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Volume XXXIII No. 2 March – April 2019

Titled Anthropocene and ArtEast 2019 the River, her photographs FESTIVAL on the river’s seasonal cycle, landscapes and ARTEAST FESTIVAL 2019 people was an intimate COLLABORATION: National Foundation for storytelling. ; The Sasakawa Peace Foundation; The centrepiece of the and New Imaginations, Jindal School of gallery, A Sense of the Journalism and Communication Flow: Brahmaputra and 14 to 16 March 2019 Ganga, was an installation by amateur artist Ashima Curated by Kishalay Bhattacharjee, ArtEast 2019 was an Sharma who conceived exploration into the source, history and imagination of the artwork using dreams, the Brahmaputra. The festival was a visual and historical cartography and material Installation at the festival journey from the river’s source at Mansarovar in Tibet, to memory, imagining a Siang in , Brahmaputra in , and cosmos that comprises the Brahmaputra–Ganga delta, Jamuna, Padma and Meghna in Bangladesh. There were journeying from the mountain ranges to the sea. art installations, video installations, poetry, dance, music Nadir Kul Nai, Kinar Nai, a video installation by filmmaker and conversations. Parasher Baruah, featured inhabitants of the Chars of Assam In trying to explore the six life-stages of the river, poet and through their songs, their relationship with the river, their writer Sumana Roy asked, is it possible to discover something struggle for survival, and the issue of migration and identity. new about the river through our poets? She then turned to a The gallery had a Listening Post with songs of the river, and selection of poems to seek a different dis-‘course’. a video of Bhupen Hazarika’s conversations with the river. National Geographic explorer and photographer Arati Kumar The ‘sky-river’ is one of the most tumultuous river expeditions Rao’s detailed studies of the river was the gallery highlight. in the world. This labyrinthine adventure was captured through real-time footage by cinematographer Apal Singh.

Ian Baker gave an illustrated and interactive talk, ‘Visions of Paradise in the Tsangpo–Brahmaputra Gorge’. Dancer Surjit N. from ’s choreographed piece, ‘1 sq. ft. on Migration and Displacement’ opened the festival. There was also a fascinating inlay of maps, archival material and photographs in an exhibition, ‘Brahmaputra: Red River Tales’. Fusion musicians Chaar Yaar presented a concert, and traditional tea-tasting sessions concluded the festival.

From the exhibition at the festival ■ TEAM ARTEAST

1 human faces— Moving Pictures out of which one struck me as a self- EXHIBITION portrait, and Malik Moments of Being. Paintings by Subhash told me it was to Malik express resistance 17 to 23 April to war. Malik, now 87 years old, has Malik is a widely published cultural anthropologist who been painting for worked at the Indian Institute of Advanced Studies, and his own pleasure, has over 15 books to his credit. The books are on diverse for the sake of Paintings by Subhash Malik subjects like art, anthropology, philosophy, history; one painting, for the is entitled The Moments of Being, from which the theme sake of expression; in Mukteshwar, he painted the walls of the exhibition originated. The books reflect his holistic of his house from the outside to make them look like a thinking regarding science and humanities, and appear to part of the landscape. Though he doesn’t believe he is connect closely with his artistic endeavours. an artist, he appears to have worked fearlessly, as he Malik’s paintings are in water colour, oil, crayons and wished, undaunted by the art world, by people around some mixed media work on wood panels where he used him, by scale or material, effortlessly creating images broken crockery. They were softly evocative of life and of nature’s beauty and its overpowering presence in the landscapes he came across in Baroda, Shimla and human lives. Mukteshwar. Spontaneous expressions of tranquillity, the ■ SABA HASAN passage of time, love of nature, trees, dome-like ruins,

the anti-Jew, racial discrimination of the Nazi regime. She Remembering Anne Frank begins to write her diary, addressed to ‘Kitty’, an imaginary friend, as her confidante. Initially the writings are typical of EXHIBITION a young teen, but with the changing political season, she Anne Frank: A History for Today records the dangers that her family lives through in hiding in an annexe in a warehouse. COLLABORATION: The Anne Frank House, Amsterdam; Peace Works, an initiative of The exhibition showed us incidents which were most the Seagull Foundation for the Arts; and relevant in the destruction of Jews by the Nazis. Embassy of the Netherlands & Israel—Spirit ‘Kristallnacht’, or the night of broken glass in 1938, of Creativity describes the destruction and deportation of Jews to concentration camps. 18 to 29 April Writing in those troubled times was Anne’s refuge, her Seldom in the history of mankind has there been such solace and also her fear. When the family was finally a courageous young girl, who braved the perils of the betrayed and rounded up, their journey in the various Second World War, and lived through the dangers of the camps from Westerbork, to Auschwitz, and finally to Holocaust. Bergen Belsen, was well documented in the exhibition.

Designed and executed by the Anne Frank House, and Anne died in February 1945, and it was only after the war supported by the Embassy of the Netherlands, this that her father, the sole survivor, was handed over the simple but informative exhibition made you want to read diary by Miep Gies. Otto Frank fulfilled his daughter’s wish each panel and sit through a short documentary film. In to become an author, and once published, till date, this monochromatic tones, with interesting visual imagery and poignant book continues to be a bestseller. textual information, the exhibit told us the story of the well-known young Jewish girl, Anne Frank, juxtaposed to It was good to see so many school students taking a some critical incidents of the war. keen interest in the exhibition. No doubt the story can still enthral. In chronological sequence, the story unfolds with Anne ■ LOLITA DUTTA as an impressionable 13-year-old, already exposed to

2 indeed inspirational. The photo exhibition showcased the Inspirational Journeys success stories of women over the last 100 years and more in nuanced fields of physics, molecular biology, etc. EXHIBITION Inaugurated on International Women’s Day, the content Celebrating Indian Women in Science: An was a treasure of information about the journeys of women Incredible Journey contributing to research, education and the application of scientific knowledge. The simplicity of the presentation INAUGURATION: Shri N.N. Vohra, President, indeed created awe for the grit and commitment of these IIC, and Renu Swarup; Secy, DBT, GOI women of science in the country. COLLABORATION: Department of The contributions of women from around the country Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and who left a mark on strategic scientific planning, rural Technology, Govt. of India technology, as well as health, sanitation and nutrition 8 to 15 March 2019 of tribal women, were presented. Brief professional sketches conveyed how their work in scientific fields had discovered ways to improve the quality of life—such as acquiring state-of-the art equipment to make predictions of weather, or using indigenous tribal ingredients to innovate a health drink. Despite cultural restraints on women’s participation in higher education and research, more than 40 women are testimony to female competence for highly specialised roles in research and teaching of science. Their stories defy all social gender- assumed images. Many more young women can aspire to be women on the march, holding the flag for advances in Inaguration of the Exhibition science. Data also indicates that the work environment is women friendly for the women-specific biological onus of This exhibition on 40 women scientists, presented through childbearing and child care. 10 panels of posters with visual and textual content, was ■ ASHA SINGH

logically, she added. The hedgehog, according to Berlin, The Aura of Isaiah Berlin viewed the world through a single defining idea, whereas SEMINAR the fox was susceptible to a wide variety of influences. Ramin Jahanbegloo shared that he met Berlin in 1988, Seminar on Isaiah Berlin and later wrote about him. He described Berlin as a Opening Address: Prof. Kathleen A leading liberal thinker of the 20th century. Modrowski R. Sudarshan said that Berlin had a pivotal influence on Keynote Address: Prof. Ramin Jahanbegloo the modern concepts of civil and political rights. Neera 1 March 2019 Chandhoke compared Berlin’s idea of pluralistic thought to the Indian concept of swaraj or independence. In his The seminar commemorated the 50th anniversary of Sir summing up, renowned poet Ashok Vajpeyi spoke of the Isaiah Berlin’s famous lecture ‘Two Concepts of Liberty’, immense influence Berlin’s prose had on him. He recalled which was delivered at Oxford University on 31 October that Berlin, while working in the British embassy in Moscow, 1958. The lecture focused on the concepts of ‘Positive was in touch with dissident writers like Anna Akhmatova. and Negative Liberty’ as defined by the Russian–British ■ ARVINDAR SINGH philosopher.

The Vice Chancellor of O. P. Jindal Global University, C. Raj Kumar, said that the study of philosophy as a discipline was to celebrate the ideas of theorists like Berlin. Kathleen A. Modrowski mentioned that Berlin’s ideas appealed to the youth. His famous essay, ‘The Hedgehog and the Fox’, was meant to categorise writers Panellists at the Seminar

3 These shadow images were inspired by Japanese Hoksai Magical Imagery Prints of the Edo era. They transported us to the land of the Bamboo Princess. PERFORMANCE A child sitting next to me gasped, and the lady in front was The Bamboo Princess surprised when the bamboo came to life, and the cherry COLLABORATION: Japan Foundation, blossoms and clouds evaporated into thin air. Setagaya Silk of Tokyo and Katkatha Puppet The Japanese string puppet (by Ken Oyishi) used a rare Arts Trust ‘butterfly’ control, which made delicate movements and 3 April 2019 gave an ethereal presence to the Bamboo Princess. The Indian Prince prancing to loud Bhangra music in The Bamboo Princess, a performance blending shadow the midst of this lyrical story brought the house down. A puppets, Bunraku style puppets, string puppets, dancers touch of robust India. The soundscape by Aakash skilfully and actors, was an effortless combination, not just melded Japanese instrumental music and effects. of different storytelling techniques, but also two very different aesthetics: Indian and Japanese. The show got a standing ovation and was deeply appreciated by children and adults alike. Although ‘The Bamboo Princess’ is a 1,400-year- old Japanese folk tale, the telling was modern. Both ■ RANJANA PANDEY companies had experienced international distance collaborations before, and were confident that this would work. The credit for the smooth collaboration surely goes to the two women directors who bridged the gap of aesthetics and language during the process. ‘Living together is what makes it happen. I absolutely insisted that we go away to this mountain retreat’, said Anurupa.

The performance was marked by magical imagery (shadows), created with an overhead projector and paints. Performers at the Bamboo Princess

that such love yields no remedy but death, and the lover The Great Mughal walks not, save in the valley of the shadow. Yet sweeter FILM than honey is the venom on the lover’s lips, and ready for destruction, rather than a hundred thousand lives. Mughal-e-Azam (The Great Mughal) The beloved, on the other hand, as depicted in the film, DIRECTOR: K. Asif becomes the embodiment of defiance and courage(Pyar COLLABORATION: Anupama Productions; kya to darna kya?...) against the emperor, who, for the and with the support of Shemaroo sake of justice and royal lineage, decrees her death. Entertainment The all-time classic brought back memories for many in 1 April 2019 the audience. Some were humming along with the lyrics of the 12 songs that span one-third of the film’s screening ‘Love is a stranger and speaks a strange language,’ wrote time. It is a matter of coincidence that the screening the greatest of all mystics, Rumi. Elsewhere he wrote: took place just five days before the week-long theatre ‘Love’s a stranger to earth and heaven too; In him are performance of the Broadway-style musical by Feroz lunacies seventy-and-two.’ To me, this is what the director, Abbas Khan, as a tribute to the maker of Mughal-e-Azam. K. Asif, has tried to portray, and therefore he did bother ■ A. K. MERCHANT about historical facts. The story, not so uncommon, is that of a prince, Salim (later Emperor Jahangir), falling in love, head over heels, with an attractive dancer, Anarkali, in the court of Akbar, the greatest of all Mughal emperors. It is so captivatingly and grandiloquently presented that even today this film leaves one mesmerised, in awe of Still from Mughal-e- the power of love. No wonder it can be correctly surmised Azam

4 The stage was set strategically between two large The in Profile screens showing images from the book, while stimulating In Conversation: Dr. Ebba Koch in conversation flowed between Koch and Kavita Singh. conversation with Kavita Singh and Jyotindra Koch described how her work over decades helped in editing this collection of essays. A Mughal empire savant, Jain she explains in her introduction to the book, ‘The tensions COLLABORATION: The Marg Foundation between Jahangir and Shah Jahan were reflected not 12 March 2019 only in textual matter but also in architecture and art.’ The book’s exhaustive essays and beautifully reproduced images are printed on exceptional paper, making it a The seminar rooms had seamlessly become Ebba Koch’s treasure trove on the Mughal empire. court, attended by an enthralled crowd keen to know Once the audience entered the discussion, the evening how Akbar’s descendants took his vision of a magnificent turned livelier as young scholars asked incisive Mughal empire to hitherto unscaled heights. Koch, questions and sought clarifications from the panellists. historian and editor of The Mughal Empire: From Jahangir Koch handled the exchange deftly with her profound to Shah Jahan, told us just how this came to be. knowledge of the period, using formal analysis that combined aesthetics of art, architectural form, building type, garden and urban design.

Through Koch’s work, we have a tangible record of the legacy of Jahangir and Shah Jahan, who have left their indelible mark on the art, architecture, politics, law, and literature of the Indian subcontinent. ■ RIMA ZAHEER Book Release

famous. Archival material of the necropolis is minimal, Restoring a Necropolis and much research was needed prior to the restoration CULTURE AND HERITAGE work: laser photography and detailed drawings, with digital inputs to create complete working drawings from Coordinated by Amita Baig fragments of carved friezes; litigation with the Waqf Board; ILLUSTRATED LECTURE: Qutb Shahi Heritage locating craftsmen with skills to sculpt granite and lime Park stucco; consultations with national and international SPEAKER: Ratish Nanda experts; and the long, hot summers were but some fronts on which this project had to be tackled. MODERATOR: Ram Rahman The worst damage to these monuments, both inside and 19 March 2019 outside, has been by water (seeping from rain and soil), Introduced as the ‘chowkidar’ of Indian monuments, and recent decades of layering with harmful cement. conservationist Ratish Nanda, project director with Aga Just removing this revealed exquisite structural detailing. Khan Trust for Culture, has the privilege of working on the However, coloured Iranian-style tile work and tile largest necropolis in the world: Qutb Shahi mausoleum manufacturing techniques are lost forever. We urgently spread over 108 acres near Golconda Fort, Deccan. This need more chowkidars for our heritage. project aims to restore around 80 Qutb Shahi structures, ■ BHARATI MIRCHANDANI and recreate their landscaped setting in phases. The area remains open to the public throughout, with only small portions cordoned off at any time.

The site was built during the 16th–17th centuries over pre- existing structures, many of which still have foundations. A large hamam in working condition, and rainwater- harvesting tanks, perhaps belong to an earlier period.

Restoring smaller structures needs as much attention and supervision as the seven tombs for which this site is locally Discussants

5 A Genealogy of Islamic Literary Theory CULTURE AND HERITAGE DISCUSSION: Multilingualism as a Stimulus to Islamic Literary Theory Panellists at the discussion SPEAKER: Rebecca Ruth Gould DISCUSSANTS: Harish Trivedi; Chandra Gould gave an overview of the project with specific case Mohan; and Syed Akhtar Husain studies from Arabic, Persian and Chagatai Turkish. She highlighted the role of Quranic hermeneutics, and the work CHAIR: Dr. (Smt.) Kapila Vatsyayan of Arabic theologians like al-Rummani and al-Baqillani in COLLABORATION: IIC-International Research laying the foundation by which secular poetic texts could Division; and Comparative Literature hope to emulate the ijaz, or miracle of the eloquence of Association of India the Quran. 15 March 2019 This Arabic tradition was inherited by Persian scholars, and in texts such as Kitab tarjuman al-balagah, and Translations of the Ramayana, or Greek Shehnameh works by writers Watwat and Shams-I Qays, that take the poetry, are easily accessible to curious seekers of categories and authoritativeness of the Arabic tradition, global literature. But when it comes to literary theory, it but deftly innovate within them in another language. is thought of as modern and European, thus relegating Gould alluded to the 15th century Chagatai Turkic poet, older discourses in the literature of non-Western traditions Navai, who emphasised the superiority and richness of as source material, leading to a lacuna in understanding Turkic over Persian. texts from lesser-known geographies. Rebecca Gould’s ■ AJAY JAISINGHANI ambitious project, spanning 10 languages and 500 years, is a collaborative effort with scholars to bridge this gap.

Courtesans and Indian Music SEMINAR Women Performers of the 16th–20th Century: Indian History of Tawaifs and Baijis of Conceptualised and Curated by Manjari Chaturvedi PERFORMANCE: Uff Malka Jaan and the Velvet Courtesans Performance by Uff Malka Jaan and the Velvet Courtesans Presented by Manjari Chaturvedi with Fouzia Dastango, and Neesha Singh She combined in herself both knowledge and refinement COLLABORATION: Sufi Kathak Foundation with grace. 23 March 2019 A strange twist of fate notwithstanding, the great names that adorn the history of women performers, courtesans and baijis were looked down upon after the . The Women performers of Indian music go back to Vedic times, truth, on the contrary, is that because of these custodians performing rituals with music and dance. These arts also of the arts, our music and dance have survived and are became hereditary professions as an aesthetic device for flourishing till date. the entertainment of royalty and nobility. The professional woman singer and dancer, the ganika or courtesan, was The seminar focussed on the lives of courtesans and their accorded considerable recognition and high social status. contribution to Indian music. It also addressed the issues

6 of gender discrimination in the performing arts, and how it shapes the art for the future. Deliberations by Veena Oldenburg brought out some well-researched points. Pt. Rajan-Sajan Mishra talked about and demonstrated how the traditional Thumris like Thadhe rahiyo Shyam… got converted into baanke yaar…and explained how it became a necessity for these professional women to get some money from their clients. The Mishra brothers reiterated the fact that there should be no discrimination in the society in which we are living today. The day-long seminar concluded with an interesting session with panellists Salim Kidwai, Danish Iqbal, Yatindra Mishra and Prabhat Ranjan.

The film screening ofAnwesha by Sanghmitra Sarkar underlined the history and the present status of these women. The evening performance brought alive the glorious bygone era in the glittering presentation of Uff Malka Jaan and the Velvet Courtesans. ■ MANJARI SINHA

his magnum opus catalogue with 161 entries covering 480 The Craft of Art History objects.

DISCUSSION Ahuja shared some of these stories that challenged Art and Archaeology of Ancient India: Earliest him and created what he calls Kintsugi—the Japanese Times to the Sixth Century. A discussion based art of repairing pottery with lacquer and gold, silver or on Professor Naman P. Ahuja’s book, published platinum—a metaphor to view his discipline of art history, by Ashmolean Museum: Oxford 2018 and the role of museums like the Ashmolean to construct narratives of our links with the past. Discussants: Romila Thapar and Prof. Deborah Swallow Artefacts that wound their way through space and time COLLABORATION: Oxford and Cambridge through networks of intrepid and enlightened individuals Society of India to one of the world’s oldest museums, where they helped shape a more rationalistic and scientific discourse, forms 4 April 2019 the subtext of the catalogue. To merely read them as spoils of colonial aggrandisement is to take too narrow Collaborating with scientists to ascertain the date of a a view. terracotta plaque, reconstructing an original mould like an ancient jigsaw from pieces of plaques across museums, Deborah Swallow underlined the value of creating a using paleographic skills to tease out running hand Brahmi momentous catalogue that enriches its intended audience. that looks similar to Tibetan, sniffing, licking and scratching Romila Thapar foregrounded the material gap in Indian ancient sherds, to rummaging reserve collections at the history of the , the neglect of historians of Karachi Museum for their provenance, are a few examples megalithic cultures, and pondered on the proliferation and of the skills that art historian Naman Ahuja brought to purposes of terracotta figurines. bear on the Ashmolean’s ancient Indian art collection. ■ AJAY JAISINGHANI Little surprise that the odyssey took 16 years to produce

comprehensive experiences of the establishment and Higher Education Issues running of Ambedkar University. TALK While sharing his extensive contribution to setting up a Setting up a Public University: An Attempt to university, Prof. Menon said, ‘Indian higher education Draw Some Lessons resembles society. Each institution should formulate its SPEAKER: Shyam Menon own success benchmark. A university should be rooted in its local environment’. CHAIR: Shri N. N. Vohra, President, IIC He further added that the attempt was to transcend one’s 26th April 2019 comfort zones and take wing in terms of newer areas and academic programming. But, at the same time, one had In the first lecture in the series on Higher Education, to be realistic and pragmatic and be rooted to cater to Professor Shyam Menon highlighted the wide spectrum the core demands of ’s youth. of issues and problems in the higher education system in India. While talking about 2008, when 16 During his lecture on the problem and issues in the higher central universities came into existence, he shared his education system, he mentioned a few key reasons

7 behind retaining qualified faculty. One of the main reasons is the lack of a pension scheme and residential facilities.

Prof. Menon also mentioned the need to institutionalise conventions and good practices that need to get built into institutional culture in terms of regulations, wherever possible. And, most importantly, he emphasised the environment around the administrative domain where team members can freely disagree with each other.

And at the end, he took questions from the audience and left on a wise, conclusive note: ‘Difficult excellence is better than submissive mediocrity.’ ■ SHAHID SIDDIQUI

(surgeons, anaesthetists and obstetricians) is only roughly six for an approximate population of 1 lakh in India. While this rate is 10 times lower than the majority of the TALK developed nations, it also points to a serious issue that Regulatory Reforms for Meeting India’s Needs requires our immediate attention: such a critical dearth for Human Resources in Healthcare of trained doctors and specialists may result in delays in SPEAKER: V. K. Paul specialised, and often life-saving, procedures, which can lead to severe complications and poor health outcomes CHAIR: K. Srinath Reddy for the patients.

20 March 2019 Paul suggested that a crucial first step in mitigating this challenge would be to expand the health system, with the Over the years, India has made great strides in reducing Diplomate of National Board (DNB) and private sector as mortality among women, reducing the burden of key players, if the WHO target of 1 doctor/1,000 people is tuberculosis, and rolling out life-saving vaccines that to be achieved. have saved thousands of children. Despite the progress, certain challenges continue to exist and hinder India’s These key actionable recommendations will pave the progress towards achieving national and global health way towards building a robust and accountable human targets. A key challenge among them is the lack of skilled resource pool in the country. As we look towards human resources for health. Paul highlighted two major implementing these priority actions, we must also take challenges related to human resources for concrete steps towards improving the quality of medical today: lack of adequate doctors, and insufficient training education—a critical aspect of improving skills for quality for existing specialists. health service delivery for all. The recent competency- based curriculum for undergraduate medical students, Paul noted that India currently has one doctor for every released by the Medical Council of India, is a critical 1,600 people, still far from the World Health Organization’s aspect in this direction. (WHO) recommendation of one doctor for every 1,000 people. Additionally, the density of trained specialists ■ VIKRAM DATTA

by setting up a cancer knowledge cloud. According to his Data Science and Cancer vision, cancer patients, cancer researchers and cancer care providers need to create a cyber community, bringing TALK a paradigm shift in how both the medical fraternity and The Cancer Knowledge Alliance: Applying society view cancer care product development, as well as Pioneering 21st Century Data Science to tools to understand the situation of cancer in the world. As Transform Cancer Research and Care a human genetics and genomics researcher, he advocates the use of data from multiple sources to provide individual SPEAKER: Ken Buetow patients the right care, at the right time and right place. COLLABORATION: Open Health Systems Creating an IT biomedical hub will enable innovations, Laboratory not only in the care of illnesses, but will also promote 5 March 2019 new directions to prevent, provide cure and treatment of diseases through the use of Data Science. To understand Dr. Ken Buetow is known as the pioneer in creating complex traits such as cancer, liver disease and obesity, connectivity between big data and cancer care research Buetow believes that the infrastructure to manage large

8 biomedical data sets will help uncover the dynamics of information of the architecture traits or patterns linked with diseases.

Buetow is on a groundbreaking path designed to create standardised tools and infrastructure for organisations and researchers to securely exchange biomedical data, creating a ‘World Wide Web’ of biomedical research. The lecture promised hope and more friendly diagnostics and care in the future for combating illness. In simple terms, the premise is to build on people’s lived experiences of diagnosis, cure and systems of treatment to guide other people, as well as methods of care and research. Speaker Ken Buetow ■ ASHA SINGH

The foremost factor for this bias seems to be the tone of Women in Law voice, with women having higher tones than men. Thus, in TALK an argument in court, when a man raises his voice, even shouts, he is deemed to be an effective law practitioner. Women in Law in India This is not the case for women; her tone is shrill and SPEAKER: Justice Indu Malhotra frequently dismissed. This is a natural bias. Women must DISCUSSANT: Arghya Sengupta; Liz Mathew therefore not just be competent and thorough in the law, but must temper their tone of voice, be firm and confident CHAIR: Shri Justice B. N. Srikrishna in making dissent arguments! Then they must be available, 10 April 2019 and seen during work hours. Raising a family as well as care of the family elders falls upon women. So they simply The discussion sought to capture the challenges and disappear from professional life at a particular point, and experiences of women law practitioners, an analysis of reappearance after a few years becomes impossible. those who succeeded, as also why so many did not, and Finally, whatever the occasion, women lawyers must the impact of these women law practitioners upon society always dress professionally. at large. Justice Indu Malhotra recalled her personal life journey Law is a largely male-dominated bastion, with specific and experiences from being a junior lawyer to her present subconscious biases that operate even today. While position. Some opinions were voiced on the need for women are meticulous down to the fine details and excel reservation for women in the legal profession, including if in law briefs, they remain poorly represented in the legal it was important to have more women, or whether it was profession in their numbers as senior lawyers, litigators more important to have competent women. and judges. The disparity in earnings between men and women is indicative of the same bias. ■ MEKHALA SENGUPTA

Smita Agrawal, Savita Singh, H. K. Kaul, Asian Women’s Writing Sukrita Paul Kumar, Kalyani Rajan and Lavlin COLLOQUIUM Thadani Speaking for Myself: An Anthology of Asian COLLABORATION: IIC-International Research Women’s Writing. Edited by Sukrita Paul Division Kumar and Malashri Lal 2 March 2019 INAUGURAL SESSION Speaking for Myself: An Anthology of Asian Women’s CHAIR: Dr. (Smt.) Kapila Vatsyayan, Shri N. N. Writing, edited by Sukrita Paul Kumar and Malashri Lal, Vohra has an updated section, a new Preface, and Foreword by INTRODUCTION: Sukrita Paul Kumar; and Dr. (Smt.) Kapila Vatsyayan. At the colloquium and poetry Malashri Lal reading, the new section, called Beyond Borders, about Release of the volume and address by the war, exile and migration, and how women get affected Chief Guest Kavita A. Sharma and express themselves, was much appreciated. POETRY READING SESSION In her inaugural speech, Dr. Kavita A. Sharma, who

9 in society, became victims due to war, exile, migration, etc., but finally overcame all odds, and their courage and pathos got reflected in their amazing creative expression.

In the first session, chaired by Radha Chakravarty, the speakers stressed the welcome change in women’s conditions in Asia over the decade, as also a certain shift in the mindset of the younger generation of women.

In the session chaired by Meenakshi Gopinath, the anthology was mentioned as a valuable addition to Release of the anthology women’s studies. The distinguished speakers mentioned the issue of transmission of knowledge, and the fact that released this powerful anthology, mentioned that the there is no dearth of creativity in this part of the world. anthology is a substantial volume by distinguished scholars, and a landmark work. She also added that The evening resonated with remarkable poems by Smita Dr. (Smt.) Vatsyayan had a scholar’s perseverance and Agrawal, Savita Singh, H. K. Kaul, Sukrita Paul Kumar, made the impossible possible. She mentioned that the Kalyani Rajan and Lavlin Thadani. volume deals with Asian women who faced discrimination ■ MANDIRA GHOSH

Jharkhand triggered by The Frankenstein Monster? WhatsApp rumours of RELEASE AND PANEL DISCUSSION kidnappings as an example; no one is immune despite LAUNCH: Social Media in a Networked the perceived digital divide; World. Release of the IIC Quarterly, Winter and the proliferation and 2018-Spring 2019 Special Issue. Edited by monopolies of digital Omita Goyal. Guest Editor: Pratik Kanjilal behemoths that can only Released by Dr. Karan Singh be countered by the Welcome Addresses by N.N. Vohra, President, principle of net neutrality IIC, and K.N. Shrivastava, Director, IIC and legislation. Panellists: Pamela Philipose; Rajendra S. In this century of the mind, observed Rajendra Pawar, Pawar; Ambuj Sagar; Pratik Kanjilal Quarterly cover fundamental transformation 27 April 2019 is now driven by information (bits) integrated into products (atoms). This disruption of existing institutions and systems ‘Is social media going to become a Frankenstein monster engaged in the duplication of a force it knows too little that will devour its creator?’ asked Dr. Karan Singh, about raises the existential question—Who am I?—creating chairing the launch of the very timely issue, Social ‘interesting chaos’, with which society is currently grappling. Media in a Networked World. This key question, among others fundamental to this all-pervasive phenomenon Ambuj Sagar raised pertinent questions: the intersection of of tremendous contemporary significance, and his social media and democracy; shaping of public policy around apprehensions, were echoed by the eminent panel. This data privacy; the addictive nature of these platforms; and the intersection of the traditional and technological is aptly regulation of national and transnational governance. illustrated by the cover image—bafflement in the eyes of Summing up the discussion, Pratik Kanjilal observed that the kathakali dancer holding a cell phone. How and when structures had not changed very much over the years; did a technology that once promised such far-reaching that this disruption was simply a matter of scale, leading benefits, permeating every aspect of our lives, begin to old hierarchies to create new ones; that technology could be distorted to promote ideologies, and negative—even not solve the problems of ‘good’ and ‘evil’—it was not addictive—and dangerous approaches? The implications meant to. Solutions to these problems could only come and inherent problems, it was agreed, are profound— from legislation which was transnational. political, social, educational, legal. ■ RITU SINGH Pamela Philipose brought up the grisly murders in

10 OBITUARY L-0339 Dr. J. S. Kanwar

M-3151 Ms Prem Lal

M-3338 Gen. (Dr.) B. S. Malik (Retd.)

M-3344 Justice S. B. Sinha

M-3750 Miss Uma Vasudev

M-4047 Shri Vinay Capila

A-1600 Smt Savitri Bawa

A-1682 Shri P. K. Lahiri

A-2080 Maj. Gen. D. S. Rastogi (Retd.)

A-2682 Shri Vijay Dutt

A-3892 Ms Neerja Jayal Chand

A-5239 Dr. Krishna Ahooja Patel

A-5492 Smt Sita A. Setalvad

A-7133 Smt Sudarshan Katyal

OA-214 Prof. Meena Alexander

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Do write your membership number and ‘Annual Subscription for the year 2019-2020’ on the back of the cheque. In case you choose to deposit cash or make electronic/online payment, please inform accounts department that amount deposited is towards annual subscription for the year 2019-2020.

Any request to extend the date or waive off penalty to restore membership would not be entertained.

Please keep your mailing address/email and mobile numbers updated.

11 Reg. No. 28936/77 Director’s Note

Over the past two months, several initiatives have moved forward. The Library has constituted a committee to advise on how to streamline the digitisation process of its valuable collection, particularly the rare books. The automation of existing manual processes is also being discussed. Art lovers will be glad to know that the Art Reference Library has been recently shifted from the basement of the Kamaladevi Complex to the newly created space adjacent to the main IIC Library, virtually overlooking the Lotus Pond. The space created by the shifting of the Art Reference Library has been merged with the Members’ Lounge (in Basement I of the Kamaladevi Complex), and this area is now available for small meetings and catered events. This new space has been named Committee Room III. The Centre aims to implement the best green practices on its premises. It intends to reduce carbon intensity, and aims to be water neutral with zero discharge of untreated solid/liquid waste. With tangible outcomes and defined cost savings, the Centre hopes to be able to play an advocacy role in propagating principles of sustainable energy, and energy and water efficiency. We are already in the process of installing a rooftop 70.4 KW solar power energy system in the Main Complex and power factor and harmonic correction panels in the Main Complex and Annexe. We shall soon be implementing rain water harvesting and installing a biogas plant based on kitchen wastes. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software implementation is in progress. Its prime objective is to computerise and integrate existing operational processes and transactions. The new software system will have the most modern and latest features, such as SMS, E-mail, Smart Card, Wireless Tablets and Network\Laser Printing, and Payment Gateway. The ERP is a Smart Card-based system. In order to issue Smart Cards, the process of collecting photographs and signatures of Members has begun. The Smart Card will replace the existing membership card and enable the Centre to automate and streamline financial transactions. Shri Oroon Das has been contracted for redesigning the IIC Website. This will include brand evaluation, a modern image of the features of the Centre and integration with its social media account. This exercise will be completed over the next six months. ■ K.N. Shrivastava

President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, with Trustees and officers of IIC

This issue of the Diary has been assembled and edited by Omita Goyal, Chief Editor; Ritu Singh, Deputy Editor; Rachna Joshi, Senior Asstt. Editor. Published by Kanwal Wali, for the India International Centre, 40, Max Mueller Marg, Lodhi Estate, New Delhi - 110003. Ph.: 24619431. Designed and printed by Niyogi Offset Pvt. Ltd., D-78, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase 1, New Delhi-110020; Phone: 49327000.

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