Program

"Art was my dearest friend.
To draw was trouble and safety, adventure and freedom.
In that four-cornered kingdom of paper, I lived as I pleased.
This is the story of a girl and her sketchbook."

Drawing from conflict, art and reportage, artist and writer Molly Crabapple's work weaves together the psychological and physical horrors of war through illustrations. Crabapple's contribution to Brothers of the Gun: A Memoir of the Syrian War by Marwan Hisham, brings to life a ground-level reflection of the Syrian revolution. In her memoir, Drawing Blood, Crabapple masterfully engages with how we think about art, sex, politics and survival in our wrought times. In conversation with Nermeen Shaikh, Crabapple discusses the beauty and chaos of her art and its intended impact.

Celebrated actor Madhur Jaffrey, who is also the iconic ambassador of Indian cuisine, talks of her many lives and the intensity with which she has lived them. From her early years in New Delhi, India, to her association with film makers Merchant - Ivory and Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, to her encounters with the legends of theater and film, she tells us of her intertwined lives and of the theater of food and the flavor of memories. A fascinating session with the ninety year old actor-author in conversation with Sanjoy K. Roy

Writer Martin Puchner’s book, The Written Word: How Literature Shaped History, is a fascinating account of how great texts and technologies have shaped cultures, civilizations and altered human history. In a captivating conversation with Sanjoy K. Roy, Puchner explores how literature is central to the development of religions, politics and nations while also playing a decisive role in how we view the world.

A series of multivocal poetry readings where different rhythms and styles converge in a joyous celebration of imaginative possibility. Pulitzer prize winning poet, essayist and literary critic Vijay Seshadri poetry collection, That Was Now, This Is Then, weaves through the paradoxes of time and space offering refuge in emotionally turbulent times. Sahitya Akademi Award winning poet and author Arundhathi Subramaniam’s poetry collection, Love Without A Story, celebrates an expanding kinship: of passion and friendship, mythic quest and modern-day longing, in a world animated by dialogue and dissent, delirium and silence. In conversation with celebrated writer Nandana Dev Sen whose latest, Acrobat, is a radiant collection of poetry about womanhood, intimacy, and the body politics that together evokes the arc of an ordinary life.

Mathematician and novelist Manil Suri's latest book, The Big Bang of Numbers: How to Build the Universe Using Only Math, embarks on a mathematical origin story spanning the universe. An inspired and insightful journey through the fundamental mathematical concepts that form the cornerstones of our existence, Suri's visionary work takes us on a riveting ride to infinity and beyond. In conversation with academic Patrick Honner.

In the face of cultural obliteration the living memory of Tibetan culture and spiritual practices remains strong and resilient. A session that looks at the sacred heritage that the Tibetan diaspora carries with them.

In conversation with author and journalist Seema Sirohi, politician and acclaimed author Shashi Tharoor navigates the tensions and harmonies within the paradoxes of India. India’s intellectual landscape is a melting pot of assorted beliefs and world-views that produces a provocative mix of thought, philosophies, and ideologies. In Tharoor’s words “the idea of India is of one land embracing many” where ancient wisdom intersects with modern ideas, contending beliefs thrive and diverse perspectives converge.