Nehru, Tibet and China
By A.S. Bhasin (Penguin, New Delhi: 2021)

Discussants: Amb. Chandrashekhar Dasgupta, writer and former Indian Ambassador to the European Union, Belgium, Luxembourg and China; Dr. Zorawar Daulet Singh, author and foreign affairs analyst, Adjunct Fellow, Institute of Chinese Studies and Visiting Fellow,  Forum for Strategic Initiative; and Shri A.S. Bhasin, former Director, Ministry of External Affairs and author of the book 

Chair: Amb. Vijay Gokhale, former Foreign Secretary

The Janus Face of Agricultural Policies – Kisan and Sethias: Local and Global
Speaker: Prof. Y.K. Alagh, eminent economist, educationist and Government Policy Adviser, former Minister for Planning and Programme Implementation, Science and Technology and Power

(Collaboration: Council for Social Development)

Visual Arts in Corona Times
A discussion with Mithu Sen, Ranjit Hoskote and Sadanand Menon
Moderator: Ashok Vajpeyi

Links:
facebookLive@razafoundation
YouTube@The Raza Foundation

With his singular and unwavering style, Japanese director Yasujiro Ozu (1903-1963) disregarded the established rules of cinema and created a visual language all his own. Precise compositions, contemplative pacing, low camera angles, and elliptical storytelling are just some of the signature techniques the great filmmaker used to evoke a sense of melancholy and poetry in everyday existence. The three films that Ozu made between 1949 and 1953 constitute his most enduring achievement. Dubbed the “Noriko Trilogy” after the name of the female protagonist in all three films, the films (Late Spring, Early Summer, Tokyo Story) co-star the two most familiar members of Ozu’s longstanding stock company: Chishu Ryu (1904–1993), the director’s favourite actor; and Setsuko Hara (1920–2015), who plays Noriko in all three parts of the trilogy. 

Late Spring (Banshun/Japan) | (108 min; 1949; b/w; with English subtitles) | ( Click here to watch )

Director: Yasujiro Ozoch )

Recipient of the Kinema Junpo Award 1950 for Best Film; and Mainichi Film Concours Award for Best Film, Best Actress, Best Director and Best Screenplay, Mainichi Film Concours 1950. One of the most powerful of Yasujiro Ozu’s family portraits, Late Spring tells the story of a widowed father who feels compelled to marry off his beloved only daughter. Eminent Ozu players Chishu Ryu and Setsuko Hara command this poignant tale of love and loss in post war Japan, which remains as potent today as ever—and a strong justification for its maker’s inclusion in the pantheon of cinema’s greatest directors.

Director: David Wallace

A four-part BBC series, written and presented by Michael Wood

Michael Wood retraces Alexander the Great’s amazing journey from Greece to India, searching for the truth behind the legend and experiencing the tremendous scale of his achievements.

Using the ancient historians as his guides, Wood follows Alexander’s journey as closely as possible, crossing deserts and rivers, from Turkey to war-torn Afghanistan. As the journey progresses, he recreates the drama of Alexanders epic marches and bloody battles. All along the way he finds proof of the survival of the legends surrounding Alexander, a leader whose life has excited the world’s imagination for the 2,000 years.

Episode IV: To the Ends of the Earth (60 min) 
Alexander turns towards India, heading for what he believed would be the end of the earth. Michael Wood traces Alexander’s route through the northwest frontier region of Pakistan, the plains of the Punjab, down the Indus river, and by camel across the Makran desert back to Babylon – where Alexander died, aged 32.

Verona – The City of Love and Wine
A virtual tour of the city conducted by Caterina Brazzi Castracane, historian, author and tour guide

The historic city of Verona in northern Italy’s Veneto region, was founded in the 1st century B.C. A UNESCO World Heritage city, Verona flourished under the rule of the Scaliger family in the 13th and 14th centuries and as part of the Republic of Venice from the 15th to 18th centuries. The city has preserved a remarkable number of monuments from antiquity, the medieval and Renaissance periods, and represents an outstanding example of a military stronghold. 

An initiative of the Italian Embassy Cultural Centre, New Delhi and Bell’Italia 88
 

(57.02 min; 2019; English)
A BBC Documentary 
Presented by David Attenborough

David Attenborough takes a stark look at the facts surrounding climate change in today's world, detailing the dangers we are already having to deal with and future threats, but also the possibilities for prevention and radical political, social and cultural change.

https://www.documentarymania.com/player.php?title=Climate%20Change%20Th… ( Click here to watch )

Should the great Polish piano composer Frederic Chopin’s music be played only on the piano? Why not on the tabla, sitar or veena? Desi Chopin is an interpretation of Chopin’s masterpieces by leading Indian musicians on traditional Indian musical instruments. The project was organised and arranged by the Polish Institute, New Delhi

Artists featured: Saraswati Rajagopalan (veena); Kailash Sharma (flute); Suhel Saeed Khan (sitar); Narinderpal Gill (keyboard); Manohar Balatchandirane (mridangam); Varun Rajasekharan (ghatam & kanjira); Ujith Udaya Kumar (tabla); and Tomasz Pajak (violin)

Arrangement and Supervision: Tomasz Pajak

The artists present Prelude in D Flat Major; Waltz in A Minor; Mazurka in G Minor; Etude Number 3; Waltz in E Flat Major; Mazurka in F Major; and Prelude in A Major

Video recorded at the Embassy of Poland in September 2020

(Collaboration: Polish Institute, New Delhi)

Sikkim: A History of Intrigue and Alliance

By Preet Mohan Singh Malik (HarperCollins India, New Delhi: 2021)

Discussants: Amb. Nalin Surie, Distinguished Fellow for Diplomacy, Delhi Policy Group, former Indian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Ambassador to China and Poland, and former Director General, Indian Council of World Affairs; Lt. Gen (Retd.) K.J. Singh, PVSM, AVSM & Bar, former General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Command and Sikkim Core Commander; and Amb. Preet Mohan Singh Malik, author of the book and former Ambassador to Myanmar, Malaysia, Bahrain, Cuba & Tanzania

Chair: Amb. K.P. Fabian, Distinguished Fellow, Symbiosis University