For research to study the contribution of Art Deco as a modernist art movement in India, with a focus on the architecture of Delhi. At the intersection of arts and architecture, this project will attempt to examine the role of Art Deco in shaping the cultural identity of Delhi under the British rule. It aims to build appreciation for this ignored and diminishing style along with the lesser-known artists, patrons, architects, artisans and local people associated with its propagation. The outcomes of the project will be a digital exhibition of photos, inventories of buildings, maps, oral narratives of building owners and occupants, stories of architects, artists, contractors, artisans and developers, a visual publication, and a pocket guide with maps and overview of public typologies. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be a link to the website hosting the digital exhibition, visual publication and a pocket guide with maps. Grant funds will pay for honorarium, professional fees, reference material, books and magazines, travel, food and living costs, equipment hire, heritage walks, website domain fee and an accountant’s fee.
For research to explore and compile the personal stories of a tenacious group of women producers, directors, writers and film technicians working in Mollywood in Kerala, a film industry dominated by men. The project will construct vivid and contrasting accounts of the Women in Cinema Collective as they defiantly challenge rules of commercial cinema in the state. The outcome of this project will be a manuscript for a book and an installation. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be the manuscript and audiovisual documentation generated during the fieldwork. Grant funds will pay for honorarium, professional fees, travel, food and living costs, equipment rental, consumables and an accountant’s fee.
For research into the life and work of Maneklal Gajjar, textile blockmaker and master craftsman from Pethapur, Gujarat. The focus of this project will be Maneklal’s archive of prints of his designs, business records, letters, photographs and personal objects, complemented by interviews with his family, crafts community, designers and scholars who were in contact with him. The outcome of this project will be an illustrated biography of Maneklal Gajjar and an immersive exhibition of his works. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be the manuscript for the book and audiovisual documentation generated during the fieldwork and exhibition. Grant funds will pay for professional fees, exhibition costs, travel, food and living costs, printing and stationery costs and an accountant’s fee.
For research that will attempt to explore the hitherto unresearched and marginalised narratives of lead actresses of the mainstage as well as frontline comic actresses of the Company Theatre in Kannada (1960 to present). It will examine ways in which they define and defy notions of female respectability and vulgarity through their performances and selfhood. The outcomes of this project will be a series of essays in Kannada, a photo essay and a script outline for a theatre performance. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be the essays, the photo-essay, the script, and audiovisual documentation of the present day Company Theatre performances in Karnataka. Grant funds will pay for travel and living costs, honorarium, professional fee, consumables and an accountant’s fees.
For a feature-length documentary film on the history of Santhali cinema. The project will look at the impact cinema has had on the cultural landscape of Santhals across Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal. It aims to study the impact of affordable digital technology on the Santhali film industry, democratising film as a medium, thus affecting storytelling in cinema, and mass production and consumption of content. The outcome of this project will be a feature-length documentary film. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be the feature-length documentary film. Grant funds will pay for professional fees, travel, food and living costs, equipment rental, books and stationery costs and an accountant’s fee.
For research to study the theatre practices of two Kolkata-based blind theatre groups – Blind Opera and Anyadesh. The project aims to understand how theatrical training, techniques and practices work as tools for blind pedagogy, healing and care. It will particularly enquire into the nature of the customised theatre practices adopted by the two groups that make them effective for blind individuals. The outcome of this project will be a monograph. The Grantee’s deliverable to IFA with the final reports will be the monograph and extensive audiovisual documentation generated during the course of fieldwork. Grant funds will pay for professional fees, equipment rental, travel, food and living costs, honorarium, books and stationery and an accountant’s fee.
For research on the identities, biographies, and artistic practices of the wall painters of Shekhawati through the case studies of two painters - Binja Chejara and Balu Ram Chejara – who worked between 1890 and 1945. By tracing the inscribed instances of paintings, this project will build an archive of the artists’ oeuvre, while studying the influence of popular new imagery on their aesthetic choices. The project also aims to understand the self-fashioning by the painters through changing caste affixes in the inscriptions. The outcomes of this project will be a monograph and a short booklet in Hindi. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be the monograph and the short booklet in Hindi. Grants funds will pay for travel and living costs, honorarium, professional fee, publication costs, stationery, and an accountant’s fees.
For research to analyse the role of Gujarati little magazines between the 1960s and 1980s as a modern phenomenon which emphatically articulated the voice of dissent and cultivated alternate discourses of nation and culture. By examining the editorials, manifestos, advertisements, literary writings, non-fictional writings and cover pages of the magazines, the project will explore the sociopolitical and culture conditions that contributed to its heydays. It will also investigate what led to the later effacement of the legacy of culture of dissent in Gujarat. The outcome of this project will be a monograph in Gujarati and English. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be the monograph and audio visual documentation of magazines and interviews in the field. Grant funds will pay for honorarium, travel and living costs, professional fees, books and stationary, equipment, library fees, and an accountant’s fee.
For research that will bring forth alternative narratives from the Darjeeling Himalayas through stories of people, their lived experiences, and cultural spaces. Looking beyond the dominant imagery and narratives that continue to reinforce colonial tropes, this project aims to explore the realities of people through extensive archival research, contemporary photography and oral narratives. The outcome of this project will be a photobook and two exhibitions of photographs by young contemporary photographers from the region in Kalimpong and Darjeeling. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be the photobook and audiovisual documentation generated during the fieldwork. Grant funds will pay for professional fees, travel, food and living costs, equipment rental, honorarium, printing and stationery, books and references, space rental and an accountant’s fee.
For research to trace the history of the music labels of audio cassette in Kashmir and explore the articulations they fostered. The research will focus on marginalised sections and communities of Kashmir, whose interventions challenged the existing social and cultural norms, cultivating a new and popular music scene. It will also put into perspective how these forms impacted the production of media and continue to influence the contemporary music culture in the Valley. The outcome of this project will be an essay. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be the essay and audiovisual documentation of the interviews. Grant funds will pay for honorarium, travel, copyright acquisition, stationery, audiovisual documentation and an accountant’s fee.
This Grant was amicably cancelled based on reasons mutually agreed upon by the Grantee and IFA due to unavoidable circumstances.
For research that will trace the articulations of the Ilangai Tamil - Sri Lankan Tamil refugee - community about their homeland through their cultural practices. It will study how the community in its interactions with the Indian nation-state and Tamil Nadu state machinery uses performative acts to negotiate their roles and identities in their present liminal status. The outcome of this project will be a series of essays. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be the essays and audiovisual documentation and interviews from two refugee camps in Tamil Nadu. Grant funds will pay for honorarium, professional fees, travel, food and living costs, equipment rental, consumables and an accountant’s fee.
For research to explore the history and chart the boundaries of Qawwalis in Hindi cinema as a genre of music different from others. The project aims to analyse how the industry used these songs to narrate different stories as well entertain, often subverting this traditional form beyond its norms. It will also attempt to understand ways in which cinema has influenced the performance of traditional Sufi Qawwalis. The outcomes of this project will be an essay and multimedia audiovisual documentation on a digital platform. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be the essay, audiovisual documentation generated during the fieldwork and a link to the digital platform. Grant funds will pay for honorarium, professional fees, reference material, stationery and consumables, communication, internet and website domain charges, travel, food and living costs and an accountant’s fee.
For research to study the contributions of courtesans in the shaping of Hindi cinema during the first half of the twentieth century. The project will explore how courtesans became not only some of the first singers, dancers and actors but also directors, producers, lyricists and music composers, thus highlighting their entrepreneurial roles that built the foundation of the industry. It will also study the creative and economic labour of courtesans and Kathak dancers whose narratives are absent in the mainstream discourse on cinema histories in India. The outcome of this project will be a multimedia exhibition with audiovisual interviews, podcasts, short narrative films and graphic illustrations. The Grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final reports will be multimedia material generated for the exhibition and a link to the website that will host this content. Grant funds will pay for honorarium, equipment, professional fees, travel and living costs, exhibition costs, books, stationery and website domain costs, consumables and an accountant’s fee.
For creating a series of participatory art events around a few industrial campuses in the city, to trace the unacknowledged story of life in the surrounding villages of these institutions that were a part of the formation of Bangalore as a metropolis. The outcomes of this project will be a digital archive of the collected stories, curated walks, and performances led by the members of the community and a travelling exhibition to showcase cartographic representations reflecting personal experiences of the community members. The grantee’s deliverables to IFA with the final report will be a detailed textual and illustrated document of the curatorial process and outcomes, photo and video documentation of curated walks and performances, soft copy of the digital archive, soft copies of exhibition panels, and cartographic visualisation, short films and photo essays. Grant funds will pay for professional fees, honorarium, exhibition costs, equipment hire, venue hire, local conveyance and hospitality, digital archives costs, and an accountant’s fee.
This Grant was amicably cancelled based on reasons mutually agreed upon by the Grantee and IFA due to unavoidable circumstances.
For the implementation of a Foundation project by IFA, which will result in an essay titled Indian Commodities and Commodified Indians in Late Eighteenth Century Portraiture based on the paintings at the Victoria Memorial Hall (VMH) Kolkata. The paintings by European artists, commissioned by the European administrators in India, present Europeans amidst their dazzling material objects and the ‘natives’ who were ever present to serve them. While the essay will focus on the biography of the exotic objects and the lived reality of the native labourers in the paintings, it will also offer insights into larger questions around the ‘Orient’, transcontinental trade and the material culture of colonial India in the eighteenth century. The outcome will be the essay, an online exhibition or a website, an interactive social media platform, as well as talks at the Victoria Memorial Hall. The Principal Investigator's deliverables to IFA with the final report will be the essay, the exhibition or website, and recordings of the talks. This is a collaboration with the Victoria Memorial Hall, Kolkata. Project funds will pay for honorarium, website, travel, books and resources, and stationery.
