MUSIC APPRECIATION PROMOTION

Asha Bhosle: Voice, Performance and Musical Legacy                                                                                        

Illustrated presentation by Shikha Jhingan, Associate Professor in Cinema Studies at the School of Arts and Aesthetics, JNU; author of Female Playback in Bombay Cinema: Voice, Body, Technology (Wayne State University Press, 2025) and documentary film-maker.

Chair: Prof Ashwini Deshpande, Professor of Economics and Director of Centre for Economic Data and Analysis (CEDA), Ashoka University

The Illustrated talk will focus on Asha Bhosle's unique vocal style that redefined the boundaries of the female voice in Hindi film songs. By charting Bhosle's extended career, the lecture will draw attention to the cinematic drive and genre defining qualities in her voice

IIC Double Bill :Dance  Recitals

Andhra Natyam

By Madhuri Surendra from Bangalore, disciple of Acharya Kala Krishna  

Accompanists: Rama Jagannath (Vocal);Acharya Kala Krishna( Nattuvangam); Janardhan (Mridangam); TVS Annadorai(Violin).

At 19:00

Mohiniattyam Recital

By Bhadra Rajeev from Thrissur, Kerala, disciple of Sri Kalamandalam C. Gopalakrishnan.

Remembering the Self - A Meditative Journey
(74 minutes; 2025; English)
Producer: Lilla Balint & Daniel Schmidt

A contemplative cinematic journey into awareness, presence, and the deeper nature of the Self. Through meditative reflections and stunning visuals, Remembering the Self invites viewers to pause, reflect, and reconnect with their inner essence.

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

UNSUNG: Celebrating the Extraordinary Grandeur of Smallness

A photography exhibition curated by Amit Mehra, photographer, curator, and founder of the UNSUNG project, an ongoing initiative that celebrates the lives and contributions of extraordinary yet often overlooked individuals.

The photographs explore the beauty and significance of lives, places, and ideas that often go unnoticed. Through visual narratives by contemporary artists, the exhibition reflects on ordinary people and unseen worlds whose stories reveal resilience, conviction, and human connection.

The exhibition will be inaugurated on Tuesday, 21 July’26 at 18:00 hrs

The exhibition will remain open daily from 11:00 to 19:00 hrs

(Collaboration: Srishti Manipal Institute of Art, Design and Technology (a constituent of MAHE, Manipal) and Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), Manipal (Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University)
 

BOOK DISCUSSION GROUP

Games Hospitals Play: Decoding Your Private Healthcare Experience
By Abantika Ghosh (Tulika Books, 2025)

Discussants: Jairam Ramesh, Rajya Sabha MP (TBC); Dr V K Paul, former member, Niti Aayog, Dr Randeep Guleria, former director, AIIMS (TBC); Dr Raj Shankar Ghosh, senior Advisor, Public Health Foundation of India; Dr Sumit Ray, Medical Director, Holy Family Hospital; C K Mishra, former health secretary; Abantika Ghosh, Journalist and Author of the book
 

The Extraordinary Science of The Ordinary World: The Legacy of Pierre-Gilles De Gennes

Speaker: Gautam Menon, Ashoka University

Moderator: Rohini Rangachari Karnik, Professor, Alliance Française de Delhi

The French Nobel prize winner in physics of 1991, Pierre-Gilles de Gennes (1932–2007), presided over the creation of a new interdisciplinary science, that of “soft matter”, studying materials as diverse as shaving foam, ink, sand, plastics and soap. But he also thought about education more broadly, emphasising that science is deeply human, intuitive, and driven by curiosity. He is not widely known to the public, a gap that will be addressed in the session. 
 

Emergent Quantum Matter: New Paths to Future Technology

Speaker:  Prof. Jainendra Jain, Founding Director, Lodha Theoretical Physics Institute, Mumbai; Evan Pugh University Professor & Eberly Chair in Physics & Director, Centre for Theory of Emergent Quantum Matter, The Pennsylvania State University

Chair: Dr. Shailesh Nayak, Director, National Institute of Advanced Studies

When electrons are confined to two dimensions and exposed to a strong magnetic field, they pull us into an astonishing new world that defies our everyday intuition. Electrons capture quanta of magnetic field to transform into exotic particles known as composite fermions, which serve as the fundamental building blocks of an unexpected and remarkably rich quantum landscape. The talk shall delve into the story and the motivations that led the speaker to the discovery of composite fermions and touch on how they could pave the way to new technology. 
 

9TH NELSON MANDELA LECTURE

Reconciliation and Art

Speaker: Ashok Vajpeyi, noted poet, writer, critic and cultural activist

Introduction by Programme Director, South African High Commission

Opening remarks: Suhas Borker, Convener, Working Group on Alternative Strategies

Closing remarks: H.E. Prof. Anil Sooklal, High Commissioner of the Republic of South Africa

The Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture was instituted at IIC in 2018 to mark the Centenary of Madiba

(Collaboration: South African High Commission and Working Group on Alternative Strategies)

TO MARK MANDELA INTERNATIONAL DAY 2026

Commemoration of Nelson Mandela’s 108th Birthday
Songs by School Choirs from Delhi NCR
At C.D. Deshmukh Auditorium: 11:15 to 12:15 Mandela Katha Mala

“Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings. And overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity. It is an act of justice. It is the protection of a fundamental human right, the right to dignity and a decent life. While poverty persists, there is no true freedom” - Nelson Mandela, from ‘Make Poverty History’ speech in London's Trafalgar Square for the campaign to end poverty in the developing world, 3 February 2005.
Message from the UN Secretary General António Guterres to be read by Mr. Darrin Farrant, Director, United Nations Information Centre for India and Bhutan

Speakers: H.E. Prof. Anil Sooklal, High Commissioner of the Republic of South Africa; and Suhas Borker, Convener, Working Group on Alternative Strategies

Interactive session with students of schools from Delhi NCR
A group of school students in Durban, South Africa shall join online for the interactive session.
Foyer outside the Auditorium: Madiba and His Struggle: An exhibition of paintings by students of Bluebells School International
Organized as part of Taking Gandhi to Children series that brings children closer to the enduring legacy of Gandhi’s non-violent struggle for equity, justice, pluralism and sustainable development

(Collaboration: Gandhi Yuva Baradari; United Nations Information Centre; and Working Group on Alternative Strategies)

ART MATTERS
A panel discussion on Sub Tarze-Nazar Hai with author Sushma Bhatnagar
Discussants: Mehr-e-Alam Khan, Anisur Rahman and G S Khwaja.
(Collaboration: Raza Foundation)