Friday, 9 May 2008, 5.30p.m. to 7.30p.m., at Landmark bookstore, 1-B Moledina Road, Near Dorabjee's, Camp, Pune 411001
Open Space along with Landmark, Pune, invites you to a launch-cum-reading of Breathless in Bombay – a collection of short stories by Murzban F Shroff, published by St. Martin’s Press, U.S. and Picador India. A Bombay-born writer, Shroff’s work has appeared in over twenty-five literary journals in the U.S. He is a recipient of two Pushcart Prize nominations and the John Gilgun Fiction Award.
There will be a reading by the author, followed by an informal interaction.
About the work: Murzban Shroff’s vibrant narratives in this concept collection of fourteen stories feature a range of beautifully drawn characters in fascinating situations: from the laundrywalla’s water shortage problems to the doomed love affair of a schizophrenic painter and his Bollywood girlfriend to the heart warming relationship of a carriage driver and his beloved horse. Each of these stories is richly crafted and arranged against the grand, chaotic backdrop of life that is Bombay. Shroff’s love for his hometown shines through, but so does his deep understanding of its challenges and problems.
International Reviews:
A collection that chronicles the deep chasms in contemporary Bombay. Shroff’s narration is consistently clear-voiced; his focused setting and carefully chosen themes give the collection a strong structure. Stories as engaging and complicated as the city to which they pay homage. - Kirkus Review.
This rich and lively debut collection demonstrates Shroff's storytelling skill, which has garnered him two Pushcart Prize nominations. Shroff does not employ gritty realism to portray his characters' struggles, but he also refrains from romanticizing them. Instead, he achieves a welcome balance of apprehension and optimism. Most of his narrators are men who more often than not convey considerable compassion for the women in their lives. Like other short story collections set in Bombay (e.g., Vikram Chandra's Love and Longing in Bombay and Rohinton Mistry's Swimming Lessons and Other Stories from Firozsha Baag), Shroff's makes for enjoyable reading. – Faye A. Chadwell, Oregon State Univ. Lib., Library Journal.
Murzban F. Shroff is a skillful and accomplished writer who has won recognition for his short stories. I believe that this collection heralds the wider arrival of his unique voice and ample talent. He is deserving of taking his place among his worthy contemporaries. - Jospeh R. Furshong, www.amazon.com
DAY & DATE: FRIDAY, 9 MAY, 2008
TIME: 5.30pm to 7.30pm
VENUE: Landmark bookstore, 1-B Moledina Road, Near Dorabjee's, Camp, Pune 411001.
ENTRY FREE ON A FIRST-COME-FIRST-SERVED-BASIS-ONLY!
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Friday, May 23, 2008, 4.00pm to 7.30pm, at Open Space
Open Space has been using diverse audio-visual media such as feature and documentary films, shorts and PSAs as awareness raising outreach tools through regular screenings, film festivals and moderated discussions. In continuation of it’s endeavour Open Space has initiated a monthly lecture series titled, ‘Cinema as Documentation’ which will look at film as a medium of social, economic and historical documentation, while exploring other aspects of film such as art and aesthetics.
The God of Spiritual Things
Is there a contradiction between religion and spirituality?
Can cinema highlight the difference between GOD and goodness?
What is the distinction between a film that documents a religious text, DeMille's The Ten Commandments for instance, and one that interprets another, Pasolini's The Gospel According to St. Mathew?
Are all religious people truly spiritual?
Can a sceptic be a man of God?
The ability of cinema to produce dynamic parallel narratives from across the universe that challenge you to think - for or against the motion - is unique. The third lecture in the series follows a pattern of questioning that highlights the ability of cinema, that most important historical narrative of the last hundred years, to ask questions of our material universe.
The lecture is facilitated by Ajit Duara, film critic, film script-writer and teacher of film studies who divides his time between Pune and Mumbai. He has been writing since 1984 and teaching since 1990. He completed his graduation in English (Hons) from St. Stephens College, Delhi, and took an M.F.A. in Film scholarship/Criticism from Columbia University, New York City.
ENTRY FREE ON A FIRST-COME-FIRST-SERVED-BASIS ONLY!
DAY & DATE: Friday, May 23, 2008
TIME: 4.00pm to 7.30pm
VENUE: Open Space – CCDS, B-301, 2nd Floor, Kanchanjunga Bldg, Kanchan Lane, Off Law College Road, Near Krishna Dining Hall, Pune 411 004. Tel No: 020 25457371 |
Thursday, May 15, 2008, 5.00pm to 7.00pm, at Mithi Technologies, Baner
Lecture/presentation by Dr. Ajay Ojha, PMC on ‘Global Warming and sustainable consumption'.
The objective of the lecture is to sensitize individuals to help support the root cause for saving our
natural resources by understanding our contribution towards the deterioration of environmental
resources and thereby think about and set up targets for reduction or slowing down of this
deterioration through personal audit and help conserve resources for the next generation
to come.
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Monday, May 26 - Tuesday, June 3, 2008, at Open Space
Theatre for Diversity
Open Space invites participation for a week-long workshop on theatre conducted by noted theatre practitioner Parnab Mukherjee, who is one of the pioneers of a highly unconventional theatrical art called the alternative theatre. The aim of this new kind of theatrical expression is to remove the barrier between the performer and the spectator to create an intimate theatre by using different spaces both in the auditorium and on the stage.
The workshop looks at the concept of the ‘self’ or the many ‘selves’ that we slip into in performance and in everyday life, and tries to deal with concepts of 'role', the wearing and uncovering of ' accents', and the question, 'what is the essential me?'.
The workshop will help participants explore the concept of the self, enriching participants with techniques that free the natural, inner voice and enhance spatial command. The exercises explored in the workshop will also enable participants to become more dynamic presenters and communicators.
Last date for registration: 20th of May 2008.
Venue: CCDS, Open Space, Flat no.301, Kanchanjunga Bldg,
Kanchan Lane, off Law College Road, near Krishna Dining Hall,
Pune-411004.
Time: 10.00am. to 1.00pm.
For registrations and further enquiries call Rakesh on 020-25457371 between 10am – 3pm.
ENTRY FREE!! HURRY!! Limited seats!
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