The Asiatic Society of Mumbai Literary Club
ASM LitClub – An evening of poetry Kala Ghoda Poems Crawl: A virtual tour of Bombay's artistic Kala Ghoda area,led by a new and novel travel guide: Arun Kolatkar's Kala Ghoda Poems Monday, 18th October 2021 at 6 pm on Zoom The Literary Club of the Asiatic Society is delighted to invite you to an evening of poetry ‘Kala Ghoda Poems Crawl: A virtual tour of Bombay's artistic Kala Ghoda area.’ This is led by a unique and new travel guide: Arun Kolatkar's “Kala Ghoda Poems.” This programme will be held on Monday, 18th October 2021 at 6 p.m. on a Zoom platform.
Experience and thrall to the poet's city - an upside down, prismatic and eclectic collection of everyday life which we all experience but tend to overlook. Kolatkar's crisp, attentive verse urges us to focus on our city’s many ever-changing aspects, even as it overturns the city for us. Saranya Subramanian brings Bombay to life verse by verse and step by step, as she conducts an hour-long virtual walk,
This exhilarating evening of poetry, will in the spirit of the times, be on Zoom. Do join us in experiencing the city anew through the poetry of one of our foremost poets, Arun Kolatkar, the quintessential Bombay poet, who thrived in the city’s cosmopolitan culture. From the 1960s until his death in 2004, he explored literature, music, poetry and graphic design. This bon vivant - the perfect flâneur, the passionate spectator (to quote Laëtitia Zecchini) wove and presented Bombay, Jejuri and other local cultures in lilting verse, making them accessible to every corner of the world. This, while remaining rooted to street life and language. His poetry radically alters the discourse around Indian writing and modernist literature.
Saranya Subramaniam, our presenter, is a thespian who writes poetry and prose. She is currently an MFA candidate at the University of San Francisco, California. Under her initiative, The Bombay Poetry Crawl, she is collating and archiving material from the 20th century Anglophone (Bombay Poets). She is passionate about guiding city denizens through city walkthroughs, with animating poems written in different parts of Bombay.
The Zoom link will be sent later.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81483731412?pwd=c09pQzhYKzFIaFMxRTZuQ2hTejJMZz09
Meeting ID: 814 8373 1412
Passcode: 684543
- Dr Usha R Vijailakshmi, Officiating Hon. Secretary, Asiatic Society of Mumbai
- Meenal Kshirsagar, Vice President of the Society & Chairperson - ASM LitClub
The Literary Club of the Asiatic Society of Mumbai
invites you to an Online talk: “At Night All Blood is Black” (Winner of the 2021 International Booker Prize) by Prof. Vidya Vencatesan Wednesday 22nd September at 6 pm on Zoom
The Literary Club of the Asiatic Society of Mumbai is pleased to invite you to a talk by Prof. Vidya Vencatesan on David Diop’s “At Night All Blood is Black”, originally published in French as “Frère d’âme.” The lecture will be held on Wednesday 22nd September at 6 pm on a Zoom platform.
The novel, first published in August 2018, won the Prix Goncourt des Lycéens the same year, the English translation by Anna Moscovakhis won the 2021 International Booker prize, making Diop the first French author to win this award.
David Diop, a West African writer, who lives and teaches at a University in France, speaks for the countless black soldiers who died in the First World War. They fought a war that was not theirs, they lie unsung in a foreign land and Diop expresses “The voice of the people without voice”. The short intense novel, inspired by the story of the Black African soldiers who fought for France in the trenches between 1914-1918, is a fictional construct with epic overtones. The stream of consciousness technique captures the tragedy of a young man’s mind hurtling towards madness, depicting the trauma suffered by the young pushed into a situation of extreme distress.
This lecture, which examines Diop’s dense prose, looks at the savagery of war and friendship beyond race in the bleak environs of No Man’s land. This unrelenting take on conflict, race, masculinity and colonialism is a gripping read.
Dr. Vidya Vencatesan is Professor and Head, Department of French, Director, at the University of Mumbai and Editor, Synergies Inde, Revue du Gerflint, France.
Please join us for this captivating talk, do participate with questions, comments and memories of other books you have read, drawing parallels with war literature you may be familiar with.
Join Zoom for the programme:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87284421411?pwd=MnpzRk9vWHFjdVhqa3dmZTdjMEV3QT09
Meeting ID: 872 8442 1411
Passcode: 119606
- Dr Usha R Vijailakshmi, Officiating Hon. Secretary, The Asiatic Society of Mumbai
- Meenal Kshirsagar, Vice President of the Society & Chairperson - ASM LitClub
ASM LitClub Online programme on
“The Heritage of the Kakatiyas of Warangal in light of the UNESCO Heritage tag to the Ramappa Temple” by Dr.Varsha Shirgaonkar
Monday 23rd August 6.30 pm on Zoom
The LitClub of the Asiatic Society of Mumbai takes pleasure in inviting you to a talk on the heritage of the great Kakatiya dynasty of Warangal which ruled for about 180 years in medieval times. The programme will be held on Monday 23rd August 2021 at 6.30 pm on Zoom.
The Ramappa Temple of Warangal has recently been given the honour of being designated a UNESCO Heritage monument. Dr. Shirgaonkar will give a talk on the architectural techniques used for the construction of the temple and will also discuss some of the other historical sites of the Kakatiyas like Warangal Fort and the Thousand Pillared Temple, using photographs and slides. She will tell us about a rare manuscript titled “Prataprudra Yashobhushanam” written by the court poet of Pratapudra Deva, the last Kakatiya ruler who fought against Ala-ud-din’s army several times before succumbing to them. This manuscript is in the possession of the Asiatic Society, her article on this subject was published in the Kakatiya Journal of Historical Studies in May 2017.
Dr. Varsha Shirgaonkar retired as Professor and Head, Department of History, SNDT Women’s University in Mumbai.
We look forward to seeing you on this informative evening about an important but perhaps a lesser known aspect of our history.
Join Zoom for the programme:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82308817561?pwd=bXlMQlF5MjhFdDhaRU1MZndPZlpiUT09
Meeting ID: 823 0881 7561
Passcode: 055733
- Meenal Kshirsagar, Vice President of the Society & Chairperson - ASM LitClub
- Dr Usha R Vijailakshmi, Officiating Hon. Secretary, The Asiatic Society of Mumbai