Audiogyan

Potter Stewart an associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court once said, “Censorship reflects a society's lack of confidence in itself.” Censoring artists, intellectuals is not a new thing.

Today to discuss more about censorship we have Ajit Rai with us on Audiogyan. We’ll be talking about banning and censorship in films in the Indian context. This episode will be bi-lingual but mostly in Hindi. Listeners have to bare with my Hindi questions but Ajit sir will cover my shortcomings. 🙂

He wrote a best seller book " Hindujas and Bollywood'(English ) that is launched in London by actor Akshay Kumar & "Bollywood ki Buniyaad"(Hindi ) launched in 75 th Cannes Film Festival by Mr Apoorva Chandra Secretary Ministry of I & B Govt of India last year 2022. It is a global journey of about 1200 Hindi films introduced to World by Hinduja Family.

He is invited and travelled and reported from more than 50 countries in many prestigious International Film Festivals and Nobel prize ceremony as well.

His credentials are as follows 1.Presently working as Advisor and Film Critic Bharat Express National News Channel. 2.He is regularly contributing as Film Critic for Jansatta / The Indian Express group, Navbharat Times/ The Times of India group, Dainik Bhaskar, Prabhat khabar, People Samachar, Jan Sandesh Times and more than 25 digital media outlets. 3. Ajit Rai has been a member of Media Committee International Film Festival of India Goa in 2010 and Selection Jury Member (Preview Committee) in 2014, 2015 & 2017. 4. He is a guest speaker in knowledge Series of NFDC Film Bazar in IFFI Goa many times. 5 .Ajit Rai has been invited by Film & Television Institute of India as Guest of Honour in 2013 & 2015 in Student Film Festival and National Students Film Awards ceremony.

6. He is a Member of Jury in Life After Oil International Film Festival Sardenia Italy. 7. Cannes Film Festival - the most prestigious festival in the world- granted Ajit Rai the top priority Press Badge considering him as one of the most important film critic of the World He is covering Cannes Film Festival & many other international film festivals and IFFI Goa since 2004.

8. Ajit Rai is only film critic of India who wrote maximum articles on International Film Festival of India IFFI Goa around more than 500 from 2004 to till date. 9. He has been Consultant Jagaran Film Festival in 2012, 2013 & 2014 in 16 cities of India by the largest circulated Hindi newspaper of the world- Dainik Jagran. 10. He is Advisor and Member of Jury in Rajasthan International Film Festival Jaipur 11. (a) He has started Raipur International Film Festival in collaboration with Govt of Chhattisgarh and Directorate of Film Festival DFF Govt of India in 2015. (b) He has Started Haryana International Film Festival Yamunanagar in 2008 in collaboration with Govt of Haryana. (c) He has started Azamgarh International Film Festival in 2018. (d) He has started Faridabad International Film Festival in 2012. (e). He has started Sardar Patel International Film Festival in Patiala Punjab 12. (a) He has started Indian Film Festival Moscow Russia as founder Director in 2014 (b) Indian Film Festival Uppsala Sweden in 2013 . (c) He has started Indian Film Festival Berlin Germany in 2012. (d) He is Consultant Bollywood Film Festival Oslo Norway since 2013 . 13. He has been invited by President of Iran in 2012 as a special guest in New Horizon Film Festival Tehran .

14. Ajit Rai is one of the leading Film & Theatre Critic & Cultural Journalist of India with wide and vast experience of more than 30 years in almost all leading National Newspapers, reputed Journals and Electronic media as well on Cinema, Theatre, Literature & Cultural discourses. His about 5000 published articles are pioneer in Film & Cultural journalism. Some of his innovative reports has been debated in Indian Parliament . 15. He has been Editor - Rang Prasang.. an international journal of Cinema & Theatre, National School Of Drama, Ministry Of Culture, Govt. Of India. 16. He is a Member of Jury Bharat Rang Mahotsav, the largest theatre festival of the 3rd world by National School Of Drama, Ministry of Culture Govt of India. 17. He is a Member of Jury Meta Awards by Mahindra Company for theatre. 18. Founder Editor - Drishyantar, a monthly magazine of Cinema TV Culture & Media by Doordarshan Ministry of I&B Govt of India. 19. Worked as consultant Doordarshan Ministry of I & B Govt of India. 20. Worked with All India Radio, Patna & New Delhi. Ministry of I&B Govt of India.

21. World Record - (a) -Ajit Rai made a world record in film journalism in Cannes Film Festival 2018. He published 75 articles in various Indian Newspapers in 15 days on Cannes Film Festival This is a world record that one journalist wrote 75 articles about one event. (b) He made a world record in Theatre Criticism in 2010 when his 25 articles published 25 days daily without break during International Theatre Festival by National School of Drama New Delhi. (c). He is covering Cairo International film festival, EL Gouna Film Festival in Egypt and Red Sea International Film Festival regularly and wrote 25 articles every year. 22. He wrote a book Hindujas and Bollywood in English and Bollywood ki buniyaad in Hindi on contribution of Hinduja Brothers to Indian Cinema.. It is a global cultural journey of about 1200 Hindi films introduced to World by Hinduja Family. 23. Pioneer in personality journalism in India in 1995 in India Today magazine.

24. He has been invited to deliver lecture on Cinema ,Indian culture, Theatre & society by United Nation ( UNO) New York, British Parliament, London, President House Tehran Iran, Uppsala University Sweden, Bollywood Festival Oslo, Norway, Indian Film Festival Berlin Germany & Moscow Russia. Dubai UAE ( Indian Embassy, Sardenia Italy and many more. 25. Ajit Rai is one and only who has been invited in Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony Oslo Norway in 2014.

26 . He is pioneer of Cinema movement in Educational Institutions of India and abroad and started many Film Festivals & Film Appreciation Courses in DAV Girls College, Yamunanagar, Haryana, Kurukshetra University, Punjabi University, Patiala, Punjab, Mahatma Gandhi Hindi International University Vardha, Maharashtra. DAV Centenary College Faridabad , Hariyana etc.

27. Work Experience- He worked with various newspapers and magazines from 1988 to till date- 1. Dainik Hindustan, Patna & New Delhi ( Hindustan Times group) 2. Navbharat Times, Patna & New Delhi ( Times of India group) 3. Jansatta. New Delhi ( Indian Express group) 4. Dainik Bhaskar, Bhopal 5. Dainik Jagaran, New Delhi 6. Rashtriya Sahara New Delhi 7. Sahara samay New Delhi 8. Swatantra Varta, Hyderabad 9. News Break , Patna 10. Amar Ujala New Delhi 11. Prabhat khabar, Ranchi Jharkhand 12. India Today. New Delhi 13. Outlook, New Delhi 14. Hans New Delhi 15. Aaj ki Jandhara, Raipur Chhattisgarh 16 Jan Sandesh Times. Lucknow . 17. People s Samachar Bhopal Madhya Pradesh. 18. The Sentinal. Guwahati Assam.

28. Educational qualification - (a) M. A. in Psychology ( 1989), 1st Division, ( b) M.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication, (2007). 1st Division. Note - Ajit Rai always got 1st Division & 1st Class through out his education ie from Class 1 to 12, B.A. (Hons.) & M.A.

29. Professional qualifications (a). Diploma in Psycho Analysis, Educational- vocational Guidance & Counselling , 1st division. 1993, NCERT, New Delhi. (b) . Diploma in Journalism.1 st division( 2006, ) Kurukshetra University. (c). Diploma in Film Appreciation, 1st division 2003. Film & Television Institute of India FTII Pune.

29. Awards 1. Beat Film Critic National Award, Rajasthan International Film Festival, Jaipur . 2020. 2. Best Film Journalist Award, LIFFT India Film Festival, Lonawala, Mumbai, 2020. 3. Pride of India Award, Khajuraho International Film Festival, 2020. 4. Jaiprakash Narayan International Award for Journalism, Delhi 2020 5. Nat Samrat Best Theatre Critic Award, Delhi , 2020. 6. Rang Sameeksha Samman, Ashirvad Rang Mandal, Begusarai, Bihar. 2018 7. . Rang Sameeksha Samman, Abhinaya Rang Manch, Hisar, Haryana, 2016. 8. . Pride of India Award. 2012 9. Natya Sameeksha Samman, Manch Rangmanch, Amritsar. Punjab. 2010 10 . Kala Sameeksha Samman, Abhinav Rang Mandal Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh. 2008. 11. Best Auther of the book 2022 Award. Rajasthan International Film Festival Jaipur 2023.

30. Published Books 1. Hindujas and Bollywood 2. Bollywood ki Buniyaad 3. Drishyantar 4. Andhere Men Chamakati Awazen 5. Two Decades of Jis Lahore Nai Wekhyan . All published by Vani Prakashan New Delhi.

Questions

1. What is censorship in the context of films? Why do establishments feel the need of banning or censorship?
2. When and why did it start? What’s Hays Code and what were the few important milestones in the evolution of censorship? May be just in the Indian context?
3. Can you tell us if there is any official framework or guidelines for censorship in India? If yes, what are those guidelines?
4. Who made these? When and why were these made? How objective are these?
5. I guess, rules in censorship should be treated like Smrutis. They should change with time. Whats the challenge today?
6. You strongly believe in that nothing should be censored. How do you justify it?
7. Whats the difference between banning and censorship? What are your thoughts on banning?
8. We as creators believe, movies are powerful, it can change narratives - so establishment will always interfere - What can be done as creators and also audience?
9. Many people like Gorge Carlin challenged the establishments and boldly used “Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television”. We have many such examples. In my conversation with Varun Grover, eve

In late 1800s, A Spanish architect, Antonio Gaudi, said, “There are no straight lines or sharp corners in nature. Therefore, buildings must have no straight lines or sharp corners”. But where does the nature stop and where does the building begin? Lets explore more about architecture and history in this 3 part series called, “An insert into the history”.

This series is brought to you by, The Drawing Board, with whom I had partnered last year. The Drawing Board is an international architecture platform based in India. TDB has been actively running Architecture competition for under graduate students since 2016. It is conceptualised by Mindspace Architects and Rohan Builders.

This year, the program is to redesign the existing Badami archaeological museum, in Karnataka. Submission deadline is 9th Oct 2023. More details on thedrawingboard.in

Today, in this concluding episode of this series, we have Ar. Sherman Stave with us on Audiogyan. Sherman is a Principal and Landscape Architect at STX Landscape Architects. With more than 30 years of experience. He has practised extensively in Asia and North America. His exposure to diverse cultures from an early age has lent him broad global perspective, and a deep appreciation of how shaping our environments can change our lives in fundamental ways. These are critical lenses that continue to inform his design approach.

Questions

1. Who is a landscape architect? What are the principles and strategies on which a landscape architect work?
2. BV Doshi, once said, “Is the Architecture defined by theory or it’s a convention, or it is something which is rooted in the place?” How big or small overlap do you see between the landscape and the actual building or architecture? Incase of Badami, where and how would you draw the line?
3. Brian O’Doherty’s famous line, “We have now reached a point where we see not the art but thespacefirst.” What does it mean and where are you on this?
4. How can landscape design contribute to the interpretation and visitor experience at any archaeological site? For instance, Badami, where the landscape itself is an integral part of the site's history?
5. What considerations can be taken while designing architecture in such high sensitive historical landscape? When designing an archaeological site like Badami to ensure minimal impact?
6. Since you are staying in Singapore and even I have recently moved there, I see some amazing work done by humans. The overall landscape is well thought. Can you share your learnings and experience? How can we be so close to nature yet seems to have so much command on it?
7. Can you share any (2) examples of good museums or public spaces where they blend organically with nature?

Reference reading

• The Drawing Board Architecture competition for Undergradute student 2024
• Talk by Prashanth Pole | 27 Mar, 2021 | FA S21 Lecture series
• Gandhi Ashram Sabarmati
• Don Bosco Centre for Indigenous Cultures
• Badami- Learning from the Context- WCFA, Teepoi
• Mindspace Architects
• Rohan Builders
• https://www.siww.com.sg/home/attend/siww2021-online/thematic-webinars-tw/speakers-and-moderators/sherman-stave
• https://www.stxla.com/profile/
• https://www.world-architects.com/en/stx-landscape-architects-singapore/team
• https://www.mnd.gov.sg/urbansustainability/webinars/liveability/abc-water-seminar-(liveability)
• https://www.ura.gov.sg/uol/publications/research-resources/plans-reports/Master%20Plan/~/media/User%20Defined/URA%20Online/publications/research-resources/plans-reports/pwip_urban_villages.ashx
• https://kimbellart.org/art-architecture/architecture/kahn-building
• https://www.salk.edu/
• https://www.archdaily.com/61288/ad-classics-salk-institute-louis-kahn
• https://www.designcurial.com/news/louis-kahn---six-most-important-buildings-4323752/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Kahn

Frank Owen Gehry, a Canadian-born American architect and designer once said, “Architecture should speak of its time and place, but yearn for timelessness”. How can we long for timelessness in architecture if the place itself keeps changing? Lets explore more about architecture and history in this 3 part series called, “An insert into the history”.

This series is brought to you by, The Drawing Board, with whom I had partnered last year. The Drawing Board is an international architecture platform based in India. TDB has been actively running Architecture competition for under graduate students since 2016. It is conceptualised by Mindspace Architects and Rohan Builders.

This year, the program is to redesign the existing Badami archaeological museum, in Karnataka. Submission deadline is 9th Oct 2023. More details on thedrawingboard.in

In this second episode, “An insert into the history” (which is also the theme of the competition), I have a Prof. Durganand Balsavar. I interviewed him back in episode 249 in the last year’s TDB theme of designing a “Memorial for Charles Correa”. We spoke about intangible architecture.

A quick introduction about Prof. Balsavar. He has been faculty for India Studios of Bartlett, Helsinki School of Architecture and involved in diverse cultural contexts - the Chandigarh Lab, IUAV Venice, Auckland, Indonesia, Nepal. He founded Artes-ROOTS Collaborative, which has been involved in an environment-appropriate architecture as a community participatory process.

Questions

1. If we look at Indian history and culture, how can one incorporate architectural elements that reflect diverse narratives in a museum projects? What can be the key principles on which this can be thought?
2. History is told by the rulers. I believe you also have a special interest in Alternate Histories - What does it mean?
3. So, If alternative histories often involve revisiting and reinterpreting established narratives. How does your architectural design support the reinterpretation of history within the museum context?
4. Can you share your thoughts on the role of technology, such as interactive exhibits or virtual reality, in enhancing the visitor experience and storytelling within museums dedicated to archaeology and alternate histories?
5. Can you share any unique architectural features or design elements that distinguish the Badami Archaeological Museum from other museums with similar themes?
6. Badami is known for its cave temples and rock-cut architecture. What elements can be incorporated in storytelling and educational experiences? How do you see that helping the narrative of the museum in the modern world?
7. Since the topic is, An insert into History, and your strong opinions on sustainability, What role does sustainability play in the design of the Badami Archaeological Museum, and how do you incorporate those elements into the architecture?
8. Can you share any other museums you have studied or been part of that are worth studying and referenced? Nationally or internationally?

Reference reading

• The Drawing Board
• Rohan Builders
• Mindspace Architects
• Charles Correa
• Charles Correa Foundation
• Culture Trip
• Down to Earth
• Durganand Balsavar
• Artesroots
• Duganand on Linkedin

BV. Doshi, once said, “A house is a grain, like a small sapling in the bio-diverse wild forest”. I wonder what a public space like a temple, a monument, museum, a park, an industrial zone, a 80 floor office tower or a man made landscape is? Lets explore more about architecture and history in this 3 part series called, “An insert into the history”.

This series is brought to you by, The Drawing Board, with whom I had partnered last year. The Drawing Board is an international architecture platform based in India where students can test their understanding and skills in shaping the way communities live and thrive while preserving local heritage. TDB has been actively running Architecture competition for under graduate students since 2016. It is conceptualised by Mindspace Architects and Rohan Builders.

This year, the theme is to redesign the existing Badami archaeological museum, in Karnataka. Submission deadline is 9th Oct 2023. More details in the show notes and thedrawingboard.in

We begin this series with Ar. Prashant Pole. Prashant has a long and illustrious career that has spanned over three decades. His journey started with Naksha Architects in Bengaluru. He established his own firm, Genesis Architects in 1994 and has worked on single residences, apartments, offices, hotels and institutional buildings. Over these years, he has also been a visiting faculty at MCE Hassan, BIT Bangalore, SIT Tumkur, and USD Mysore. Aside from teaching, he has also been evaluating architecture design as a juror at various architecture schools in and around Bengaluru. We’ll be discussing what goes into making a museum.

Questions

1. What is the museum according to you? Why do we need them?
2. Are there any special characteristics when it comes to Museum’s architecture? How can we optimise space to accommodate a wide range of exhibits while maintaining a seamless visitor experience? (Considering people coming from diverse background, language, ethnicity, abilities and more)
3. Accessibility, sustainability, security, are few common and must have things for any architecture, what are few other guidelines when it comes to a place like Museum?
4. Which are the famous museums in India and why?
5. Since this year’s theme is redesign the existing Badami archaeological museum, how can we approach integrating the cultural diversity and historical significance of Badami into the design of a museum, ensuring it resonates with both local and international visitors?
6. We say that “any place to be built should be built with the material found in 5KMs or it’s radius”. How true is it and why? How do you leverage local materials and craftsmanship to create a distinctive architectural identity for the museum, and what challenges might arise in this context?
7. Lighting and climate control are crucial factors in preserving the artifacts. How can we go about creating and ideal environment yet ensuring it’s sustainable? We can consider Badami or any other museum (located in the such setup in India)
8. What suggestions would you give those who wish to specialise in designing museums? Any extra attention in the context of Bandami museum?

Reference reading

• https://wcfa.ac.in/staff/prashant-girish-pole/
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cj84z3FA0tU
• https://thedrawingboard.in
• https://thinkmatter.in/2020/09/15/an-ephemeral-lab-in-a-city-of-fixity/
• https://www.bmsca.org/workshops.html
• https://www.gandhiashramsabarmati.org/en/
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_U9rjdsmOg
• https://dbcic.org
• The Drawing Board
• Rohan Builders
• Mindspace Architects

Friedrich Nietzsche’s famous line - “And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.”

In today’s episode, we’ll be talking about improvisation in dance with Avantika Bahl. Avantika is a dance practitioner and educator based in Mumbai. As an artist, she works towards creating inclusive performances that can be accessed by a larger community. Over the past few years, her choreographic choices have brought diverse voices and experiences to the mainstream. She studied at the London Contemporary Dance School and completed the Curriculum-in-Motion program offered by Jacobs Pillow. Avantika has a Masters degree in English Literature and completed her Level 3 certification in Indian Sign language.

Questions

1. What according to you is improvisation? Where do we see it mostly happening? Is it seen in all creative endeavours?
2. You have dabbled with silence, mundane chores, sometimes with just burst of sounds. What do you call your form of dance? Which category / genre does it belong?
3. What does it mean to improvise in the context of dance? What guides improvisation for you - Body, Music, Theme, Story, Location or anything else?
4. Traditionally dance (or most performing art forms) were considered to be performed effortlessly (Sahaj) and elegantly (simple). Does one need to know the rules to bend the rules? What does bending a rule mean? Improvisation?
5. Your show “Say, What?” with a creative partner who is deaf. What is the extent of improvisation that a dancer can explore and still make it palatable? What the biggest challenge in experiments like these? You said, “We just have to be still and dance” - What do you mean?
6. Tell us about your experience learning the Indian Sign language. How did it help?
7. When and why do dancers improvise? When we fail or when we do something over and over again? Is it the boredom? Is it uncovering deeper layers as they keep performing or revisiting the movements? Is it that the medium falls short to express?
8. Can improvisation be a starting point? Do smaller improvisations impulses land in changing the meta narrative? How does one come back to the main kathavastu / main narrative? May be you can explain in the context of “Look left, turn right”?
9. What is the extent of improvisation when it comes to dance? Can you share any examples - names and artists who are doing and have done a lot in the past?
10. What according to you is the future of dance and improvisation?

Reference reading

• https://www.avantikabahl.com
• https://www.instagram.com/avantikabahl/?hl=en
• https://prakritifoundation.com/artiseprofile/avantikabahl/
• https://vimeo.com/user5724048
• https://www.themovementartsco.com/blank-page
• https://narthaki.com/info/rev17/rev2058.html
• https://theideaslab.com/say-duet-celebrating-sounds-silence-movement/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merce_Cunningham
• https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2006/sep/16/dance
• https://sites.northwestern.edu/cageanddance/jcchoreo/
• https://www.abt.org/people/john-cage/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Cage
• https://studsterkel.wfmt.com/programs/merce-cunningham-and-john-cage-discuss-music-and-dance
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohad_Naharin
• https://www.dansedanse.ca/en/ohad-naharin
• https://www.gagapeople.com/en/
• https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/02/arts/dance/review-ohad-naharin-hora-batsheva.html
• https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/the-secret-history-of-the-israeli-choreographer-ohad-naharin

Satyajit Ray once said, “There is always room for improvisation”. I think this needs a lot more investigation.

Referring to Ray’s comment on the room of improvisation, today we have the honour to have Dr Trina Banerjee with us on Audiogyan. We’ll talk about improvisation in the context of Theatre, Plays, Playwriting, and performing arts at large.

Trina is an Assistant Professor in Cultural Studies at the Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta. Her research interests include Gender, Performance, Political Theatre, Theories of the Body, Postcolonial Theatre and South Asian History. She has also been a theatre and film actress, as well as a journalist and fiction writer.

Questions

1. What according to you is improvisation? In how many ways do you see it manifesting? Where do we see it mostly happening? On streets? In life? or just creative endeavours?
2. When do people improvise? What’s the motivation? Is it expressing themselves in different ways? Is it to communicate better with the other (State, society, individual)? Why do they do? Can you give any examples?
3. What does it mean to improvise in the context of performing arts (Theatre, Dance, and more)?
4. Are there categories or genres of improvisation which can be studied systematically? Did different forms of Theatre like the Theatre of Absurd or Pantomime and more emerge due to improvisation?
5. When and why do people improvise on stage? When do we fail or when do we do something over and over again? Is it the boredom? Is it uncovering deeper layers as they keep performing or revisiting the text?
6. When and how do improvisations become part of the main setup? As in, no longer be called improvisations? Has it happened that the playwright made changes to the original text as the years passed by?

Reference reading

1. https://www.cssscal.org/faculty_trina_nileena_banerjee.php
2. https://www.instagram.com/trinanileena/
3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtYA-zEkMjI
4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ti-bOIuUrwM
5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eArQSc9KDKo
6. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T53FQ-m74Xg
7. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmPiN2Tp3W0
8. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oi-owRniSBM
9. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lX2_2cV9lY
10. https://www.amazon.in/Books-Trina-Nileena-Banerjee/s?rh=n%3A976389031%2Cp_27%3ATrina+Nileena+Banerjee

I quote John McLaughlin “I find Indian music very funky. I mean it's very soulful, with their own kind of blues. But it's the only other school on the planet that develops improvisation to the high degree that you find in jazz music. So we have a lot of common ground.”

Pushkar Lele and Kuldeep Barve joins us on Audiogyan and we will be talking about “Improvisation in music”. It’s going to be a bi-lingual conversation in English and Marathi.

Pushkar is a renowned Hindustani classical vocalist and Founder-Director of ‘Gandhara School of Music’. More about his Gurus, rich repertoire and enriching journey of learning music in the show notes.

Kuldeep is a classical guitarist. His practice is influenced by jazz and Indian classical music. He is a co-founder and a core member of the Pune Guitar Society.

Welcome Pushkar & Kuldeep! It’s an honor to have you on Audiogyan. Thanks for giving your time.

As I started of with John McLaughlin’s quote, I wanted to document some of your thoughts on “Improvisation” - when it comes to Hindustani Classical and Western Classical music with a lot of Jazz which I believe has a lot of improvisation.

Just as a small plug, you can also listen to “Jazz in India” where I interviewed Denzil Smith in episode 133.

Questions

1. What according to you is improvisation in the broadest sense?
2. What does it mean to improvise in a concert? When is it required? How spontaneous it is
3. Do you see a similar pattern in a Western Classical performances? Or perhaps Jazz? Can we confidently say that each performance by Loius Amstrong was different even for the same set of tracks?
4. Do you need to be qualified to improvise? If yes, when are you allowed to improvise in Guru Shishya Parampara?
5. Do we have a lineage kind of a thing in Western music as well - which deals with improvisations? Especially in genres like Jazz, Blues or country?
6. What is the difference between improvising, exploring or presenting with a different perspective?
7. When do we call something is improvised? After how much deviation from originally planned is called improvisation?
8. When does one improvise? When they do the same thing over and over again or when they see some room for exploration? What’s a more common pattern?
9. What are the extents of improvisation? Whats at stake when an artist is improvising?
10. Can improvisations land in a loop of improvisations? How do you come back to the sthayi bhava?
11. Does a well trained audience appreciate improvisations?
12. When and how do improvisations become part of the main setup? As in, no longer be called as improvisations?

Reference readings

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pushkar_Lele
2. https://www.facebook.com/lelepushkar/
3. https://map.sahapedia.org/article/Pushkar-Lele/2912
4. https://www.youtube.com/@lelepushkar
5. https://soundcloud.com/pushkar-lele
6. https://twitter.com/lelepushkar?lang=en
7. https://map.sahapedia.org/article/Kuldeep-Barve/3004
8. https://www.instagram.com/kuldeep.barve/?hl=en
9. https://www.linkedin.com/in/kuldeep-barve-4394514/?originalSubdomain=in
10. https://puneguitarsociety.org/core-team/
11. https://twitter.com/mifya?lang=en
12. https://soundcloud.com/kuldeep-barve
13. https://www.academia.edu/33995371/Strings_attached_A_short_history_of_the_Western_classical_guitar_in_India_docx

“Waste not, want not.” can be explained as “if you are not wasteful with the resources you have now, then at a later date you will have those resources to use as you want and need. By not wasting, you will not be needy later.”

And today to discuss all about waste ecosystemand the sector at large, we have Rahul Nainani with us on Audiogyan. Rahul has a passion for sustainable policies that create value. With one eye on the bottom line and the other on tangible social impact, Rahul, along with his co-founder Gurashish Singh Sahni founded ReCircle in 2016, as an innovative, multifaceted solution to India’s burgeoning waste management woes. ReCircle has instituted flagship initiatives such as,ClimaOne,Plastic EPR Service, Plastic-Neutral programs and ground-level community collection drives.We’ll talking about this and more.

Questions

1. How do we define waste? What all broad categories of waste do we generate?
2. Can you share some stats about waste generated in India every day? Perhaps about the waste ecosystemand the sector at large?
3. How does the entire setup work? Which all entities are involved in handling waste? From collection at source to finally dumped or put for recycling?
4. How do we do in comparison to other developing countries like us?
5. How critical has been the impact of Swatch Bharat and other initiatives to entrepreneurs like you or the entire ecosystem?
6. Tell us a little bit about ReCircle — how did you come to start it and why? Tell us about your team, initiatives, programs and everything. Right from Safai Saathis to governing bodies, how do you engage with them?
7. What is ClimaOne? Tell us about other flagship initiatives under ReCircle?
8. How has technology changed things for everyone in this ecosystem? How and where technology is applied?
9. Waste management doesn’t sound very sexy. How do you attract talent and run the company?
10. What is the future of Waste? Can we expect waste in Meta-verse? Can we expect India to be as clean as Singapore?

Reference reading

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/rahulnainani
• https://www.mwcbarcelona.com/agenda/speaker/rahul-nainani
• https://twitter.com/rahul_nainani?lang=en
• https://www.instagram.com/rahulnainani18/
• https://recircle.in
• https://www.theentrepreneursofindia.in/post/rahul-nainani-the-entrepreneurs-of-india-youngpreneur-magazine-august-2022
• https://www.linkedin.com/company/recircleindia/?originalSubdomain=in
• https://www.eatmy.news/2023/07/rahul-nainani-gurashish-singh-sahni-how.html
• https://medium.com/worthwhile/in-conversation-with-rahul-naini-ceo-and-cofounder-of-recircle-52c31f156f41
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/gurashish123/?originalSubdomain=in
• https://yourstory.com/companies/recircle
• https://www.thequint.com/explainers/explained-indias-cleanest-city-indore-is-earning-huge-bucks-from-its-garbage
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cleanest_cities_in_India
• https://theprint.in/india/these-are-the-secrets-to-indores-5-year-cleanest-city-streak-and-its-not-rocket-science/772362/
• https://indianexpress.com/article/india/indore-cleanest-city-swachh-rankings-7632466/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambikapur,_Chhattisgarh
• https://india.mongabay.com/2023/05/ambikapurs-women-led-waste-management-system-also-generates-revenue-for-the-city/#:~:text=Ambikapur bagged a bigger recognition,best self-sustained small city.

Peter Brook the legendary English theatre and film director once said, ********“I can take any empty space and call it a bare stage. A man walks across this empty space whilst someone else is watching him, and this is all that is needed for an act of theatre to be engaged.”

Lets talk about the need for such a space with Atul Kumar.

Atul Kumar is The Company Theatre’s founder member. An acclaimed actor and director with more than 30 years of performance experience, Atul has dabbled with different languages and forms of theatre & has showcased his work all over India & abroad. His basic performance training was in the traditional Indian dance and martial art forms of Kathakali and Kalerippayettu in Kerala for over three years as well as a stint with the master of visual theatre - Philippe Genty in France. More about him in the show notes. Today we’ll deep dive into The Company Theatre Workspace, Kamshet as a case study.

Questions

1. What is The Company Theatre Workspace at Kamshet?
2. What inspired you to make such a place? Was it the influences from Aadishakti, Nrityagram or Footsbarn theatre group?
3. There is a beautiful 10 minute video on youtube where you briefly explain the backstory of this place and how it came to be. Do you want to share more details like which were the other 3 spots you shortlisted and why chose this over others? Why was your “want to” list huge? What were your pre-requisites?
4. Why do you call it a laboratory for theatre and performing arts? When I see your Instagram page, artists are doing all sorts of things from Tai Chi, Yoga to just running around and doing theatre drills, packed with high intensity body movements. What do you do in the space?
5. You mentioned that “we don’t always expect artists to do something specific but just be by themselves”. How does this help? Reflection, introspection anything else?
6. For outcome oriented projects, people need structure to think, how does this place facilitate it?
7. (Philosophical) Everyone needs time to pause and reflect. Do artist need more of it? Why? Can you tell us more about the place? How does the place accommodate for experimentation? Geography, topology, open space, residency and other things about the place?
8. What’s the future? Do we need more such spaces? Do we have similar places in India? Some mentions about your wonderful and dedicated to art team?

Reference links

1. https://www.instagram.com/atulkumartct/?hl=en
2. https://twitter.com/atulkumartct
3. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1241640/
4. https://www.thecompanytheatre.net/team
5. https://www.youtube.com/c/AtulKumarTheCompanyTheatre/videos
6. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bm1h1CY-X1w
7. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJ6PfJEDOmc
8. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrKp30jP28o

Welcome back to Part 2. We were in conversation with Jan Schmidt Garre, film maker, producer and founder of PARS MEDIA. They make high-quality documentaries and feature films with a focus on classical music, dance, and the fine arts.

In the previous episode, we spoke about “Making a documentary” and in this, we speak about his latest Documentary on Late Ar. B.V.Doshi called the “The Promise – Architect BV Doshi”.

Questions

1. You have made 2 documentaries in the East. What fascinates you about the East, about India?
2. What makes you make films of Design, art, dance and such creative expressions. Why did you consider architecture to be part of art as a film maker?
3. What is “The Promise – Architect BV Doshi”? How did the idea of documenting him come about?
4. How did you discover Doshi’s and what drew you closer to him?
5. There has been so much documentation on Doshi. What is your narrative in the film?
6. In your interview with Ritupriya Basu, you said, “Doshi’s architecture must not be shown silently.” How did you manage to show the interactions between the architecture and their inhabitants?
7. Whats the most enriching moment during your interaction with the legend and making of the film?
8. I also happened to interview Doshi on Audiogyan. Every word he says is magical. Very difficult to cut things as they are lyrical and rhythmic. How did you go about editing this film. Seems like the toughest part of the adventure
9. What was your biggest learning and takeaways from the experience? Can you share any anecdotes or experiences of chatting with him, going on a spiritual journey with so beautiful metaphors and explaining the most complex things with love.
10. When are you showing the film in India? How can people watch it?

Reference links

• https://www.parsmedia.com
• https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/jan_schmidtgarre
• https://www.instagram.com/janschmidtgarre/
• https://www.delage-artists.com/en/artist/jan-schmidt-garre/biography/
• https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0773272/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Schmidt-Garre