Mumbai Diary: Wednesday Dossier

Cycle of loveA man and child pedal away at MazgaonMake it matterA candlelight vigil in Mumbai for Danish Siddiqui PicSuresh KarkeraCelebrated photojournalist Danish Siddiqui might have left us recently killed in the line of duty in Afghanistan But his work will remain for posterity and Lucknowbased educational NGO Aaghaz Foundation has now instituted a scholarship for journalism students in his memory Itrsquos open to anyone pursuing an undergraduate course from a reputed institution in the country and is worth Rs 50000 annually But the combined income of the applicantrsquos parents canrsquot exceed Rs 35 lakh a year Aaghaz Foundation secretary Tariq Khan told this diarist ldquoWe have established scholarships in the name of eminent people earlier as well and have a board of trustees who take these calls In this case we wanted to pay tribute to Danishrsquos memory and the work he was doing in such dangerous conditions There was also the role he played in covering the Delhi riots highlighting the violence from both sidesrdquo Those interested can send their applications along with a cover letter and 200word introduction to aaghazfoundationgmailcomArt on the bookshelfAn installation at Chemould Prescott RoadFortbased Chemould Prescott Road has launched an online bookstore in connection with the galleryrsquos programme featuring catalogues artistsrsquo books editions and monographs It houses titles from artists on their roster including Atul Dodiya Anju Dodiya Bhuvanesh Gowda Desmond Lazaro Gigi Scaria and Jitish KallatShireen GandhyCreative director Shireen Gandhy shared ldquoFor the lack of physical exhibitions wersquove been sorting and setting up the little book store within the gallery As a matter of practice the gallery is constantly producing art books for exhibitions As we stay home books have gained currency Taking into account the vast repertoire of artistsrsquo books we have we were pleased to curate and recreate our bookstorerdquoWhen science and poetry meetThe worlds of poetry and science will collide today as poets and science communicators from across the globe will come together for whatrsquos being touted as the worldrsquos first online Science and Poetry Cafe The result of a collaboration between the Falling Walls FoundationBerlin and the Consilience Science Poetry Journal the initiative has been organised by Dr Sam Illingworth associate professor Academic Practice at the Edinburgh Napier University and Punenative and poet Chandrakant Redican science outreach and communications manager at the National Center for Biological Sciences ldquoThe cafeacute will be the template to build a science and poetry community There will be performances by poets Akul Anandur Ruth Aylett and Sunayana Bhargavardquo Redican revealedBig love for indie reelA still from Bodies Of DesireMumbaibased directors Varsha Panikar and Saad Nawabrsquos visual poetry film Bodies Of Desire which was conceived out of a sketchpoetry series on young love queerness and intimacy has been making quite a stir at film festivals Panikar told this diarist that the film mdash an intimate portrayal of gender sexual identity desire care and camaraderie mdash has now won the Special Jury Award for the best international short film category at Rio Festival De Cinema LGBTQiAVarsha PanikarldquoThis marks our presence in 27 festivals When we started out making the film we were sure of what we wanted to achieve but didnrsquot think wersquod come so farrdquo Panikar added We wish them luckWhen music wins against the oddsA still from Lyari NotesIn 2015 Mumbairsquos Miriam Chandy Menacherry and Maheen Zia from Karachi directed and released a featurelength documentary that explored the music scene in Lyari in Pakistan The film Lyari Notes was shot over three years and followed the lives of four young girls who attended music lessons from a Pakistani rock star in one of Karachirsquos most volatile districtsMaheen Zia and Miriam Chandy MenacherrySince then the film has amassed several awards Today it will be virtually screened by GoetheInstitut Mumbai ldquoThe camera chronicles how these girls grew up To ensure that children living in conflict zones are not sucked into a vicious cycle there should be spaces for forms of expression that arenrsquot violentrdquo shared Menacherry