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This site is about the Bengali life and experience in the US east coast and talks about any global topic that interests the global Bengali.
Recent Posts Tagged With 'arts-culture'
NJ Independent South Asian Cine Fest 2009: A Brief Report
The three day long 3rd Annual New Jersey Independent South Asian Cine Fest (NJISACF) concluded on Sunday, October 11, 2009 at the Rutgers Busch Campus Student Center. The festival does not have the clout that some of the other major films festi...
Herta Muller Awarded the 2009 Nobel Prize in Literature
Herta Muller, “who, with the concentration of poetry and the frankness of prose, depicts the landscape of the dispossessed” won the 2009 Nobel Prize in literature. Ms. Müller, 56, emigrated to Germany in 1987 after years of persecu...
New Jersey Durga Puja 2009 : A Review
Finally the annual Durga Puja celebrations are over. I was mostly present at the Kallol pujo but also paid (no pun intended) short visits at the Bharat Sevashram Sangha and Anandamandir. Kallol, just like the previous year, had a full house and ...
Durga Puja and Cultural Events: The 2009 New Jersey Lineup
In New Jersey, Durga Puja is a special time when the festive mood brings with it a flurry of entertainment and cultural programs across the state. This year too the line up looks very promising although the spirits have dampened a bit due to the...
Mahalaya in New Jersey - A Tradition of Our Own
Mahalaya in Bengal is synonymous to the seventy year old radio musical “Mahisashur Mardini” written by Bani Kumar and composed by Pankaj Mallik. Over the years this has become a Bengali tradition to wake up at 4.30am on Majalaya day ...
Jadiyo Galpo - A Review
Subrata Ghosh, an emiment theater critic from Kolkata, recently reviewed Theater Workshop’s production “Jadiyo Galpo” in Desh patrika. The play is directed by Ashok Mukhopadhyay. “Jadiyo Galpo” is the play that w...
Goodbye NABC 2009 - Welcome NABC 2010
On July 4th, Saturday night, the curtains came down upon the NABC 2009 at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center. But as the NABC lights faded out in the West Coast, Kallol of New Jersey got into full gear to herald in the NABC of 2010 to be he...
Community News Bites: NABC 2009 and Urhalpool
North America Bengali Conference (NABC) 2009 kicks off at the San Jose Convention Center on July 2nd. The biggest Bengali event of the year will run till July 4th and will feature some of the best performers from India, Bangladesh and USA. Urhal...
Banaprastha - Only if the message could be clearer
A Review by Amitava Sen As I entered the theatre the house was full and audibly expectant; as the play ended crowd was visibly appreciative and a few even ecstatic which was quite an achievement and cause for satisfaction for the group of people...
Habib Tanvir : The Legend Lives On
Very few theatre personalities in India have become legends in their life time. Habib Tanvir was one of them. Born as Habib Ahmed Khan on September 1, 1923 in Raipur, Chattisgarh, Habib Tanvir has reinvented Indian folk theater and brought it ou...
Community News Bites: Banaprastha and Urhalpool
ECTA’s latest production “Banaprastha” premiered at the Edison Valley Playhouse on May 16th in front of a full house. The play was very well received by the audience as you can see in the accompanying video. The second show w...
Search for Idols
The reality TV show “American Idol” has triggered a new trend - Idol search! TV channels all over the world are searching for idols - or talents. This search is not only limited to the television screen, but it has also proliferated ...
Banaprastha Rehearsals in Final Phase
After a long preparation phase, the end is now in sight. In two weeks time, ECTA will be launching their latest production, “Banaprastha” or “The Retirement”. ECTA’s play have always generated interest amongst the t...
Banaprastha and AIDS - The Genesis
I think it was in 2004 when I met Pranay Dutta, an AIDS activist from Calcutta who was on a world tour attending several AIDS conferences in Europe, Asia and America. Pranay Dutta was then (and I understand he still is) the secretary of Sonata F...
The House Formula
I kind of like Gregory House, MD. And who doesn’t? House is one of the most popular TV shows that has catapulted Fox network to lead the popularity ratings (along with 24 and other shows). The quirky, obnoxious and ill mannered medical gen...
Community News Bites: Sudhindra Dutta Award and San Francisco Asian American Film Festival
Gautam Dutta Receives Sudhindra Dutta Award On February 15, 2009, “Janmadin” Literary Magazine of Baharampur Murshidabad, presented Gautam Dutta (of New Jersey) with the prestigious Sudhindra Dutta award for his collection of poems &...
Urhalpool Inaugurated at the 2009 Kolkata Book Fair
Few months ago I wrote about the debut of a new Bengali webzine, Urhalpool.com. The magazine has now reached new heights with the introduction of the first hard copy version at the 2009 Kolkata Book Fair. On Saturday 7th February 2009, at 6PM, ...
Mahasweta Devi Nominated for the 2009 Man Booker Prize
On Wednesday (18th March), fourteen authors across the world were been named as the contenders for the Man Booker International prize. The long list of writers includes the name of prolific veteran Bengali writer Mahasweta Devi. Sir V. S. Na...
Bhoomi : The Modern Voice of Bengal
Bengali music found its new voice through band music that has recently proliferated across the land and one of the pioneers of this music is “Bhoomi” the legendary band from Kolkata. The key to Bhoomi’s success is their use of ...
“Jadio Galpo”: Globalization in Bengali Theatre
Theatre Workshop, the leading theater company/group of Kolakata, will be premiering their new production “Jadio Galpo” at the Academy of Fine Arts theater in Kolkata at 3.00pm on Saturday February 7th. The play is written by yours truly a...
Slumdog Millionaire: A Mumbai Two Crore Opera
When you watch Danny Boyle’s latest rags-to-riches fairy tale “Slumdog Millionaire”, you’ll experience an emotional roller-coaster ride that only Mumbai can offer. The city that never sleeps, the city that is in the center of...
Dhoop Chhaya : Yet Another Godfather Remake
Like me, if any of you watch ETV Bangla in your homes, you must be watching this new tele-serial “Dhoop Chhaya” or “Sun and Shade” the latest remake of “The Godfather”. Since Francis Ford Coppola made his classic m...
Urhalpool: A New Bengali/English Webzine
A new Bengali/English webzine, Urhalpool, has been launched by the local New Jersey group Shrishti. The magazine is edited by Gautam Dutta and the first issue consists of contributions from some great writers like Sunil Ganguly, Taslima Nasreen, Sre...
BSL : Bangla as a Second Language
I had often been requested to write plays for our children. With our kids in mind, few years ago I wrote a play titled BSL or Bangla as a Second Language. BSL is a hilarious short play for children (pre-teens, teens, young adults) of Bengali origin. ...
Another Successful Durga Puja by Kallol of NJ
After three days of hectic scrambling, managing thousands of registrants, the blaring music from the entertainers and the long dinner lines, Kallol Pujo celebrations have finally come to an end. Although many skeptics were not sure about how the Puj...
Cartoon of the week 7: Durga Puja Chaanda Collection Service
In several of my earlier blog articles, I wrote about our sensitivity to paying Durga Puja contributions (popularly known as Chaanda). The Puja organizers have tried to be innovative in extracting (no I never said extorting) the funds from the pocket...
Big B’s Blog
Blogging by celebrities is a trend that has caught on for quite some time now. But in most cases the celebrities use the blog to market their latest products, films, music, whatever. Blogging regularly, in the midst of their busy schedule, is quite a...
Cartoon of the Week 6: The Pujo Entertainment
Entertainment events are the major attractions of any Durga Puja festival. The Puja organizers spend thousands of dollars to get the most popular artistes from India as well as from the local talent pool. It is the star entertainers that pull in the ...
ECTA Looking for Actors and Actresses
ECTA (Ethnomedia Center for Theater Arts) is looking for actors and actresses for their upcoming production to be staged in late November 2008. Previous acting experience is nice to have but not necessary. Love for theater and performing arts is a mu...
Cartoon of the Week 5: Pujo Cartoon
Durga Puja festival has always been a great source of inspiration to me as a cartoonist. I have drawn several cartoons related to this festival and the way we celebrate it in our adopted homeland. Last week I posted one on the “Chanda” is...
