Insurgency And The Artist

Vinay Lal in conversation with Jerry Pinto
Art

Vinay Lal’s book “Insurgency and The Artist” explores not merely how Indian printmakers and artists responded to the freedom struggle but rather how the art they fashioned invoked their own conception of the nation, their sense of the past, and the contours of the movement for India?s emancipation from the yoke of colonial oppression.

Wednesday, 22nd February 2023

Mountain Tales : Love and Loss in the Municipality of Castaway Belongings

Saumya Roy in conversation with Sumana Ramanan
Discussion
Our next Literature Live! Evenings features the book “Mountain Tales : Love and Loss in the Municipality of Castaway Belongings”.
The author of the book, Saumya Roy, will be live in conversation with journalist Sumana Ramanan. The in-person event will take place at Title Waves, Bandra on Thursday, 29th September 2022 at 6 pm.
Thursday, 29th September 2022

Capture The Dream : The Many Lives of Captain C.P. Krishnan Nair

Bachi Karkaria in conversation with Carol Andrade
Discussion
Our next Literature Live! Evenings features the book “Capture The Dream : The Many Lives of Captain C.P. Krishnan Nair”.
The author of the book, Bachi Karkaria, will be live in conversation with Carol Andrade, Journalism Educator. The in-person event will take place at Title Waves, Bandra on Monday, 2nd May 2022 at 6 pm.
Monday, 2nd May 2022

Atal Bihari Vajpayee

Sagarika Ghose in conversation with Sanjay Jha
Discussion
Sagarika’s book “Atal Bihari Vajpayee” is a biography on the former Indian Prime Minister and is based on interviews by the award winning journalist with Mr. Vajpayee’s closest aides and confidantes.
Tuesday, 29th March 2022 TO Friday, 29th April 2022

Safdar Hashmi was a playwright and director, best known for his work with stirring political street theatre. In fact, he was killed on January 1,1989 while performing the street play, Halla Bol (Raise Your Voice!) by a gang of political goons. Three days later, his wife Moloyshree went with Hashmi’s Janam troupe to the location of the murder, and in a singular act of bravery, completed the performance.

Literature Live! will launch a book on his life, appropriately titled Halla Bol: The Death and Life of Safdar Hashmi by Sudhanva Deshpande, on Thursday, March 5 at 6.30 PM at NCPA’s Experimental Theatre. At the launch, Sameera Iyengar will be in conversation with Naseeruddin Shah, Moloyashree Hashmi and the author. There will also be a presentation of Jana Natya Manch’s classic play Machine.

Seating, as usual, is on a first come, first served basis, so do come early.

Thursday, 5th March 2020

Sebastian & Sons

By TM Krishna
Book Launch

The next Literature Live! Evening features one of the best known names in Indian Classic Music.

T M Krishna is not only a wonderful musician, he is also an iconoclast who challenges many of the orthodoxies which had a stranglehold on the system. So whether you agree with him or not, you will find his ideas always highly stimulating.

We will launch his new book, Sebastian & Sons, A Brief History of Mridangam Makers on Monday, February 24th at 6.30 PM at Mahalaxmi’s G5A. He will be in conversation with Sumana Ramanan, journalist and student of Hindustani vocal music.

Seating, as usual, is on a first come, first served basis so do come early. And please allow some extra time for our truly horrendous traffic.

Monday, 24th February 2020

Living Nature

By Sudhakar Solomonraj
Book Launch
Friday, 14th February 2020

Singing Gandhi’s India: Music and Sonic Nationalism

By Lakshmi Subramanian
Book Launch

Literature Live! Evenings are not generally associated with music, but our next event features the launch of a book on Mahatma Gandhi’s favourite songs and bhajans.

In Singing Gandhi’s India: Music and Sonic Nationalism, the author Lakshmi Subramanian explores the Mahatma’s relationship with music, and how he made it a powerful tool to reach out to people and instill in them the idea of a secular nationalism.

Anil Dharker will be in a brief conversation with the author who will also make a presentation, but the evening will really belong to music with songs rendered by well-known singers Dr Prasanna Mhaisalkar and Pradeep Udhas.

Seating, as usual, is on a first come, first served basis, so do come early for this enthralling evening.

Tuesday, 4th February 2020

Sridevi : The Eternal Screen Goddess

Karan Johan in conversation with Anil Dharker
Book Launch

The next Literature Live! Event will feature the launch of a book on Hindi cinema’s superstar Sridevi. Following the launch of the book, its author Satyarth Nayak, Karan Johar and Boney Kapoor will take part in a discussion chaired by Anil Dharker.

Do come — but note the unusual timing. Th event will take place at 2.30 PM, but since 22nd December is a Sunday, you don’t have to miss work (only your afternoon nap!) Seating at Taj Land’s End hotel’s Salcette room will be on a first come, first served basis. The launch will be followed by high tea.

Sunday, 22nd December 2019

Watching You

Bettina Gracias
Theatre
Literature Live! goes to the theatre!
Those of you who attend the annual Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai LitFest, will be aware of the Sultan Padamsee Awards which are presented during the festival to the best new play scripts. The award attracts entries from all over the world, entries notable not just for their quantity, but quality too. Choosing the best is quite a task for the jury.
A couple of the prize-winning entries have already been staged in the city. We now bring a Play Reading of one of the newer winning entries, with prominent theatre actors doing the honours. Please see the attached card for details.
Monday, 26th August 2019

Awakening Bharat Mata

Swapan Dasgupta
Book Launch
The essence of a democracy is that a range of political views from the Left to the Right can co-exist and engage in civilised discussion to understand each other’s viewpoints. Unfortunately, this is not the case in our country where a cacophony of voices drown out sensible debate. In this scenario, we don’t get to understand the political philosophy which forms the basis of any ideology.
This is particularly so of the Right, which is why Literature Live! is happy to launch Awakening Bharat Mata, a collection of essays by many authoritative voices, put together by well-known columnist, Swapan Dasgupta. He will be in conversation with Manjeet Kripalani, Co-Founder of the think tank, Gateway House.
Monday, 22nd July 2019

The City and the Sea

Raj Kamal Jha
Book Launch
The next Literature Live! Evening features the launch of a novel described by Nobel laureate Amartya Sen as “A book you must read.” The City and the Sea takes off from the night of a horrific rape in Delhi, leaving behind ‘the story that was’, to set out in search of ‘a story that could have been’ in a gripping narrative that is both disturbing and heart-breaking.
The author, Raj Kamal Jha, is the Chief Editor of The Indian Express, an unusual combination of someone who excels in a day job rooted in fact, and in his spare time revels in fiction.
I will be conversation with him on Friday, July 12 at 6.30 PM at Sophia College’s Convention Centre. The venue can be reached from either Warden Road or Pedder Road.
Seating, as usual, is on a first come, first served basis, so do come early.
Friday, 12th July 2019
The next Literature Live! Evening features the Yuva Sahitya Akademi winner Manu Pillai. His new book which will be launched at the event, has the intriguing title, The Courtesan, The Mahatma & The Italian Brahmin. What is it about? You have to come to G5A on Wednesday, June 26 at 6.30 PM to find out. For those of you who haven`t yet been there, G5A is  the terrific new venue in Laxmi Mills Estate, Shakti Mills Lane, Near Famous Studio, Mahalaxmi. The author will be in conversation with writer Amrita Mahale.
Manu Pillai`s previous books are the award winning The Ivory Throne: Chronicles of the House of Travancore and Rebel Sultans. Manu also writes a wonderful weekly column in Mint Lounge.
Seating, as usual, is on a first come, first served basis, so do come early.
Wednesday, 26th June 2019

Gun Island

Amitav Ghosh
Book Launch

Literature Live! will launch Amitav Ghosh‘s much anticipated new novel, Gun Island on Monday, June 17, at 6.30 pm at Royal Opera House.

Gun Island has as diverse a cast of characters as you can imagine, from a Brooklynbased dealer in rare books to a king cobra in Kolkata. This is a story about a world in which creatures and beings of every kind have been torn loose from their natural habitats by the catastrophic process of climate change.
Amitav Ghosh will be in conversation with the internationally acclaimed film-maker Shekhar Kapur.
Seating as usual, is on a first come first serve basis, so do come early.
Monday, 17th June 2019

The Lives of Freda

Andrew Whitehead
Book Launch

Now that our elections are drawing to a close, Literature Live! Evenings move away from poll-related books to something completely different.

Andrew Whitehead, the former BBC India correspondent and BBC News presenter, has written a biography of Freda Houlston Bedi. Hers is a fascinating life: after marrying a handsome young Sikh in Oxford in 1933, this Englishwoman became an Indian in the true sense, becoming a champion of Indian nationalism, even serving time in jail as a Satyagrahi. In 1947 she joined a women`s militia to defend Srinagar from invading Pakistani tribesmen. In the 1950s, she became a Buddhist and organised help for Tibetan refugees, also setting up a school for young lamas. Later, she became the first ever Western woman to receive full ordination as a Tibetan Buddhist nun.

Andrew Whitehead will be joined by well known actor Kabir Bedi, Freda`s son, in a discussion chaired by columnist, Malavika Sangghvi.
The event will be held at Sophia College`s Convention Centre on Sunday, May 26 at 6.30 PM. The venue can be reached from Warden Road.
Seating, as usual, is on a first come, first served basis, so do come early.
Sunday, 26th May 2019

Democracy On The Road

Ruchir Sharma
Book Launch

The next Literature Live! Evening launches a book which was 20 years in the making. Ruchir Sharma, New York Times best-selling author, followed elections across every major state of the country over the last two decades, his journeys adding up to a full lap around the earth! The resulting book, Democracy on the Road, takes us close to the action, offering an intimate view inside the lives and minds of politicians and voters alike.

Ruchir Sharma is Chief Global Strategist at Morgan Stanley and has been on several international lists as one of the most influential people in the world. He will be in conversation with Shobhaa De, best-selling author and feisty columnist, at NCPA`s Godrej Theatre on Wednesday, May 15 at 6.30 PM. Seating, as usual, is on a first come, first served basis, so do come early.

Wednesday, 15th May 2019

The Election Commission has come in for a lot of flak recently for its spineless handling of incendiary and provocative speeches made by powerful politicians. It wasn’t always so: there was a time, starting from the first CEC, TN Seshan, when politicians feared the EC’s wrath if they stepped out of line.

Why have things come to such a pass? Hopefully Navin Chawla, the much respected former Chief Election Commissioner, can throw light on how the system works and how it can be manipulated. Literature Live! is happy to announce the launch of Mr Chawla’s  book “Every Vote Counts: The Story of India’s Elections” on Friday, May 10 at 6.30 PM at the Convention Centre, Sophia College, Pedder Road ( approach also available from Warden Road).

Seating, as usual, is on a first come, first served basis, so do come early.

Friday, 10th May 2019

Have you heard of ‘Heartfulness’? Here`s your chance to know more about the concept when Literature Live! launches The Heartfulness Way by Kamlesh Patel and Joshua Pollock on Monday, May 6 at 6.30 PM at Crossword Bookstore, Kemp`s Corner.
At the same event, we will also launch Designing Destiny by Daaji Kamlesh Patel. It`s an intriguing title because conventional wisdom says destiny is destiny, and there`s nothing one can do about it, let alone design it!
So for a completely different Literature Live! Evening, with an enlightening conversation between authors and Vinod Advani, come to Crossword on Monday!

Monday, 6th May 2019