| | Arjuna's Dilemma - The Bhagavad Gita Today 
Panel Discussion
Thursday, November 6 at 6:30 pm
Join Asia Society for a discussion on the sacred Hindu text the Bhagavad Gita, and its relevance in today's world. This program is in conjunction with multifaceted theater/film/new music composer Douglas J. Cuomo's cross-cultural chamber opera Arjuna's Dilemma, which will be playing at the Brooklyn Academy of Music on November 5, 7 and 8. Arjuna's Dilemma finds the great warrior prince Arjuna looking over a sea of soldiers on the eve of civil war. Recognizing friends and even family in the opposing army, Arjuna falters, fearful of destroying them in the ensuing slaughter. Enter the Hindu god Krishna and cue a choicefor a man with morals in a labyrinthine worldthat continues to echo across centuries. Tickets for the opera Arjuna's Dilemma can be bought at www.BAM.org.
Moderated by: Vibhuti Patel,
Newsweek International
| Bose: The Forgotten Hero
Feature Film Screening US Premiere
Directed by Shyam Benegal. India. 2005. 208min.
Sunday, November 9 at 1:00 pm Still shrouded in controversy and mystery, the gripping story of Indian national hero "Netaji" Subhas Chandra Bose (played by Sachin Khedekar) gets an epic treatment from veteran director Shyam Benegal. In his telling of a dramatic story that has disappeared from public memory, Benegal draws a historical yet intimate portrait of the leader who diverged from the non-violent path of Gandhi. The film begins with Bose's dramatic escape and journey from Calcutta to meet with Adolf Hitler in Berlin and General Hideki Tojo in Tokyo. Benegal follows this astonishing life from Bose's controversial marriage to Austrian Emilie Shenckl, to his creation of India's first national army that battled the Allied forces in the jungles of Myamar, until his mysterious death in 1945. (In Hindi with English subtitles) |
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Family Day: Calligraphy: The Art of Writing
Saturday, November 1 Noon 3:00 pm  Explore the beauty of writing through calligraphy from around the world and discover how to turn your own writing into a work of art! Learn about the method and tools used by calligraphers then try your hand at calligraphy in a series of innovative workshops taught by Elinor Aishah Holland, student of master Islamic calligrapher Mohammad Zakariya, and artists from the acclaimed Chinese Theater Works company. During these workshops, the relationship between calligraphy, dance and graffiti will be explored. Additionally, a children's tour of Asia Society's
exhibits Traces of the Calligrapher: Islamic Calligraphy in Practice, ca.
1600-1900 will be offered.
Chinese Calligraphy Workshop: 12:00PM space is limited
Islamic Calligraphy Workshop: 12:00PM and 1:30PM
Graffiti Demonstration: 1:00PM-3:00PM
Children's Tour: 1:00PM Free with Gallery admission. Under 16 Free.
Santouri
Directed by Dariush Mehrjui
Iran. 2007. 106min. 35mm
Thursday, November 13 at 7:00 pm
Free for Asia Circle Members
 Celebrated Iranian filmmaker Dariush Mehrjui (The Cow, The Pear Tree) will premier his latest film Santouri. Originally approved by the Iranian authorities and shown at the government-sponsored Fajr Film Festival, Santouri won the Best Actor and Audience Award. Yet it was banned indefinitely before its scheduled opening in Tehran. The film features two popular stars, Bahram Radan and Golshifteh Farahani (Body of Lies), as a musician couple whose deep love for each other is no match for a devastating addiction to heroin. (In Persian with English subtitles)
"Santouri the Music Man, a harrowing account of a greatly gifted artist's slide into heroin addiction, is another sweeping yet incisive film from Dariush Mehrjui, one of Iran's most accomplished and courageous filmmakers for four decades." Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times
Q&A with Dariush Mehrjui moderated by Jamsheed Akrami, Film Professor, William Paterson University after the screening, followed by reception.
With support from the Iranian-American Society of New York and The NY Persian Parade
Dam Street
Directed by Li Yu. China. 2005. 93 min.
Friday, November 21 at 7pm
Free for Asia Circle Members  In the early1980s, Xiao Yuna sixteen yearold girl living in small riverside towndiscovers she is pregnant. The local community is stunned, her family loses face and she and her boyfriend are expelled from school. In the aftermath, she gives birth and is forced to put her child up for adoption.
Ten years later, her relationship with her family strained and ostracized by residents of the town, Xiao Yun is reduced to working as a singer in a song and dance troupe. Her only real companion is Xiao Yong, a fiercely affectionate boy who protects her from the critical eyes of the community until a marriage proposal discovers the limits of their friendship. (in Mandarin with English subtitles)
"Beautiful cinematography and outstanding performances! Dam Street is an immensely touching and captivating story of love and marginalization created with Li's skilled, caring directorial hand. MASTERFUL!" - Toronto International Film Festival "Reminiscent of Zhang Yimou." - Eye for Eye (UK)
WINNER! GRAND PRIZE - BEST FILM, Deauville Asian Film Festival; WINNER! JURY PRIZE, Venice Film Festival Co presented with the Global Film Initiative
Around New York Eiko & Koma
October 28-November 2, 2008
Tuesday Wednesday at 7:30
Thursday, Friday & Saturday at 8:00pm
Sunday at 2:00pm
Location: The Joyce Theater -175 Eighth Avenue at 19th Street, NYC
 See Eiko & Koma, joined by two young Cambodian performers Charian and Peace, in their visually stunning performance of Hunger. A passionate portrayal of primal urges, these internationally celebrated artists draw you in with their intensity as they portray the universal experience of hunger. Hunger for love, hunger for nourishment, hunger for life. Featuring live Japanese, Tibetan and Indonesian folk music as well as live painting, this riveting performance will move you like no other. (Photo by Takahiro Haneda)
Hunger is a Joyce Theater commission.
Co-commissioned by the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis.
Produced by Inta, Inc. in association with Asia Society. Tickets: $39, $25, $19 To register please visit www.joyce.org or call The Joyce Theater at 212-242-0800
Special Discount:
Mention "Cultural Code" to receive 25% discount on $39 or $25 tickets (available on phone or walk-in purchases only). Valid for all performances. Tickets subject to availability. No refunds or exchanges. Four tickets maximum per order. Not valid in combination with any other offer or for prior sales. Offer expires Sunday, 11/2/08. Book Launch: The Present as History: Critical Perspectives on Global Power
Wednesday, November 5th at 6:00pm. Location: Columbia University, Maison Francaise: Buell Hall, East Gallery, 515 West 116 Street
Free and open to the public. The Institute for Comparative Literature and Society and Columbia University Press in association with Asia Society invite you to attend a panel discussion with interviewees from The Present as History: Critical Perspectives on Global Power moderated by the book's author Nermeen Shaikh. The Present as History offers rare opportunity for renowned scholars to historically and politically address current issues of global power and post-election America. Panelists include: Gayatri Spivack, Partha Chatterjee, Tala Asad, and Sanjay Reddy.
For further information call: 212-459-0600 x 7127
http://cup.columbia.edu/book/978-0-231-14298-4/the-present-as-history | |
