A discussion on 'Ebrahim Alkazi: Holding Time Captive' with the author Amal Allana
DATE: 26th July 2024
TIME: 6:00 PM
VENUE: KCC
Asia Society India Centre, in collaboration with the Kolkata Centre for Creativity, presents a conversation with Amal Allana, theatre director and author, who has recently released a compelling biography of her father, Ebrahim Alkazi. Her book ‘Ebrahim Alkazi: Holding Time Captive’ offers a fantastic account of Alkazi, a giant of twentieth century theatre and visual arts in India, and his revolutionary contributions to arts and culture emerging from the country. Situating the narrative around the cultural landscape in India between the 1940s to the 2000s, Allana charts the journey of her father’s quest for a more interdisciplinary approach to the arts in the subcontinent. Ebrahim Alkazi’s ideas transformed the theatre movement across major centres of New Delhi, Bombay, Kolkata, and his time as the director of the National School of Drama saw many new experimental projects take shape. Allana brings a personal perspective to the visionary that was Ebrahim Alkazi, and her objective gaze towards her father’s dedication to the arts provides a wonderful insight into the life he led, the work he pursued and the influence each of these areas had on the other.
The book discussion will see Amal Allana in conversation with Suman Mukhopadhyay, theatre director and filmmaker. The session will also include dramatic readings of the book ‘Ebrahim Alkazi: Holding Time Captive’ by Sonam Kalra and Joy Sengupta.
This programme is part of Asia Society India’s Library Series, which includes interviews and features on books and authors who offer new ways of understanding the world around us – across fiction, non-fiction and analysis.
