"Travelling Cinemas" Presentation and photoshow by Amit Madheshiya & Shirley Abraham at Max Mueller Bhavan / Gothe Institut, 3 Kasturba Gandhi Marg > 7th December 2012

Time : 7:00 pm

Entry : Free (Seating on First-Come First-Served Basis)

Place : Lawns, Max Mueller Bhavan / Gothe Institut, 3 Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi-110001
Venue Info : Events | About | Map | Nearest Metro Station - 'Barakhamba(Blue Line)'

Area : Events at Kasturba Gandhi Marg

Event Description : 'Travelling Cinemas' Presentation and photoshow by Amit Madheshiya and Shirley Abraham followed by a discussion with Mr. Sadanand Menon.

The story of the traveling cinemas takes us back to the mid 1940s, when, pioneers from neighbouring villages carted off cinema projectors, many of them Bauer, of German make, and film reels by the kilo, into the jatras. Until today, the cinemas continue to visit villages that lie far from fixed site theatres, becoming indispensable to the cultural milieu of rural Maharashtra.

The presentation will trace the creation and journey of touring talkies companies through this momentous transfer of technology in rural Maharashtra. It will also discuss how the traveling cinemas evolved around the axes of a new viewing context, a spatial imagination, a social engagement, a cultural possibility for their patrons in Maharashtra. The presentation will be accompanied by a photoshow, and a vignette from the upcoming film on the tent cinemas.

The presentation and photoshow is part of the 50th Anniversary Grant Programme of the Goethe Institut. As part of the fellowship Amit Madheshiya and Shirley Abraham will bring an interactive artwork to Max Muller Bhawan, New Delhi in February 2013. Details will be announced shortly.
Amit Madheshiya and Shirley Abraham locate, narrate and reimagine the story of the traveling tent cinemas through their research and artistic interventions. This work is supported by India Foundation for the Arts Bangalore; Cluster of Excellence “Asia and Europe in a Global Context” Heidelberg; and the Goethe-Institute / Max Mueller Bhavan, New Delhi.

Since 2008, their work on the touring talkies of Maharashtra explores the cinemas through still images, conversations, collages, participatory observation and archival research, and is now taking the shape of a film narrative. Amit and Shirley have presented the work at conferences, festivals, exhibitions and travelling showcases extensively around the world. For his work, Amit has won the the World Press Photo, World Photography Award and the Humanity Photo Award.

Sadanand Menon has been exploring the charged space linking politics and culture for several decades through his work in media, pedagogy and activism. Today he is a nationally reputed ‘arts editor’, popular teacher of ‘cultural journalism’, widely published photographer, arts curator and prolific writer and speaker at seminars on politics, ecology and the arts. In 2009, he was awarded the Kesari Puraskaram, the prestigious award in Kerala for critical writing on culture and arts.

Website : amitmadheshiya.photoshelter.com

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