Mumbai feasts on festivals

Even as a four-day long literature festival winds up, the city, so smitten with cultural activities, is soon to host several performance arts-based festivals. Going by the impressive turnout at the Mumbai Litfest, one can easily say that Mumbai’s love affair with arts and culture is an ongoing process.

Now, classical music lovers can lend an ear to some of the best of chamber music at the bi-annual ‘Arties festival’.

The festival will feature international musicians who have played at global chamber music festivals with some of the greatest instrumentalists and ensembles in the world. This year’s edition of the festival features six musicians including a string quartet, a double bass player and a pianist. Leading the pack will be Gauthier Herrmann, the artistic director of the festival and cellist. Other musicians who will feature in this year’s festival are pianist Samuel Parent, Yann Dubost the double bassist of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, principal violinist and leader of Ensemble La Follia Hugues Borsarello, the leader of the second violins of the Orchestre National de France violinist Laurent Manaud-Pallas and Nicolas Bone who plays chamber music all over the world and is the principal violinist of Orchestre National de France. Khushroo Suntook, chairman of NCPA, says, “The Arties concerts are creating a new standard of excellence in chamber music being played in Mumbai. Through this endeavour, it is our aim to present high quality chamber music on a regular basis.”

There’s also the second edition of the ‘Centrestage Theatre Festival’ that will feature 14 premiering plays in four languages, including two international productions. It will also feature films on theatre, outdoor performances, theatre appreciation workshops, a street theatre competition and more. This multilingual theatre festival will present nine English, two Marathi, two Hindi and two Gujarati plays. Mindwalking is slated to be the opening play and the closing one will be Lady Swettenham, produced by Malaysian and UK theatre groups respectively. Deepa Gahlot, head of programming (Theatre and Film), NCPA, says, “Organising a festival which will exclusively showcase premiering plays is  interesting as well as challenging; ‘Centrestage’ has paved its way into the cultural consciousness of the city and is undoubtedly here to stay. Plays from last year here have won in festivals all over in India.”

Also, the third edition of the three-day-long Sufi festival ‘Sama’a: The Mystic Ecstasy’ opens on with a documentary based on the life of Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi, followed by a Sufi Gospel Presentation based on Poetry and Music by Sonam Karla. The second day will see the famous Wadali Brothers presenting a Sufiana composition; while the third day will feature Sama Ayins: Whirling Prayer Ceremonies by Konya Turkish Tasawwuf ensemble from Turkey. This event will be presented in collaboration with Ministry Of Culture and Tourism, Republic of Turkey. “Sufi music seeks to unite listeners with the Divine. The pain of separation from the Creator is at the core of Sufi lyrics and music. It is loved and cherished by many, across the world,” says Dr Suvarnalata Rao, head of programming (Indian Music), NCPA, adding, “Sufi music has a different flavour attached to it and we would like our audiences to experience this form of music of the ‘soul’, by the ‘soul’ and for the ‘soul’.”

When & where?
Arties Festival at on Nov 8 at 7 pm and Nov 10 at 7pm. Sama’a from Nov 11-13. Centrestage from Nov 17-27. All at NCPA.