AAW #207

Indian’s first UNESCO World Heritage City, Ahmedabad is vivaciously celebrating the World Heritage Day with multiple cultural events. The week starts with a night photography walk in the heart of the walled city, where heritage admirer Ashish Mehta is inviting shutterbugs of Ahmedabad to take picturesque glimpses from Moto Sutharvado Pol to Manek Chowk.

A group of enthusiastic budding visual artists are opening Mangalarambh group painting exhibition in the presence of senior artist and art critic Natubhai Parikh. The exhibition has been brought to Ahmedabad by Mukhote creative Art Foundation in association with Gujarat State Lalit Kala Academy.

To help you experience a good chuckle amidst all the mundane work schedule budding stand-up comedian Aaryan Kadri, Sunil Regar, Dhruv Barot and Kiran Panchal are coming up with some fresh content and acts. Emerging or even first time poets and storytellers can try their hands on performances at the Open Mic Ahmedabad show.

Presented by the founder of Rangam Theatre, Prashant Tarun Jadav, Open Letters is a dramatic representation of a few iconic open letters rendered by budding theatre artists. One of the most iconic novels written in Gujarati by author Kanaiyalal Munshi and Pranlal Dwivedi, Pruthiveevallabh will be expressively narrated by a group of energetic performing artists at Natarani Amphitheatre this week. The Hungry, starring Naseeruddin Shah and Tisca Chopra is an Indian film version of Titus Andronicus Shakespearian tragedy.  Attendees of the screening will stand a chance to talk with its film director Bornila Chatterjee.

To ask poignant questions to the government civil society and the community as a whole, self-expressive play Gujarat Ke Muhajir is being brought to you by the recitalists of National Peace Group. The play will throw light on the displaced Muslim citizens after the gruesome Gujarat riots of 2002.

Author, critic, editor, journalist, columnist and translator Kumarpal Desai is coming up with his new book Param No Sparsh. The wordsmith will talk about his literature in the presence of eminent personalities from various creative fields. Poet and writer Madhav Ramanuj will celebrate his 75th birth anniversary at the Shabadjyoti talk session. The Narsinh Mehta Award and Sahitya Gaurav Puraskar recipient will brief us about his so far eventful life journey and career.

Through the 207th Ahmedabad Art Weekly, we give a hearty tribute to medieval Gujarati poet Vallabh Bhatt. The 17th-century poet was born in Ahmedabad but shifted to the temple town of Becharaji in devotion to deity Bahuchar Mata. The wordsmith drafted various devotional songs and Gujarati Garba in his lifetime and it is said that his first Garba, Anandno Garbo, was written while he was just of 13. A popular name in the folklores of Gujarat, Bhatt wrote Laavni, a particular metered poetry, while dedicating his devotion towards the goddess. His work is spread over various folk styles namely – Garba, Dhal, Pada and Aarti, a lot of it devotional in nature and dedicated to Bahuchar Mata. His songs  like Krishnavirahna Pada, Chosaath Joganiono Garbo, Bahucharajina Pada are part of the oral tradition till date.

Illustration : Nilesh Ramani