Indian Autumn

The 24th edition of Europali started on October 4 and will continue till January 26.

It is festive season not only in India but also in faraway Belgium,where the music and movements of India are headlining Europalia International a biennial multicultural festival that,since 1969,has highlighted one invited countrys cultural heritage. The 24th edition of Europali started on October 4 and will continue till January 26. Around 450 events are spread across 100 venues in Belgium and its neighbouring countries.

On the cultural calendar are music,art,photography,cinema,theatre,dance and fashion that celebrate issues ranging from the omnipresence of the body in art and the rituals surrounding water to the colorful,even garish,world of Bollywood. The festival has been organised in collaboration with the Ministry of External Affairs,the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) and its partners.

While Belgian contemporary artist Johan Muyle presents Indian Studio,inspired by painted Bollywood posters,the Indomania section looks at how India inspires contemporary artists and will present commissioned works by two Belgian artists Max Pinckers and Hans Op de Beeck,who visited Mumbai and Hampi respectively for their works.

An art walk titled Water will explore the myths and realities of water from a European context,and will take place around Grand Curtius,on the banks of the Meuse River. The exhibiting artists here are Subodh Gupta,Atul Bhalla,Dayanita Singh and Ravi Agarwal. Commissioned works by three Indian artists in residence in Liège,Srinivasa Prasad,Asim Waqif and Navin Thomas,are also a part of the showcase.

The event also includes about 50 concerts by prominent names such as Amjad Ali Khan,Gundecha Brothers,Sudha Raghunathan and L Subramaniam,to folk performance such as by the Siddhi Gomas or Black Sufis of Gujarat,to contemporary ones such as Charanjit Singh of Acid House fame.

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