A programme on the cuisine of pre-partition provinces of Punjab, Sindh and Bengal, followed by a dinner for IIC Members
 
Curated by Dr. Pushpesh Pant and Dr.  Babso Kanwar
 
Besides recipes, what the people of the undivided subcontinent cherish are the traditions and songs that celebrate amongst other things the changing cycle of seasons. Devotees of Jhulelal (the most revered Sufi Saint of Sindh, Laal Shahbaz Qalandar) cut across geographical divides and seamlessly bridge religious chasms. Runa Laila from Bangladesh celebrates the Punjabi kalaamby Baba Bulleh Shah, “Dama Dam Mast Qalandar”, Baul Muslim singers continue to keep alive the memories of Krishna and Radha from Vrindavan and the tragic tale of Heer and Ranjha continues to haunt Punjab and Punjabis alike 

Director: Utpal Borpujari who will introduce the film
 
Screening will be followed by a discussion
 
Like ethnic communities the world over, folk music and dances form the core of Naga culture, but what makes it even more important ethnographically is the fact that the Naga folk traditions also comprise of oral history keeping. At the turn of the 20^th century, the early Western missionaries opposed singing of folk songs as they were perceived to be associated primarily with spirit worship. The film showcases the efforts at preserving these traditional folk songs and follows its synthesis with contemporary forms of Naga folk music today
 

Singing Dakhini Poetry
Presentation by Vidya Rao, well-known vocalist
 
Chair: Dr Preeti Bahadur Ramswamy, art historian and one of the two curators of the noted exhibition, ‘Nauras’ held at the National Museum who ​will  also speak about Dakkhani art and​culture

Rashtra Kavi Kuvempu: Man & Mission
Widely regarded as the greatest Kannada poet of the 20^th century, Kuvempu was a novelist, poet, playwright, critic and thinker. He is the first among Kannada writers to be decorated with the prestigious Jnanpith Award
 
Speaker: Dr. Hampa Nagarajaiah (Hampana), Professor Emeritus and President, Kuvempu Pratishthan, Shomoga, Karnataka
 
The lecture will be followed by screening of a documentary film Rasa-Rishi Kuvempu
 
Chair: Shri Namvar Singh, Recipient of the prestigious Kuvempu Rashtreeya Puraskar
 
There will be a small exhibition of books and selected photographs of and on Kuvempu coordinated by Pratishthana Secretary, Sri Kadidal Prakash, who will also be present

India’s Aborted Transitions
Speaker: Dr. Pratap Bhanu Mehta, President and Chief Executive, Centre for Policy Research
 
Chair: Prof. Dipankar Gupta
 
The lecture will examine the ways in which India is stuck in vicious cycles that make the necessary transitions for a more progressive India impossible

By Sameep Kulkarni from Pune, disciple of Ustad Shahid Parvez

Speaker: Shri Murad Ali Baig, travel and motoring writer who has recently published an historical novel, Ocean of Cobras (Tara – India Research Press, New Delhi 2015) set in 17^th century Mughal India. His talk will be based on this as well as on the writing of the novel

Directors: Kavita Bahl and Nandan Saxena who will introduce the film
Recipient of the Best Film Award in the ‘Water for All’ category, Vatavaran Environment & Wildlife Film Festival, New Delhi 2014; Gold for Best Script, Silver for Cinematography, Silver for Editing and Silver for Direction, and Certificate of Merit for Creative Excellence, Indian Documentary Producers Association Awards, Mumbai 2015
Screening will be followed by a discussion with Chittaroopa Palit, Narmada Bachao Andolan and Anupam Mishra and the two filmmakers
 
The film documents the resilient, non-violent Gandhian struggle of the mega-dam affected citizens of the Narmada valley. It questions the paradigm of development which assumes that mega dams are critical to progress. The film follows the drama inherent in the unfolding saga of the Narmada struggle

Speaker: Dr. Karen Exell, Lecturer in Museum Studies and Programme Director of the Masters Program in Museum and Gallery Practice, University College London, Qatar campus. Her recent publications include the co-edited volume, Heritage Debates in the Arabian Peninsula (Ashgate, 2014); and the forthcoming monograph, Museums in the Arabian Peninsula: Globalisation and the Politics of Representation (working title)
 
Museums were developed in many parts of the world during the colonial period to ‘visualise and objectify’ the colonised people and country for the coloniser, as Sheila Bhatti has argued in relation to the Lahore Museum. Following decolonisation the perception has remained amongst local communities that these ‘colonial’ museums are irrelevant to their contemporary concerns. Using models from a variety of countries this lecture argues that museums in post-colonial countries such as India have the opportunity to significantly enrich the lives of their local communities through creative interventions, and to realign these museums with contemporary socio-political concerns
 

Illustrated lecture by M.V. Bhaskar, who is working on  alternative forms of reconstruction and restoration of the mural paintings will recount tales of the lost art of mural painting
 
Followed by a
 
Bharatanatyam Recital
By Justin McCarthy with Kalamkari images to narrate stories of Mohini