For a foundation-administered project that supports research into the history, evolution and current musical practice of the Mir musicians of Rajasthan. Through field trips and intensive interactions, this study seeks to analyse the geographical, historical and socio-political confluences, continuities, fissures and divergences in the recent decades that have impacted the trajectories of the music of the Mirs. The outcome of this project will be an essay.
For the creation of a performance based on the abhangs - devotional poetry dedicated to the deity Vithoba - of women warikari saints of Maharashtra. Through intensive travel and research, this project seeks to interpret and perform in the public domain, primarily through music, about 10 to 12 poems of the women saints whose works currently exist only as textual documentation. The outcomes will be two music concerts and recordings of the 10 to 12 songs. The Grantee's deliverables to IFA with the Final Report will be translations of the chosen songs, audio recordings of the studio recorded songs and video documentation of the performances.
For research into the notions of gender and identity, with specific reference to gender testing in the field of athletics. Through detailed interviews and study, this research will aim to gather a nuanced understanding of gender as a spectrum rather than a binary, challenging accepted modes of identity. The outcome of this grant will be a broad structure for a play and a possible script. The Grantee's deliverables to IFA with the Final Report will be the play structure.
For the creation of a body of photographic works centred on the men of Poompuhar in south Tamilnadu. Drawing from the descriptions of lives and landscape of Poompuhar in the ancient Tamil epic Silappadikaram, this project involves revisiting the town in an attempt to explore questions around identity and territory and provide a contemporary visual interpretation of the epic. The outcome of this grant will be a photo exhibition in Poompuhar. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the Final Report will be digital copies of the photographs and still and video documentation of the process and the exhibition.
For research into the changing practices and ecology of the performance form of Tamasha across Maharashtra. Building on earlier work also supported by IFA, this project entails revisiting, after nearly fifteen years, villages in the Konkan, western and northern Maharashtra, Vidarbha and Marathwada regions to document photographically the cumulative impact of socio-political and economic forces on the art form and the lives of its performers. The outcome of this project will be photographs with field notes.
For a series of workships in the visual arts and storytelling that will connect students and the local community in the Government Primary school at Manipal, Udupi to the issues related to environment in their immediate surroundings. The outcome will be an exhibition. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the Final Report will be audio-visual documentation of the workshops, images, and a ten to twelve minute video document of the entire project. Grant funds will pay for professional fees, honorarium, exhibition costs, documentation costs, stationery and an accountant’s fee.
For a folk-artist to use an in-depth participant-trainer method with the fifth to seventh grade students of the Government Model Higher Primary School, Goppenahalli, Davanagere District, to engage them in the diverse understandings of Veeragase, a folk arts form that is rapidly fading from the cultural life of Karnataka. The outcomes will be an exhibition and a performance. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the Final Report will be audio-visual documentation of the workshops, images, and a ten to twelve minute video document of the entire project. Grant funds will pay for honorarium, professional fees, material costs, documentation costs and an accountant’s fee.
For research that enquires into the Raseshori Pala of the Sankirtan tradition of Manipur to draw attention to certain aspects of Vaishnavism and its devotional expression through the contribution of women. The project will explore roles of women as custodians for maintaining and carrying forward this artistic tradition. The outcome of this project will be a monograph.
For the creation of an an interactive, three dimensional Virtual Reality installation based on the popular Keralan legend of Perumtachan’s temple pond. The installation will allow spectators to experience and interact with a simulated environment through a head mounted display unit. The project aims to explore the artistic possibilities of Virtual Reality and questions religious indoctrination of legends by making them available for public access. The outcomes of the project will be the interactive site specific installation and a research paper. The Grantee's deliverables to IFA with the Final Report will be photo and video documentations, sketches, 3D models and prototypes, source codes, design iterations of the installation and the manuscript of the paper. Grant funds will pay for travel and living costs, equipment hire, disseminations costs, materials, printing and stationery, professional fees, workshop costs, and an accountant’s fee.
This Grant was Terminated by IFA and the Grantee is ineligible to apply to IFA in the future.
For a series of workshops with Tamil speaking children to create a visual storytelling book that aims to challenge dominant notions of children’s books that put great importance on activity. This project instead will attempt to draw attention to contemplation and abstraction in the world of children. The outcomes of the grant will be a book and an exhibition with original artwork from the book. The Grantee's deliverables to IFA with the Final Report will be detailed documentation of the processes including photographs and audio-video recording of the project, various drafts and final layout of the book, and design and catalogue of the exhibition. Grant funds will pay for book publication costs, honorarium, exhibition costs, workshop costs, pre-book publication costs, research costs, documentation costs, and an accountant’s fee.
For support towards an international conference on the evolution of the Urdu language and its proliferation in popular culture across music, film, literature and television. The conference attempts to explore the worlds of popular and classical discourses in Urdu, and study their impact on the life, vibrancy and sustainability of the language. The conference took place in September 2017 in collaboration with Centre for Indian Languages, School of Language, JNU, New Delhi. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA will be the papers presented by all speakers at the conference and video documentation of the entire conference.
For research to study the syncretic traditions inherent in traditional Axomiya society by mapping the cultural and social history of the performance tradition of Jikir in Assam. The research will be conducted with her collaborator, Shakya Shamik Kar Khound. The outcome will be an anthology on Jikir.
This Grant was Terminated by IFA and the Grantee is ineligible to apply to IFA in the future.
For research that traces the manners in which the Shi’a community in contemporary India deploys the Panja or the Fatima’s Hand, as part of a larger collection of visual and material artifacts, to show veneration for the Prophet Muhammad’s family during Muharram in Dongri and Bhendi Bazar, Mumbai, within the context of various debates on iconoclasm within Islam. The outcome of this project will be a book.
This Grant was Terminated by IFA and the Grantee is ineligible to apply to IFA in the future.
For research into four performative practices of the Char-Chapori Muslims of lower Assam namely, Lathibari, Naukhela, Gasshi Rati and Kobi Bayati. The project aims to explore the history of these cultural practices in the light of historical, political and religious pressures that have often questioned their legitimacy in the region. The outcome of the grant will be a set of four films.
For research on the evolution and cultural significance of the handmade Axomiya Gohona (jewellery) of Assam and the rise of the new jewellery industry. The project will examine the various shifts in the designs, aesthetics and presentations of the jewellery over time and the contentious relationship between rural labour and the urban market place. The outcome will be a monograph, photo documentation and audio-visual recordings in the field. The grant funds will cover honorarium, travel and living costs, reference materials, and an accountant’s fee.
