For an idea to develop into something
concrete, it has to reach out to as many people as possible. An ideal way of
doing this is by utilising a social podium; while these might have been scarce
earlier, new cultural spaces are now giving a platform to creative minds
belonging to different fields.
Curated by
Dr Subodh Kerkar and Rajat Nagpal, MOG Sundays is an initiative to bring to the
public a series of talks, films and various artists from different mediums of
art to speak about their experiences. The event is hosted every Sunday from
11am to 1pm at the Museum of Goa, Pilerne, which has been founded by Dr Subodh.
“We have
been hosting MOG Sundays for over a year and I believe that every form of art
is connected and no form can be on its own as each deals with
social issues. Every Sunday, we invite a personality who has contributed
immensely to their field of work. The talk is for 45 minutes followed by 15
minutes of interaction. We have been
receiving a great response. So far, we have been having talks in English, but there are
many personalities who have done great works in vernacular languages and we plan on starting talks in Marathi and Konkani, beginning with a special poetry session.
We have a database of the local speakers and we are constantly looking
for new speakers. We even invite speakers who are visiting Goa from other parts of India and abroad,” says Dr Subodh. The next
MOG Sunday will feature a talk by Tomazinho Cardozo on ‘Tiatr in Goan Culture’.
Varun
Carvalho and Irina Moroz spoke on the topic, ‘Music – A Powerful Tool for
Social Empowerment’ last Sunday at Museum of Goa. “It is great to have an
incubation centre like Museum of Goa, which attracts
people from different walks of life who want to share their ideas. It is great
to have a place where we can share a common platform for various arts like
music, theatre, education etc,” says Varun.
Practising
herpetologist Nirmal
Kulkarni shared his experience at MOG Sunday, where he
spoke about the Malabar Pit Viper, a forest species of venomous snakes found in
the Western Ghats of India. Nirmal says, “I received good feedback from the
talk and interestingly, the audience was well informed. Such venues are get
platforms for alternative work issues that otherwise don’t get
a place to talk about. I am currently working on the project, ‘Living with
Pythons’ but for the talk at MOG, I focused on the Malabar Pit Viper.”
The village of Assagao is known for its majestic
Portuguese houses lined with a lush green cover. But with a new flow
of critical thinking, it is changing into a meeting place for like-minded individuals. Over four years, 6 Assagao Events, initiated
by Nilankur Das, has formed a community of people who attend the
Monday events without fail. “Most of the programs that are held are based on
contemporary issues that foster critical
thinking in Goa. They are socio-political talks, art, economics, sustainability
and various fields within the Goan space,” says Nilankur, who also organises
events at various venues across Goa. “If
people can’t come to Assagao, the event can travel to them,” he states. They also
organise workshops and master classes at Gallery Gitanjali, Panjim, Museum of
Goa, Pilerne, Mandrem House, Mandrem and The Dogears Bookshop, Margao.
6 Assagao
has documentary /art house/independent cinema screenings and
discussions, artist presentations, live gigs with original content, book
launches, poetry performances and talk shows. Their resource team is regularly
updated with news about what is happening in Goa and all over India and abroad and what
content will be interesting for their audience. “The events are not a call for
action, but an idea that can implant a seed for thought. The events are held
throughout the year,” says Nilankur.
