Nice review of Happy Birthday To Me – a collection where my story Tiny Steps was published. Interesting blog site Tartan and Tumeric which reviews Scottish, Asian and world books.
Thanks guys!
Tagore’s Women: strong women who dominate on and off the stage
Another great piece on the play….
Tagore’s Women: strong women who dominate on and off the stage
Tagore: The poet, the playwright and his women – An interview with Sharmila Chauhan
Please take a read – beautifully written and researched piece about Tagore’s Women featuring an interview of me (!) by Naima Khan.
Art is….
27th December:
Art is the distillation of emotions that we humans can only feel for fleeting moments. It is a purity that we can aspire to but will never be able to attain – for it is the flux of emotions and the desire to purify them that make us human…
Tagore’s Women eflyer
New Short Story Peacock Published!
Really pleased my short story Peacock has been published by the fantastic Pratilipi books!!
Check out the story here….http://pratilipi.in/2011/11/peacock-sharmila-chauhan/
- Peacock Feather from http://seasweetie.wordpress.com/2010/04/04/peacock-feathers/
Purnjanam/Born Again – will be part of Tagore’s Women
My play Purnjanam/Born Again will be part of a double pill called Tagore’s Women.
We did a workshop with a bunch of writers and the lovely Elizabeth Freestone exploring Tagore’s plays… I had never read Tagore – apart from a little poetry – and so these were an eye opener. His work is poetic and simple at the same time. He was very progressive in terms of social and even environmental issues. Of great interest was his use of the female protagonist – although many may talk of Tagore as a pro-Feminist I would perhaps not go that far. But his female characters are well formed and definitely step out of the thick lines of societies expectations. They were definitely progressive. Even in his short stories (which are fantastic) and the beautiful Charu (dir bySatajit Ray) there is such a sense of place and beauty.. . Needless to say, I enjoyed reading his work and was particularly inspired by the magical and mystical elements.
Purnajanam is my tribute to this great writer…
In a city of transition and tradition, three liars, two lovers and a reluctant leader all desperately search for their own truth. Exploring class, gender and sexuality, Purnjanam questions destiny, love and power.
17-21 January 2012
The Vault at Southwark Playhouse
Shipwright Yard
Corner of Tooley St & Bermondsey St
London SE1 2TF
020 7407 0234
www.southwarkplayhouse.co.uk
NRI : A new taste for an old recipe?
My brother put me onto this website which I think is pretty cool.
It’s written by and for NRIs – Non-Resident Indians and covers an array of cultural and lifestyle issues. I think this is a subject matter close to many of our hearts and with the diaspora contantly in flux its good to keep the finger in where the mix is going. How sweet is it, does it need more sugar or is it ready to go?
In this case, I imagine the case of the NRI will be a recipe that we won’t perfect for a while – there probably isn’t one receipe for all – but its a good idea to get a feel for the variety out there. One small niggly point – I just wish that there were more indepth pieces- sometimes it feels like a collection of article written very much like this one (!) opinion pieces.
Do too many opinions turn the milk sour? Or are we going for yoghurt anyway?
Since I don’t think this will be the last of my culinary meanderings – i think i’ll stop there….
Unfinished… Read my new story…
A masala is of course a mix of things. In the culinary version it is spices that imbibe our food with a texture and tones. In music I guess hip-hop would be the closest to a masala. Art is more difficult. Perhaps modern art would be the best use of the term… Next comes the literary analogy. Books, poems and even our conversations are a masala of terms, dialects and languages. So what better title for a mix of diasporic writers each with our own voice, resonating to the same chord?
I’m pleased to that I’m included in this anthology and its now available on Lulu for hard copies and online versions. Check it out! 
WORD MASALA: Brings together widely published, finest, but grossly ignored non-resident South-Asian Diaspora authors, poets, artist and photographers.
http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/word-masala-2011/14451256?productTrackingContext=search_results/search_shelf/center/1
All White on the Night…
I was recently mentioned in this article which discusses Asian theatre…
I surprised to read that people think theatre takes up too much time! We have such a history of theatre – so I definitely think its more about subject matter. When there’s an Asian production on there’s always lots of support. I think the challenge is in the cross over and also enticing audiences to see things that are not ‘traditionally’ Asian.
What are your thoughts on thi
s? I’d love to hear…
Sharmila Chauhan 