On Thursday at 4.30pm at SAWCHU the community is invited by L"Avenir Team to its Information & Sharing Meeting .On Firiday at 8.30pm at Verite Hall will be a simple gathering in silence In memory of Bhavana Today at 4.30 to 8.3opm Mohanam Cultural Center in (Sanjeevinagar) Invites us for a program of: Village life Story telling at Mohanam Cultural Center. The Sanjeevi Nagar village celebrates its Brahmoursavam from 30.4 to 8.5. Brahmotsavam is a nine-day celebration for the Mother Goddess - Throwpathi Amman and finishes with walk trough fire Read more

"Mutation in Progress" got nominated at the 14th backup festival at the Bauhaus University in Weimar! »Mutation in Progress« was an artistic collaboration between 5 Auroville artists: Marie-Claire Barsotti (Sculptures), Chloé Sanchez (Sound Design), Christoph Pohl (Video Installation), Ana Rute Costa (Dance) and Denis Ben Sussan (Photography). We saw The installation at Gallery Square Circle during the 2nd Auroville Film Festival in September/October 2011. Between 8th to 19th from 7.30 - 8.30am Tanja is offering swimming lessons in La Piscine Read more

May Day, the first of May celebrated all over India as a spring fertility festival; commemorated also as “International Worker’s Day” with its historical significance. Maharashtra and Gujarat celebrate their statehood on this day. Water and the sad story of Fatehpur Sikri: a magnificant city from 1585, abandoned shortly after its completion, due to a paucity of water, remaining as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Water and the future of Auroville: shall we heed anticipatory, long-term future planning options? Or repeat the FATE of FATEhpur Sikri? Read more

Hemant Chauhan is considered one of Gujarat’'s best and most widely celebrated singer of bhajans and folk music. He is frequently referred to as the bhajan king of Gujarati music, and is also considered to be one of the best singers of Sugam Sangeet. He has a huge fan base in Gujarat and abroad for his divine music and singing. It is believed that his performances of bhajans and devotional music have the ability to carry the listener into a tranquil, relaxed and serene world. Read more

Parvathy Baul is a singer, painter and storyteller from West Bengal. After receiving her initial music and dance training during her childhood, she studied visual arts at the Kala Bhavan at Shantiniketan, the university founded by Rabindranath Tagore. Meeting with the living tradition of Baul prompted her to choose the path of self-training in the Baul order rather than an institutional degree. Impressive beauty, personality and intensity of her devotional chanting and rotating dance, make her unique. Read more

A slide show of sacred Ladakh shares a pilgrimage into the coreof the Buddhist Spirit. Bring your special dish and your recipe to the market "food contest table" before noon, made from local produce. A basket with AV produce is the prize! The Present Earth Day Celebration will take place this Sunday in Children's Land Sadhana Forest. Arts, workshops, performances and potluck style picnic will be there. Wonderland Art Gallery is searching for somebody to promote and develop art pieces made by Aurovilian Artists. Read more

The Sufi singers Abdul Ghani, Ajah Maideen and Saburmaideen Babha Sabeer (Vocals and Rabahna percussion in the Qawwali style) from the Nagore Dargah usually perform at religious and social ceremonies at their sufi shrine in coastal Tamil Nadu. They recorded the song Ya Allah for Laya project movies and the album Nagore sessions for EarthSync. - www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXfPFxfy7ZM - www.layaproject.com - - www.earthsync.com/store-in.asp?catalogid=23 - - www.myspace.com/nagoresessions - Read more

In the sports ground of Edayanchavadi village Bindhu Malini and Vedanth Bharadwaj were performing live, with Folk-Blues acoustic set, the Kabir's poetry. They sang all the songs in Tamil language: Mira's song, To remember God , Mira's Bajan's song, Maya a Fraud, Sattle Sound of Universe. Bindhu's husband Vasu Vikshi also jumped on stage to play and sing with humor about Kabir in the contemporary contest and the Kaveri River's song. - www.vedanth.in - www.kabirproject.org - www.aurovilleperformingarts.com - Read more

Featured today is Danny, member of Auroville Council giving an update on some of the current issues. Dedicated volunteers are organizing an Earth Day celebration for Sunday 22 April; the theme is 'Present Day' meaningful either way. They need a free-of-charge venue. To support in any manner, call 978 695 5474. Workshops, lessons on sitar and tabla as well as Varanasi sitars to buy can be arranged... email vikram@auroville.org.in Read more

Akatha Kahani or untellable story is a presentation on Kabir, where three sisters attempt to showcase this special alchemy between Kabir and his listeners by sharing their individual encounters with Kabir. One wrote a book for young adults, another sings her songs passionately and yet another expresses Kabir's impact on her through Bharatnatyam. Akatha Kahani, features Jaya Madhavan author of Kabir the weaver poet book, Bindhumalini a singer trained in both Carnatic and Hindustani music and Archana, a Bharatnatyam dancer and French translator. Read more

Who walks? What flies? it's a collective exhibition about the Kabir poetry in Kala Kendra by 5 artists. They speak about their works in the interview, in chronological order: Audrey Wallace, Srivi Kalyan: drawings art works by the children of Udavi School; Orijit Sen, graphic designer from Delhi: Hair burn like a grass; Srivi presents her sister Sandhiya Kalyan's mix-media installation; Audrey Wallace Taylor: Rajasthan Kabir Yatra drawings series; Sandhya Gopinath: Maya's painting series; Srivi Kalyan: Playing with Kabir mix media installation. Read more

At early morning hours as last Mooralala Marwada with his group came on the stage of Kalabhumi at Kabir Music Sacred Festival last Saturday. Although number of audience substantially decreased, those who stayed cheered them with laughter and laud halo, which supposed to be Mooralala wake up call, so that no one is left asleep at the time when they sing. He is a folk singer from Kutch district of Gujarat in Western India, and sings the poetry of Kabir along with other poets such as Mira, Ravidas or Sufi Sindhi poet Shah Abdul Lateef Bhitai Read more

Each group of singers brought something special something unique on the stage at the Kabir Sacred Music Festival in Kalabhumi last Saturday. Mahesha Ram group came as the most colorful with their bright orange, pink ...turbans on their heads as they belong to the Meghval community of Rajasthan in Western India. They represent a hypnotic folk style typical of the Meghvals, who are musicians not by profession but more traditional carriers of Kabir's poetry trough the oral traditions of all night jagrans and satsangs. Read more

It was already getting late when third group of Mukthiyar Ali appeared on the stage of amphitheater in Kalabhumi on the Kabir - Sacred Music Festival, but audience still in numbers cheered them loud as well. Mukhtiyar Ali coming from a small semi nomadic village with only eighty families from the Thar Desert in Rajasthan. Faimilies of this village are known as keepers and protectors of 800 years priceless Sufiana Qualam tradition, who managed to carried over the centuries not only lyrics but as well the style of the music. Read more

Starting Fri. 6th, Auroville hosts a 3-day festival celebrating Kabir... along with the live performances, Cinema Paradiso will show 4 films about Kabir, exploring his philosopy, poetry and songs, all with English sub-titles. Auroville Architects Monograph Series first release on architect Poppo Pingel, by Mona Doctor-Pingel 7 April, 9:15 at Town Hall Conference Room. Dehashakti (physical education, sports of various kinds for Auroville students) is minus funds for award t-shirts; support them by contributing to Dehashakti Sports acc. 102264. Read more

Announcements: Kabir Sacred Music Festival in Auroville 6th, 7th, 8th April at 3 different venues to be announced early next; to volunteer email aurovilleperformingarts@gmail.com. Opening Saturday March 31st the Cycle Kiosk at Solar Kitchen (opposite PTDC.) Kalarippayattu, the oldest form of oriental martial art 7:30pm, Sat. 31st March, Sri Aurobindo Auditorium Bharat Nivas. Residents' Assembly Service Thursday, April 5th, 5pm-7.30p at Kalabhumi Amphitheatre. Every Tuesday 4pm at La Terrace a planning meeting for Earth Day festivities. Read more

On tuesday 13th in Cripa at 9pm Daniela Regnoli has performed Uragani. This is a musical journey in the Germany of the Thirties, through ballads and songs written by Bertolt Brecht and set to music by Kurt Weil, which takes us into the past century's Europe in the period between the two wars. There are stories of women who recall their sixtenneth year of age, when they were still children and ready to fall in love with the first wrongdoer they would meet, women without adolescence who grew up too quickly under the bombs of the 2nd world war. Read more

On 13th at Cripa the Voice Polyphoniques, a vocal women group made by Brigitte Cirla, Tania Zolty and Marianne Suner, has performed Black Sea Songs in Georgian, English and French. The concert is a tribute to Edisher Garakanidse, singer, ethno-musicologist and founder of the group Mtiebi from Georgia. He taught at the music conservatoire in Tbilisi where he was a colleague of Nato Zumbadze and post graduate tutor to Nana Kalandadze, who worked with Brigitte Cirla and Helen Chadwick on the first edition of this Black Sea concert. Read more

On Saturday the 10th in Amphitheater of Matrimandir was played the performance Adoration for the Mother. It was the inauguration of the starting program of Tantidhatri International Women's Performing Art Festival. The performance with movement, dance, Russian bells, voice and projected images, has realized by Grace, Jyoti, Joy, Kanchana, Liudmila, Manjula, Srimoyi, Terra & Vera. Flowers were the subject of the projections which enfolded all the scene with a magic colored screen. Read more

On 13th at CRIPA Nathalie Mentha performes Per Edith Piaf, with the direction and the technical assistance by Pino Di Buduo, from Teatro Potlach in Italy. This performance is a musical journey in France of the 1930s and 1950s through Edith Piaf's songs - stories of lives in the underworld of the French gangsters, stories of women in love, stories of passion, of dreams, of memories. The theme, the soul which ties all the stories together, and maybe even more Edith Piaf's own soul, seems to be: Whatever happens, don't ever stop believing in love. Read more

On Friday 9th in Auditorium, Bharat Nivas, Aurofilm has presented 5 short films in collaboration with IAWRT (International Association of Women in Radio and Television) and Dept. of Electronic Media and Mass Communication-Pondicherry University. The showed projections, part of the 2nd Asian Women's Film Festival, were: Capsule by Shreen Soliman (Canada), 1, 2, 3 by Nazli Deniz Guler (Turkey), Yup, It's My Body by Kiki Febriyanti (Indonesia), It's the Same Story by Nina Sabnani and Superman of Malegaon by Faiza Ahmad Khan (India). Read more

Auroville Bakery Erumalai, member of Auroville Council shares what’s on the Council table. Auroville welcomes the return of Mr N. Balabaskar, as Auroville Secretary once again, and at the same time bids farewell to Mr S. Loganathan, who has been Acting-Secretary. ALL IS ONE - breakdance and rap music for peace - Indo-German fusion; ‘EachOneTeachOne’ with Mohanam Youth Project offers workshops. FIRST AID Workshop: Learn Basic Life Support: how to react to everyday accidents, what NOT TO DO! Call Pitanga for further information. Read more

Auroville will be richer from this year on also for the first sacred music festival - Kabir, which will happen on 6th, 7th and 8th of April. Moghan, one of the Auroville Performing Arts Group member, and one of the organizers talks with us on the festival itself and shortly about Kabir, a mystic poet, who was beyond any religion but had a beautiful mystic experience being one with the Divine. The poetry and music itself is very touchy, simple and speaks directly to the heart. It is joyful as the meeting with the spirit of Divine should be. Read more

The Auroville Community will have an opportunity on March 22 at 6pm at La Terrace to welcome back Mr N. Balabaskar, our new Secretary and at the same time, to bid farewell to Mr S. Loganathan, who has been the Acting-Secretary. Kabir festival of sacred music will happen here in Auroville on different location on 6th, 7th, 8th of April. In today's news we feature excerpt of interview with Moghan on it. On Saturday 24th at 7pm children of Deepanam School will share with us their annual cultural show in the form of musci, songs, dance and plays. Read more

As part of the Tantidhatri festival, this play was performed in Cripa last thursday. It is played solely by Julia Varley, an artistic director, writer and above all member of Odin Theatret in Denmark. Written by Eugenio Barba, The Castle of Holstebro is a dialogue between a young woman and her eternal companion following the lines of a "stream of consciousness", set in a phantom castle. Two entirely different characters played by just one person is quite a thing to witness. A moving play filled with music and monologues/dialogues.

Parvathy Baul, so well known to Auroville audience and always warmly welcome for who she is, what she quietly yet firmly stands for, this time organized the Tantidhatri Festival. Her own journey as a Baul singer has not been one lined with roses, but the call for it was stronger for her. In her play, her songs, her mesmerizing voice and passion and energy brought to life a universal story of love. Her paintings, as part of the performance, vividly depicted the characters of Rahda and Krishna and others. Read more

Rwita Dutta Chakraborty was born in North Bengal and has always been into creative arts. She has become an actress for television and stage-plays and is now well known in the Bengal theater scene. After a short presentation about her Guru Tripti Mitra, who inspired her in her work, Rwita impressed the audience by her solo performance. She picks up the telephone and starts the play... Listen to the monologue in Bengali. This performance is part of the Tantidhatri International Womens Performance Arts Festival in Auroville. Read more

Bruna Gusberti at the Tandtidhatri festival presented at Sri Aurobindo Audittorium, Bharat Nivas in Pavilion of Indian Culture in International Zone act of a woman who reflects on whether to remain closed within her feelings, dreams and sorrows, or not, so as to feel alive. Again minimalistic approach as in props as in the act itself, which tends to tell much more in the silence of "in" than maybe on the "out" tries, finally crosses "in" with heart beat and flowery umbilical cord broken off the stage into the light of love.

"Umbral" or Threshold was offered to the audience by Cristina Castrillo at the stage of Sri Aurobindo Auditorium, Bharat Nivas, at Pavilion of Indian Culture in International Zone. Minimalistic approach of mono play simply tells the story of actress's life, or better glimpses of it, the way she perceived it, sensed it rather than that really was. Without doubt her trace in theater is huge as she dedicated all her efforts to the research of elements which are basic for an actor, who is always at the heart of the inventive process. Read more

Kalaairani was born in Tamil Nadu and is a well known actress. She is part of the Tantidhatri International Womens Performance Arts Festival in Auroville and yesterday she performed in the MMC Auditorium. Kalaairani was telling her familys story and explained the difference between cinema and theater. More than once she made the audience laugh out loud by her funny way of narrating. Maybe it is because of her 'Tanglish', a humorous mixture of English and Tamil, that her acting is so special and hilarious. Read more