What to do this weekend

Some recommendations to enliven your weekend

DELHI

Art

Art from the soul: National Institute of Fine Arts will be hosting an exhibition of 20 if its brightest students. Curated by Renu Khare, the show will feature three original artworks by each student in different mediums like oil on canvas, acrylic on canvas, charcoal and dry pestles.
Where: National Institute of Fine Arts, DLF Phase IV, Gurgaon
When: May 23 to 25, 11 am to 8 pm

Music

 

Electro- fying night: Dualist Inquiry, DJ MoCity and The Grind Collective come together for a night of high-energy electronica. Dualist Inquiry is the solo electronic dance project of Sahej Bakshi, a producer, guitarist and composer from New Delhi. Mohammed Abood aka DJ MoCity is a founding member of Reggae Rajahs, and he’ll be playing alongside Su Real and TBoneStakez, two members of The Grind collective.
Where: Moonshine Cafe & Bar, Hauz Khas Village, New Delhi
When: May 16, 9 pm

 

Vaudeville meets jazz: Bottom of the Barrel is a performance art project that pays tribute to the vaudeville acts of the 1920s. The show brings together a group of professional artistes with backgrounds in puppetry and mime, singing and songwriting, dance and physical theatre, clowning and acrobatics, all of which are thrown into the mix of this comic variety act. First staged late last year as an experimental piece, the show now returns to Cocktails & Dreams Speakeasy in an updated format with performers Varun Narain, Shena Gamat, Anukampa Harsh, Anant Dayal, Adhiraj Mustafi, and featuring students of the One World College of Music.
Where: Cocktails & Dreams, Speakeasy, Gurgaon
When: May 18, 7 pm

Music from a forgotten world: Epicentre in collaboration with Aravali Centre for Art & Culture brings The Kutle Khan Project to Delhi for an evening of traditional folk music. The project is a collective highlighting the multi-talented vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Kutle Khan, who has performed all over the world, with Champe Khan on the harmonium, Dayam Khan on the khartal, Gafur Khan on the bhapang and morchang and Roshan Khan on the table and the dholak.
Where: Epicentre, Apparel House, Gurgaon
When: May 17, 7 pm  

Photography

The culture of selfies: The World Wide InstaMeet day(s) are 17th and 18th of May, and on these days the world becomes a smaller place as thousands of Instagrammers meet up to not take selfies, we hope! This Sunday is the Delhi edition focussed to promote a culture of niche photographers and get a group of like-minded people together to create, learn and promote photography as an art.
Where: Deer Park Entrance, Hauz Khas Village, New Delhi
When: May 18, 10 am



MUMBAI

Art

Art in conversation: ‘Tongues’, a solo exhibition by British artist Prem Sahib presents his paintings and sculptures, which while appearing minimalistic and abstract are said to have resulted from “convictions regarding, sexuality, intimacy, desire, and community". Sahib prefers to evoke emotion from clean, economical but often suggestive or personified arrangements. The discrete sculptures are also set up to be in conversation with one another.
Where: Jhaveri Contemporary, Walkeshwar Road, Mumbai
When: Till May 31

Timeless women: John Fernandes’ paintings are said to capture the female form’s sensuality with delicacy and sensitivity. The late artist learnt drawing from nature, from memory and from live models, using the medium of pencils, charcoal, crayons, watercolors and oils. Besides figurative paintings, he also drew landscapes and still life. At an ongoing exhibition of Fernandes’ works, high-quality limited edition prints of some of his paintings are also available for purchase.
Where: ArtDesh – the studio, Walkeshwar, Mumbai
When: Till May 20

The question of museums: 'Sleeping Through the Museum', an exhibition by Udaipur-based American artist Waswo X Waswo, raises questions about the function and purpose of the museum, in order to understand the notion of ‘museum-worthiness.’ His works are a critique of the process of “museumification".  Regarding the showcase, art critic Amjad Majid writes, “He parodies the process of museumification to reveal the deeper implications of this process of creating notions of value (and by extension lack of value) by preserving and discarding selected objects.” It is for this reason that the show’s title mentions ‘sleep’ to point to the ignorance and potential distortion arising from assigning specific meaning to objects within the museum context.
Where: Sakshi Gallery, Colaba, Mumbai
When: Till June 21

Music and Dance

The colours of Assam: A cultural programme showcasing the colourful culture of Assam, to be hosted by Sidharth Kak, will include Borgeet performances by Marathi singer Ashwini Bhide Deshpande and bhajan artist Anup Jalota. Assamese actresses Barasharani Bishaya, Tanvi Sarma and Madhurima Choudhury will perform Chordhora Jhumura, a dance drama directed by Dr. Nirupoma Mahanta. Ustad Amjad Ali Khan will pay a Sarod tribute to Sankaradeva followed by Bihu in violin by Sunita Khaund Bhuyan and a performance by Assamese singer Zubin Garg.
Where: NCPA, Mumbai
When: May 18

Workshops

Telling tales: For children between the ages 13 and 18, artist Shawn Lewis will conduct Mimexpress -- a workshop on the art of storytelling through body movement, expressions and gibberish. Among the skills that will be imparted are learning to orate and animate, techniques of grasping attention, building self-confidence and peer interaction.
Where: NCPA, Mumbai
When: May 17 to May 31, 5 pm
Fee: Rs. 3,500

BANGALORE

Theatre

Puppets come alive: A puppet show by Putthali Kalaranga, specialising in "rod puppets". These puppets are over 3 feet tall and weighs 8 kg, making their manipulation more challenging. The manipulator hangs the puppets from his head (with the help of strings) and gives them motion by jerking the rods, which is why they are also referred “string-cum-rod puppets.”
Where: Rangasthala, Rangoli Metro Art Centre, MG Road, Bangalore
When:  May 18, 5 pm and 6.30 pm
Info: For tickets (Rs 150), contact 080 -2296 9265


Exchanging souls: The Yogi and the Dancer is a play for a young audience (5 years and above). Based on the Sanskrit play Bhagavadajjugam, it is set in a garden where a yogi, his young disciple, and a dancer and her friend gather. But the yogi's and the dancer's soul are exchanged, and chaos ensue.
Where: Jagriti Theatre, Varthur Road, Whitefield, Bangalore
When: May 23 to June 1, 6.30 pm. Additional show at 3 pm on weekends