For the implementation of a Foundation Project by IFA that aims to study the prevalent practices of Chalant music in and around the town of Kishtwar, identifying it as a marker of cultural fluidity between the Chenab Valley and the Kashmir region. Alongside this, the project will analyse, document and contextualise the music and poetry of Janbaaz Doolwal, who is associated with the genesis of this musical style. The outcomes of this project will be a 30-40 minute high-resolution audio package and a film based on the music and poetry of Doolwal. The Project Coordinator’s deliverables to IFA, along with the final reports, will be the film, the audio package of musical performances, and audiovisual documentation from the field. Project funds will pay for travel and living, hire of equipment, contract fees and materials.
For the making of a short animation film that looks at the life of a cat and her kitten, in Downtown Srinagar, the old part of this city in Kashmir. The film will be composed with over 6000 drawings, pushing the boundaries of practice for the artist who is a graphic novelist and writer. The outcome of this project will be a 15 minute animation film. The grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final report will be the film, process images and high resolution film stills. Grant funds will pay for equipment hire, professional fees, local conveyance and an accountant’s fee.
For the implementation of a Foundation Project by IFA, which will explore the political and cultural history of the Shina and Dard communities in Gurez, situating them within the larger sociopolitical history of Jammu and Kashmir via collective memories and identities. The outcomes of this project will be a photo book and an exhibition. The Project Coordinator’s deliverables to IFA with the final report will be the photo book and audiovisual documentation from the field. Project funds will pay for contract fees, travel and living, photo book and exhibition, printing, books and library subscription and equipment purchase.
For research to study the ways in which poets and rebels contemplate the question of the self through idioms of ‘love’, in the current sociocultural and political context in Kashmir. By exploring the plurality of love depicted through images and literary expressions, the project will focus on the works of two poets—Agha Shahid Ali and Rahman Rahi—and visuals of a rebel leader. It will attempt to delve into the ways in which the discourse on love in literary sources and political practices could be employed in writing the cultural history of contemporary Kashmir. The outcome will be an essay and a photo-essay. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be an essay and a photoessay. Grant funds will pay for an honorarium, travel, food and living costs, stationery, book purchase, photocopying, professional fees, internet subscription charges and an accountant’s fee.
For a film exploring the musical traditions of the Old Town in Ladakh as a representative of life and connections between generations, through oral histories, archival data, investigation of Monastic festivals and interviews with young contemporary musicians.
For research and the making of an animation film on the miniature paintings made in the Pahari tradition displayed at the Amar Mahal Palace, Jammu. The paintings tell the story of Nala-Damayanti and are based on a twelfth century epic poem called the Naishadiyacharita. The paintings will be studied alongside the corresponding verses of poetry.
