

Throughout the "Roaring '20s," a flock of the decade's most vibrant writers gathered daily to dine at New York City's Algonquin Hotel. Here the likes of Edna Ferber, Dorothy Parker, George S. Kaufman and Harpo Marx socialized and philosophized while crafting works that captured the era's high-class ambitions and ultimate decadence. In this Oscar-winning documentary, Aviva Slesin uses the Round Table as a focal point to explore how the Jazz Age shaped these artists' relationships and lives.

Welcome Address: Prof. Sachin Chaturvedi, Director General, Research & Information System for Developing Countries (RIS)
 
Panelists: Shri Manish Sabharwal, Chairman, Board of Directors, TeamLease Services Ltd; Ms. Dakshita Das, Additional Member, Railway Board and former, Managing Director, National Housing Bank; Shri Sangram Singh, EVP & Head – Commercial Banking Coverage Group, Axis Bank; and Shri Charan Singh, CEO and Director, EGROW Foundation
 
Chair: Ms. Usha Thorat, Chairperson, Foundation for Ecological Security and formerly Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of India
 
(Collaboration: RIS)