Ananda Sandhya: Madhumita Saha

Posted on July 31, 2008 by sudipta

AT ANANDA MANDIR Artists of the month

MADHUMITA SAHA
Madhumita will be accompanied on Tabla by her husband, the illustrious
Tabla Maestro
Pandit Samar Saha

On the harmonium, it will be our own and very talented
Sri Kedar Naphade
Who has accompanied all prominent vocalists from India for many years

As you can see, this one will be memorable event presented by ANANDA MANDIR

Please come and share this fabulous musical evening.
As usual, the ANANDA SANDHYA concert is FREE, Children come free. However, your kind donation is always graciously accepted.

Ananda Mandir is located on Cedar Grove Lane off Easton Avenue in Somerset, NJ.
For info, call Arun Bhowmik at 908-672-1452.

Cartoon of the week 2: Abstract Art

Posted on July 30, 2008 by sudipta

This cartoon was done for “Proma” a long time ago. Abstract art has always drawn the attention of humorists and cartoonist. This one exaggerates the abstractness to the extent that the artist himself does not have any clue regarding his own painting, not event it’s orientation. Many of us, the naive (read pseudo) art connoisseurs, think that abstract art – the art that does not represent any form that we are familiar to, is quite easy to render. Many of us consider them nothing but few blotches of paint and maybe some geometric patterns in an arrangement which does not resemble anything that we see in our daily lives. Hence, many pseudo-artists tend to declare themselves as artists by creating such absurd canvasses and trivialize the bewildered viewers as “uneducated an uncultured” brutes. This is true not only for fine arts, but also in those branches of art that thrive on abstractions and absurdity – like poetry, play, film, music and even short stories. Hence it is of utmost importance, that we make an attempt to train ourselves to be able to appreciate these art forms – to open up our minds to appreciate forms and colors and movements and sounds that are beyond our accustomed reality.

Bhajan Sandhya at Anandamandir

Posted on July 28, 2008 by sudipta

On the auspicious occasion of Janmashtami (Sunday, August 24, 2008), Anandamandir will be hosting a four hour long (3.00pm to 7.00pm) event of Bhajans and Bhakti Sangeet.

Musicians are invited to participate (singers, accompanists) in this great event and be a part of the Anandamandir community.
If you would be interested to participate, then please send an email to suranjanbc@hotmail.com by Thursday, July 31, 2008. With your help and support this will be an enchanting evening of Bhajan and Bhakti Sangeet.

Bangla E-Zines

Posted on July 23, 2008 by sudipta

The proliferation of internet and web technology has ushered in a new era in the publication of Bengali literary magazines. Any Bengali who has the slightest inclination towards Bangla literature must have been associated with some kind of “little magazine” related activity in some point of their life, be it writing, editing, publishing or even selling them to their patronizing clients. The thrill of seeing ones own writing in print fascinated them and hence whenever a few like minded folks got together, a visit to the printing press became obligatory. The smell of ink and the clanking of the printing machines was intoxicating to say the least – long hours were spent proof reading those smudgy newsprint and trying to pool in as much money they could by either begging the local business owners to insert an advertisement or by coughing up their own savings to pay the press owner. But the exponentially growing costs of paper and printing has often resulted in an untimely death of the magazine and hence the death of many literary dreams. Many of these talents also whither away just because they do not get the opportunity to be noticed by any of the leading print publications. Continue reading →

Cartoon of the Week: Quality of Art

Posted on July 22, 2008 by sudipta

Long time ago, I used to draw cartoons for some magazines like Proma (published in Kolkata), Udayan (published from NY), Sangbadik (also published from New York) and News India Times. I would like to share some of them with you. This cartoon was published in Proma few years ago. It is a take on art valuation. Let me know how you like it. In future weeks I’ll post one cartoon a week, from my old archives.

An Evening of Songs by Lopamudra Mitra

Posted on July 21, 2008 by sudipta

Dakshineswar Ramkrishna Sangha
Adyapeath, USA Foundation, Inc.
(A non-profit tax-exempt organization)
An Evening of Songs by Lopamudra Mitra &
Dance Recital by Nritya Creations
(A Fund Raising Event for Temple Fund)
Lopamudra Mitra, the most popular contemporary singer in Bengal today is
performing in New Jersey this summer!
Daughter of Late, Shree Pranab Mitra and Shreemati Sumita Mitra, she started
learning music from her father in childhood. Ranging from Rabindra Sangeet,
Indian Classical music, Bhajan and Nazrulgeeti, her versatility knows no
bounds. She ultimately found her platform in the songs based on poems of
renowned Bengali Poets. And that was her way to success. She performed all
over India with her new approach and won the music-lovers’ heart.
She won many awards for her unique dramatic style of singing, which is
fashioned with the classical aid and tenor voice quality. She won the prestigious
‘Bengal Film Journalist Award’ on her debut playback in the film ‘Sedin
Chaitramas’. Her album ‘Bhalobaste Balo’ was honoured as the best puja
album, best singer and album of the year in 2001. Her other album ‘Jhor Hole
Par!’ got the ‘ZEE MUSIC AWARD’ in 2005.

The scintillating creative dance performance of Nritya Creations will keep you
spellbound. Nritya Creations is the winner of First Prize in the Senior Category and Best
Choreographer Award at the 2008 Naya Andaz Dance Competition 2008.
Meena Basunag, the founder and Artistic Director of Nritya Creations
artistically blends various styles of Indian Classical dance such as Bharat
Natyam, Oddissi, Manipuri and Kathak with western contemporary forms such
as jazz and ballet and other cultural dance forms to create a unique and
wonderfully pleasing experience of sight and sound. Nritya Creations has also
won the Best Choreography and Best Performance Awards at the 2008 Naach
Revolution.

Home

Contacts:
Swapan Nandi (609) 235-9576 Pamela Ghosh (732) 516-0730
Keya Chatterjee (732) 369-6759 Anasua Biswas (732) 727-2621
Amitava Hazra (908) 874-6923 Kanika Mazumdar (732) 496-5216
Avijit Dasgupta (732) 548-6065 Madhumita Sinha (201) 796-5738
Tapan Dutta (732) 650-9513 Priya Bhattacharya (609) 799-7975
Uttarjyoti Banerjee (732) 767-0260 Santanu Chakraborty (732) 572-3650
On July 27th, 2008 at 4:00PM
Marlboro High School, 95 N Main Street, Marlboro, NJ 07746
Tickets: $100, $50, $35 & $25

DRSA, USA Foundation, Inc. (A Non-Profit Organization)
1190 Easton Avenue, Franklin Township, NJ 08873, USA
Phone: (732) 249-7077 E-mail: adyapeathusa@adyapeathusa.com Website: www.adyapeathusa.com

Rabindrasangeet Concert

Posted on July 16, 2008 by sudipta

It is our great pleasure to have The Famous Rabindra Sangeet Artist Pramita Mallick with us. We are organizing a Sangeet Anushthan for her honor on 20th of july (Sunday) at 5:30 pm. Please come and enjoy the evening with us.

Venue: 112 Monroe Ave, Edison, NJ 08820 (Sharmila & Sandip’s house )

Time: 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm
There will be no ticket for this Anushthan but your willing contribution for the artist will be appreciated.

Please call me if you need anymore information and forward this mail to your friends who are interested.

My phone # 908-4228-6650(home) 908-787-6590 (cell)

Email id dastandra@yahoo.com or tandra1975@yahoo.com

Hindusthani – Carnatic Vocal Music Jugalbandi

Posted on July 11, 2008 by sudipta

July 20th 2008 Sunday, 3 pm

Suggested Donation $10 per person, Sponsors – $50 per family

Ashvin Bhigendra, a leading male Carnatic musician is paired with Mitali Banerjee Bhawmik a leading female Hindisthani musician.

at 24 Scott drive Morganville, NJ 07751

Ashvin will be accompanied by Arun Ramamurthy on Violin and Suresh Ramachandran on Mridangam.

Mitali will be accompanied by Kedar Naphade on Harmonium and Amod Dandawate on Tabla.

For more details and directions etc.

Jayashree Suresh 732- 251-7085 rsuresh59@yahoo.com

Bangamela – The Festival for the Midwestern Bengalis

Posted on July 10, 2008 by sudipta

Just as the excitement and euphoria of the recently concluded BangaSammelan (Toronto) dies down, Bengalis living in the middle western states are preparing to get into a festival of their own – Bangamela.

The 10th annual Bangamela 2008 will be held in Columbus OH this year from July 18 to 20. The event is hosted by COBCA (Central Ohio Bengali Cultural Association). Just as Bangasammelan (NABC) is franchised and sponsored by CAB (Cultural Association of Bengal), Bangamela is managed and controlled at the high level by MABA or Mid America Bengali Association. Without going into the details about the genesis of Bangamela, it suffices to say that the Bengalis of the mid west felt that they needed to have a festival of their own, a festival that is located closer to where they live and is easily accessible compared to NABC that tends to get most of their attendees from the densely populated (with Bengalis) east and west coast states. Continue reading →

NY/NJ BENGALI

About Bengali Life in New York, New Jersey and the World

Monthly Archives: July 2008