This is a love affair that literally travels beyond boundaries. Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jhumpa Lahiri’s passion for the Italian language is intriguing as she was born in a Bengali family and her mother staunchly claimed and nurtured her Bengali space all though her 50 years in the U.S. as a migrant. Born in London in 1967, she emigrated to the U.S. with her parents; and even as she embraced the adopted land, Lahiri remained a nomad at heart. Her devotion for Italian took her with her family to live in Rome for a few years. Her recent book, In altre parole/In Other Words emerged from there. An autobiographical narrative in Italian, it is a reflection on the learning of a language, an enigmatic belonging to it and the power of reinvention. Having written it for the last few years, Lahiri feels an exhilarating transformation, almost like being reborn. Professor Ombretta Frau traces the journey of language and a migrant soul.
In her latest book, In altre parole/In Other Words [Guanda, 2015/ Knopf, 2016], Jhumpa Lahiri labels herself as a ‘pellegrino linguistico a Roma’, [a linguistic pilgrim to Rome]. She painstakingly describes her journey towards Italy and towards Italian, a journey that is spiritual as much — or, perhaps even more — than it is geographic. For an accomplished author like Jhumpa Lahiri, giving up her language of success, English, is not a small undertaking. Until In altre parole, the world knew Lahiri as an Indian-American author who published in English. She is known for her tales of introspective, contemplative ‘migration’ into other cultures that have often been [wrongly, as Lahiri herself often points out] considered autobiographical. But it is only with this book — a collection of short chapters and stories, most of which appeared in the Italian magazine Internazionale — that Lahiri gives us a very personal account of her linguistic journey, and in the process, of herself.
This story is from the Volume 19 No.1, 2016, MIGRATION edition of International Gallerie.
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This story is from the Volume 19 No.1, 2016, MIGRATION edition of International Gallerie.
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Perils Of Nuclear Energy
Addressing negative consequences of nuclear tests for the environment and human health in the areas around these sites, pointing the finger at the Soviet and current governments, “This is Silence” highlights one of the main points that the artist seeks to stress: the absence of public discussion about critical issues.
Greta Thunberg. It Is Time To Rebel!
Student, activist and initiater of ”The Greta Effect”
THEATRE UNDER PRESSURE.
The facts [some of it] about Climate Change are out there. With a few articles and videos, anyone can know that Climate Change is serious and needs immediate attention. Yet, we continue living our lives at the cost of the planet. With so much awareness, why are we not moving towards climate action and justice? How can our collective consciousness be pricked? Can we use the theatre to tell the story of the tree that I was looking at? Can we understand climate change from the aerial view of the parrot? Can we reflect on how much plastic waste we generate every day? With these questions, we set out to explore how theatre can talk about climate change.
WHERE TIGERS ARE HAPPY!
Initiated by the Sanctuary Nature Foundation, ‘Kids for Tigers’ is an inspiring project that educates schoolchildren about the welfare of wild animals. Spearheading this program, is Govardhan Meena, a sensitive village boy who grew up to be a saviour of tigers, of forest land and their inhabitants. Born in 1980 to a Meena tribal family living on the outskirts of Ranthambhore, Rajasthan, the unassuming young man is a virtual Pied Piper for children learning about the environment. He works 24x7 with a single-mindedness, building bridges between people and parks. No wonder, the awards and certificates in his prized possession, are more than deserving for a man whose life is dedicated to helping village children seed bonds with nature’s wilderness.
DANCE LIKE A MAN!
Dancer, choreographer and actor, Revanta Sarabhai, the third generation of a famed family of classical Indian dance, believes the arts have a way of reaching out to people in an entirely different way than scientific data or information does; that performance tends to have a greater emotional and empathetic impact on people’s senses rather than only their rational brain. Believing that the arts have a tremendous role to play in championing the cause of climate change [or any major challenge human beings face globally], he urges artists to harness the power of the arts to create change. With this conviction, Sarabhai shares with us his conceptual performance questioning climate change.
DANCE OF THE ACTION BRIGADE
When a dancer is concerned about climate change issues there is a strong potential to nudge the emotions of viewers in a way that can impact an audience sometimes more quickly than an entire thesis on the subject.
CELEBRATING THE WILDERNESS
“Humanity can no longer stand by in silence while our wildlife and nature are being used, abused, and exploited.
THEATRE SALUTES THE ENVIRONMENT
Theatres evolve to reconnect us to each other and the environment
FROM TRASH TO TREASURE
Veena Sahajwalla is a whirlwind of ideas and energy, determined to tackle the mountain of waste, especially -waste generated by Australians every year. Recycling waste into ‘green steel’ and ‘green ceramics’ is the result of years of experimentation at UNSW [University Of New South Wales, Sydney]. Director of the UNSW Sydney SMaRT Centre and a Eureka Prize winner [considered the pinnacle of scientific achievement in ustralia], Professor Sahajwalla was also awarded the PLuS Alliance prize for innovation in 2017.
BITTU SAHGALSEEKING SANCTUARY
In kinship with wildlife, with nature, with the air we breathe Bittu Sahgal shares his lifetime’s camaraderie with the environment
