MELBOURNE, 4 June, 2023: Get ready to attend and enjoy the captivating ‘NGV Indian Community Day’ on 24 June, 2023, for five hours, 11am – 4pm. The event is National Gallery of Victoria’s specially curated program for the fastest growing Indian community in Victoria and Australia, for whole families filled with art, dance, food, music and hands-on activities. Some of the programs on the day are as follows:
DRAWING ACTIVITY WITH GEORGIA MORGAN (Sat 24 Jun, 11am–4pm)
Draw alongside some of the NGV’s most treasured works in the Level 2 International Art Gallery in a drawing activity for all ages led by Tamil-Australian artist Georgia Morgan.
Georgia Morgan
Georgia Morgan is a Tamil-Australian multidisciplinary artist who works with large-scale installations, photography, video, painting and ceramics. Georgia’s practice is playful and draws inspiration from her Tamil heritage and the Hindu act of workshop, Puja, which involves offering physical objects such as gold, fruit or flowers to an image of a god.
CLASSICAL MUSIC PERFORMANCE BY JAY DABGAR GROUP (Sat 24 Jun, 11am 11.30am)
Under the stained-glass ceiling of the Great Hall, start your morning listening to Indian classical music by tabla player Jay Dabgar and Bansuri flautist Subramanya Sastry.
Jay Dabgar
Jay Dabgar comes from a family of tabla makers in India and was trained in the Benaras Gharaana style at the world renowned Saptak Institute in Ahmedabad. He won numerous accolades in India before moving to Australia in 2006. Since then, he has toured Australia with Grammy award winner Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Grammy nominee Ustad Shujaat Khan and National award winner Pandit Purbayan Chatterjee.
Subramanya Sastry
Highly acclaimed Bansuri flautist Subramanya Sastry has performed in over 500 concerts in India and around the world including Singapore, Malaysia, Mauritius, and Australia, where he has been living since 2017. Sastry has received numerous awards including Best Instrumentalist by the Central Government of India’s Ministry of Cultural Affairs.
Jay Dabgar Group will be offering a second performance in the Pierre Bonnard exhibition space at 12.30pm.
SPOTLIGHT ON INDIAN CREATIVES PANEL DISCUSSION (Sat 24 Jun, 11.45am–12.30pm)
Hosted by Manpreet Singh, this panel discussion will ask Indian creatives how they express their connections with India while living in Australia through their various creative practices which span film, visual, and culinary arts. The panel event will be introduced by NGV Curatorial.
Host: Manpreet Kaur Singh
Manpreet oversees several language programs at SBS. Professionally she strives to connect Punjabis with their rich Australian heritage and increase awareness in the wider Australian community of the numerous contributions made by Punjabis to Australia.
Speakers:
Kishwar Chowdhury
Kishwar Chowdhury rose to fame when she became the fan favourite finalist on the 13th season of MasterChef Australia. She went on to train under Michelin star chef Masahiko Yomoda at Ishizuka before releasing her first menu through a residency at hatted restaurant, Tonka. Since then, the Australia chef of Bengali heritage travels the world showcasing her cuisine.
Mitu Bhowmick Lange AM
Mitu Bhowmick Lange AM is an Indian-Australian filmmaker, film producer and founding director of Mindblowing Films. Credited for integrating Indian films to mainstream Australian cinemas, Mitu is the leading distributor of Indian films in Australia, NZ and Fiji as well as founder and director of Indian Film Festival of Melbourne – the largest annual celebration of Indian Cinema outside India.
Anu Kumar
Photographer Anu Kumar often uses her practice to understand her identity as a woman born in India and raised in Australia. Her works are on display in Melbourne Now at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia.
This panel discussion is Auslan Interpreted.
DJ SET BY DJ ASH (Sat 24 Jun, 12pm–4pm)
DJ Ash creates upbeat music that fuses Indian folk traditions, the musical innovations of the Punjabi diaspora, and western pop. Combining Bhangra, Bollywood, Hindi, Punjabi and hip-hop styles, the resulting sound is fun and unforgettable.
Enjoy a DJ set from DJ Ash in the Garden from 12PM and the Great Hall from 2:45PM.
JUGALBANDI INDIAN CLASSICAL DANCE (Sat 24 Jun, 12.45pm–1.15pm)
n this colourful performance, four of India’s leading classical dance forms – Kathak, Kuchipudi, Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam – will take to the stage together to tell a story choreographed by Sridevi Gopinath.
Classical dance is an ancient and celebrated cultural tradition in India which has evolved from the religious art featured in temples. Dances enact spiritual stories from Hindu mythology and are acted out through percussive footwork and emotive expressions. Each dance form represents the culture of a different region of India.
TOUR: INDIAN ART HIGHLIGHTS
Explore highlights of the NGV Collection with NGV Senior curator of Asian Art Wayne Crothers and NGV Curatorial Project Officer of Asian Art, Sunita Lewis in these 20-minute tours at 1.00pm & 2.15pm. See vibrant Indian jewellery, textiles and artwork and disvover the stories behind them.
Meet: Level 1 Asian Art Galleries
BOLLYWOOD DANCE PERFORMANCES
Get up and dance in the Great Hall with Sapphire Dance as they recreate the drama and excitement of some of Indian cinema’s most iconic moments in two vibrant Bollywood dances and workshops created especially for Indian Community Day.
This activity is suitable for all ages and no prior dancing experience is necessary.
FILM SCREENING PRESENTED BY THE INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL OF MELBOURNE (Sat 24 Jun, 1.30pm)
The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) is the largest annual celebration of Indian cinema outside of India. This Indian Community Day, families can sit back and relax in the NGV Clemenger Auditorium to a family friendly screening of a film selected by IFFM founder and director Mitu Bhowmick Lange AM.
SIGNATURE DISHES BY KISHWAR CHOWDHURY (Sat 24 Jun, 11am–4pm)
Evoking the scents and sounds of the streets of India, Australia-Bengali chef and MasterChef finalist, Kishwar Chowdhury has created two bespoke dishes especially for Indian Community Day available from Gallery Kitchen and Great Hall.
The Bombay Grilled Sandwich
Famous in the streets of Mumbai, the Bombay Sandwich is three layers of thickly buttered white bread with coriander chimmichuri, sliced potatoes, (beetroot), tomato, cheese and a special Bombay masala spice blend, grilled and then topped with grated cheese and deep fried chickpea vermicelli. Served with a spicy tomato relish.
The Calcutta Cannoli
These Crispy cannolis are half-piped with two fillings that are a play on much loved Indian desserts – A golden latte spiced crème patisserie and orange blossom ricotta Malai.
Kishwar Chowdhury
Kishwar rose to fame when she became the fan favorite finalist on the 13th season of MasterChef Australia. She went on to train under Michelin star chef Masahiko Yomoda at Ishizuka before releasing her first menu through a residency at hatted restaurant, Tonka. Since then, the Australia chef of Bengali heritage travels the world showcasing her cuisine.
Indulge in an additional selection of Indian food and beverage, available from Gallery Kitchen and Great Hall.
