Discover India Series – The Burlington Public Library in Partnership with IAGB
The Discover India Series is a program partnership between the Burlington Public Library and the India Association of Greater Boston (IAGB). This series explores India's rich culture and includes exciting forays into history, food, art and music.
‘Madhubani’ an Evergreen Folk Art
Monday, May 8 at 7pm
Location: Online via Zoom. If you would like to draw along with the program, HERE is the art supply list.
Watch the recording HERE.
Madhubani Art (also known as Mithila painting) is a traditional art form that originated almost 2500 years ago in the Mithila region of Bihar, India. The history can be traced back to the ancient times when women used to decorate the walls of their homes with these paintings during special occasions like weddings and festivals. This art has been passed down from generation to generation, mostly from mothers to daughters, and it is still prevalent in the region today. Madhubani Art (Mithila Paintings) is known for their vibrant colors and intricate designs. The paintings are usually made on handmade paper or fabric using natural dyes and pigments. The unique aspect of Madhubani Art is that the themes of the paintings are often related to Indian epics and nature.
Sunanda Sahay has been painting in Mithila/Madhubani style for the last 20 years and has held exhibitions, workshops, artist-in-residency, talks, demos, juried shows, interactive workshops at several museums (PEM, MFA, Danforth, Fitchburg art, Boston Children etc.), schools, colleges, libraries, art galleries and various other community places. She is the recipient of various awards and accolades from the state and local organizations. Sunanda has been instructing students from all over USA and many of them are the recipients of various awards as well. Her website is colorOfIndia.com.
Beyond Chicken Tikka
Monday, May 15 at 7pm
HERE is the ingredient list.
Watch the recording HERE.
Indian Cuisine is among those unique cuisines where culture, climate, occupation, locally available spices, herbs and vegetables all blend together. In this workshop, you will learn to make a delicious Indian meal that is easy to recreate for your loved ones - Indian spiced Grilled Chicken, Jeera Rice with whole Garam Masala, Tossed Kachumbar salad in tamarind dressing, Beetroot Raita.
Shuchi Gupta is a cake artist by profession. Her immense enthusiasm for food and flavors makes her an avid cook. She loves making dishes from across cultures for her family and friends. Her favorite food to cook is Indian! India’s large array of spices and regional influences on dishes makes it a very versatile cuisine and has something for everyone!
A Musical Journey
Tuesday, May 23 at 7pm
Watch the recording HERE.
Experience Hindustani (North Indian) classical instrumental music followed by a presentation by the musicians. The presentation will include three Indian Instruments – Sitar, Guitarod, Tabla
• Sitar is an Indian string long-necked instrument with varying number of strings, but 17 is usual. It has three to four playing strings and three to four drone strings with various sympathetic strings underneath which gives rich and melodious sound when corresponding notes are played.
• Guitarod is a modified fretless guitar to mimic the Hindustani String Instrument (Sarod). Guitarod can produce continuous slides between notes known as meend (glissandi) which gives deep, introspective sound.
• Tabla (Hindustani Drums) is a percussion instrument which is used to accompany Hindustani vocal and instrumental music.
Deepali Khanzode, scientist by profession, initiated her Hindustani vocal training at the age of nine. After four years of vocal training, she decided to switch to sitar and then underwent training for six years at “Madhuri Sangeet School” in Nagpur, India. For the past 10-12 years, Deepali has been learning from her guru Shri. Puspen Dey. who is a senior disciple of Pt. Buddhadev Das Gupta of Senia Shahjahanpu Gharana. Sau. Deepali has also performed and organized kid’s instrument ensembles around Boston area.
Yogesh Karale started his musical journey by learning Tabla at a young age from his father Shri Damodar Karale. He completed his graduation in music, Tabla Visharad, with Akhil Bhartiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya Mandal. For advanced training after Visharad, Yogesh got an opportunity to take lessons under the able guidance of Late Pt. Sadashiv Pawar, a renowned Tabla player from Farukhabad Gharana. During his intense learning of 12 years in “Guru-Shishya Parampara”, he learned all the aspects of Tabla through vigorous riyaaz under the watchful eyes of his Guru. Now, he is pursuing tabla education from Shri Praveen Karkare (disciple of Pt Sadashiv Pawar and Pt Sudhir Mainkar).
Phil Kaplan studied guitar, composition, and World Music at Boston’s New England Conservatory of Music. Phil fell under the spell of Hindustani classical music at the age of 12 in an incident involving a vinyl LP recording of Ustad Ali Akhbar Khan Sahib performing Raag Shree, which, in Phil’s words and recollection, has had him “living in-between” ever since. At the turn of the century, he had the great good fortune to meet, be accepted as a student, and come under the tutelage of Sr. Puspen Dey of Kolkata. Phil has explored the possibilities of presenting this music on his beloved instrument of choice, the electric guitar, and has designed a customized instrument he has named the Guitar’ode, designed to emulate the sarode, combining essential features of both instruments.
Spice Bowl
Tuesday, May 30 at 7pm
Watch the recording HERE.
India is famous for its spices that are used for both culinary and health purposes, many of which were included in ancient herbal medicines. This presentation will describe the history of some of the spices, their benefits, and how they are used in Indian cuisine and/or for health purposes.
Roopesh Mathur is the presenter for Spice Bowl.