For research into the narratives of Indian seafarers who left home as labour aboard British ships in the early part of the 20th century. Engaging with these stories of sailors and with a focus on the underrepresented maritime history of South India, the research will investigate into notions of home, belonging and identity for the seafarers. The outcome of the project will be a script towards a performance. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA along with the final report will be an essay on the methodological approach and process, and a copy of the script. Grant funds will pay for travel and living, purchase of books, materials, stationery, research assistant’s fee, honorarium, library and archive fees and an accountant’s fee.
For the creation of a performance exploring the history of the ‘Egyptian’ neighbourhood in Jayanagar Third Block. Through in-depth personal interviews of the residents, this project attempts to elicit their memories and current relationship with the locality. The outcome of this project will be an event that will include a theatre and music performance, and storytelling. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final report will be photo documentation of the performance and audio recordings of the interviews. Grant funds will pay for research and recording, conveyance, refreshments, performance fees and performance costs.
For a creative workshop over two days that seeks to build a collective identity for the neighbourhood of Malleswaram through the memory mapping technique. Using visual story-telling, drawing, writing, and recording oral histories, participants will examine ideas of ownership, identity and belonging as well as their relationship with change. The outcome of the project will be a set of memory maps on Malleswaram. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA along with the final report will be photo-documentation of the workshop and a digital copy of the book. Grant funds will pay for materials, workshop, honorarium, facilitators’ fees and book design.
For a community project which brings together children from the residential complex of Good Earth Malhar in Kengeri, the nearby labour camp that houses construction workers, and the neighbouring villages, to create maps from their understandings of the neighbourhood. The project will explore ways in which children see their surrounding environment and forge connections with it. The outcome will be a book-reading mela and an exhibition of children’s maps of the neighbourhood. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final report will be audiovisual documentation of the activities. Grant funds will cover professional fees, materials and event costs, and refreshments.
For sharing, through artistic practices, an arts-based therapy intervention by the children of the MGR colony in Banashankari. The adolescent residents and participants of the Creative Arts Expression programme of the Buguri Community Library will share their experiences in a year-long engagement with this intervention. The project seeks to take their learnings to members of the Buguri Library community in Bangalore and Mysuru. The outcome will be books, performances, talks, an exhibition, and cooking sessions. Grant funds will pay for stationery and props, travel and food, performances and book making.
For an artistic engagement with the community of weavers at Yelahanka. Drawing inspiration from the motifs, instruments of the loom, the culture of recycling and craft practices within the community, the project will explore the various dimensions of existing weaving traditions in the bylanes of the neighbourhood. The outcome will be a live art installation. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA along with the final report will be photo documentation of the exhibition. Grant funds will pay for material costs, honorarium, professional fees and conveyance.
For an exploration of the history of Richmond Town. Involving a group of mothers and children, the engagement seeks to uncover the narratives around the names of five specific streets in the neighbourhood through research and interviews with residents. The outcome will be a guided walk and an exhibition of children’s artworks showcasing the history of each street. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA along with the final report will be still and video documentation of the exhibition and digital copies of the artworks. Grant funds will pay for exhibition costs, professional fees, workshops and conveyance.
For the building of a game that will engage diverse groups of Bangaloreans to explore multiple narratives of the city. Through engaging people in game-sessions, the project aims to question ‘standard’ narratives and understand how people’s personal stories shape larger tales of the city. The outcome will be six game sessions through the year at various public places in Bangalore and a persistent artefact that documents the multiple narratives. The Grantee's deliverables to IFA with the final report will be documentation of the project, photographs, video compilation of the game sessions and game schematics. Grant funds will pay for professional fees, materials, space and equipment hire, travel, communication and outreach.
For a series of curated artistic and cultural engagements in Bangalore to make subterranean and invisible labour in the city visible again in discourse and practice. Through Maraa, a media and arts collective, the projects aims to facilitate opportunities for labourers to engage with the arts and culture in the city. The outcome will be 8 to 10 engagements across the city that will include talks, walks, film screenings, musical performances, an art exhibition, games and two editions of a zine through the year. The Grantee's deliverables to IFA with the final report will be audio clips, video documentation, photographs, exhibition design, copies of the zines, and publicity materials produced for the engagements. Grant funds will pay for professional fees, travel, space and equipment hire, printing costs, materials, and an accountant's fee.
For the creation of a performance based on the life and times of ‘Begum’ who lived in a prime locality in Bangalore in the 1980s. Drawing on a collection of oral narratives and through a series of workshops, the play will theatrically imagine and reconstruct the character of Begum and her space which nurtured various working class communities. In the larger context, the play seeks to explore the hitherto undocumented and neglected history of transgender people in Bangalore. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final report will be the play script and still and video documentation of the workshops and performance. Grant funds will pay for workshop costs, space hire, documentation, stationery and an accountant’s fee.
