The Cultural Collapse II

A discussion with Sadanand Menon

Moderator: Ashok Vajpeyi

(Collaboration: The Raza Foundation)

(Non-fiction film; 52 min; 2021; India; English )

Directed by Joe Thomas K

The Nilgiris have gained the distinction of being a geographic indication for tea, today. Somewhere behind the present glory is a remote connection with the Chinese which remains forgotten. "Those 4 Years" is an amazing journey into the lives of those Chinese who came to India around the middle of the 19th century… speaking a language unknown to their neighbours when they first arrived. The film journeys across three countries and reams of colonial office records to retrace the places those people came from, the means and mode of their arrival, and how many of them ended up making India their home. It is a history of people, plants and places - as it catalogues their contributions to plantations, locates places and sites associated with their earliest arrival and stay and, more remarkably, manages to locate some of the descendants of those Chinese who arrived in India over 150 years ago.  

Dr. Joe Thomas Karackattu is an Associate Professor at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras. This is his second film 
 

Parenting in the Age of Anxiety: Raising Children in India in the 21st Century

By Abha Adams (Aleph Book Company: 2022)

Ms Abha Adams, Innovative educationist, former Director, The Shri Ram Schools and author of the book In Conversation with Dr. Shelja Sen, Narrative Therapist and Co-Founder, Children First; and Shri Rajiv Mehrotra, author and Secretary, Foundation for Universal Responsibility of HH The Dalai Lama

(Collaboration: Foundation for Universal Responsibility of HH The Dalai Lama)
 

Safe and Unsafe: how design choices help women online 

Speakers: Sabina Dewan, President and ED, JustJobs Network; Rwitwika Bhattacharya, CEO of Swaniti Initiative; Supriya Paul, Founder, Josh Talks; Tarunima Prabhakar, Co-Founder, Tattle; and Saranya Gopinath, Head, Public Policy, Razorpay

Moderator: Ms Mahima Kaul, Head Public Policy, Bumble APAC and former Public Policy Director, Twitter India

A well designed platform, with progressive policies and product features, can help offer ‘safe spaces’ for women online. Conversely, it is often found that points of vulnerability – be it harassment, fraud, even a confusing interface – can negatively impact women’s participation. How are women leaders across different sectors – employment, skilling, content, financial services – thinking about these issues?

An exhibition of photography and poetry that documents and reflects the daily reality of dementia through the eyes of those that have it, and those that care for them

The exhibition presents photographs by Andy Malhan and poems by Astri Ghosh focusing on the life of patients and their caregivers

Preview on Tuesday, 17 January 2023 at 18:30

Talk on the new book by Muzaffar Ali (Vintage Books: 2022)

Chief Guest: Dr. Karan Singh
Chair: Shri Shyam Saran, President, IIC

Panelists: Amb. Navtej Sarna, author and former Indian Ambassador to USA and UK; Dr. Nonica Datta, author and Associate Professor, Centre of Historical Studies, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University; and Shri Muzaffar Ali,  filmmaker, fashion designer, poet, artist, and author of the book
 

At 18:00
 

Hindustani Vocal Recital
By Shiv Prasad Rao from Delhi,  son and disciple of Shri Maheshwar Rao and Pt. Vikas Kashalkar
Accompanied by Jitendra Swain on tabla and Vinay Mishra on harmonium

At 19:00
 

Mohiniattam Recital
By  Rohini Satheesh Poduval from Delhi, disciple of Guru Jayaprabha Menon
Accompanied by Kottakkal Jayan on vocal; Tanjavore Kesavan on mridangam; G. Raghuraman on flute and Satheesh Poduval on edakka 
 

The Sargam and the Solfège

Illustrated presentation by Nilima Buch

The presentation will focus on the origin of Western classical and Hindustani music; discussing some similarities and differences between two of the oldest classical forms. The talk will be illustrated using different audio examples of famous recitals for a better understanding

Nilima Buch is a professional singer and stage performer. She also conducts workshops for music enthusiasts and is actively performing as a soloist and choir member with Lyric Ensemble Delhi, Vocal Academy of India and K M chamber choir 
 

Our History, Their History, Whose History?

Speaker: Prof. Romila Thapar, pre-eminent historian, Professor Emerita, Jawaharlal Nehru University

Chair: Shri Shyam Saran, President, IIC

The talk will examine the current crisis in the teaching and writing of history as reflected in new syllabus for school, college and University, and in public statements on the past. There is a bifurcation between popular public views and those of professional scholars of history. The questions to be answered are how did this come about? How legitimate are the changes being formally suggested? And why these changes are being contested by historians? The focus will be on one frequently quoted interpretation relating to the second millennium AD., discussing the relationship between two communities. 
 

ASI  Outside India

Conservation of Iconic Monuments in South-East Asia

Illustrated lecture by Shri Janhwij Sharma, Additional Director General  (Conservation, World Heritage), Archaeological Survey of India