From dak at sarai.net Thu Aug 1 15:06:16 2002 From: dak at sarai.net (dak at sarai.net) Date: Thu, 01 Aug 2002 09:36:16 GMT Subject: [Sarai Newsletter]August 2002 Message-ID: <20020801.9361600@saumya.sarai.kit> Contents: I Seed Grant Fellowship Presentations II Films @ Sarai: Focus on the Documentary & Asian Film Cultures: Japanese Cinema --------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------ I Independent Research Fellowship Presentations Independent researchers have continued to present their works at Sarai over the past two months. The June newsletter carried brief reports of some of their work. Below is a glimpse into a few more. 1. GNU/Linux in India Reportage on the Free Software/Open Source Movement in India Frederick Noronha Frederick Noronha is trying to explore the concept of Free Software and its implications, specifically in a South Asian or Third World context. He has started to document the contributions that are being made by Indians to GNU/Linux, including software innovations based on GNU/Linux. Noronha finds that contrary to the earlier pessimism the contribution is actually quite interesting...and growing. He has also been actively trying to forge communication links between Free Software or Open Source proponents, the ICT-for-development campaigners in South Asia and the development sector all of which, he says, "have strengths that could gain in a major way from one another." 2. Visthapiton Ka Shahar (The City of the Dislocated) A study of urban transformations related to the Metro in Delhi Naveen Chander Naveen Chander has been exploring issues of public space, urbanisation and displacement with the process of modernisation in the dreamed"beautiful city" - as effected by the Delhi Metro Project. He has also enquired into the dynamics of labour behaviour. Through audio interviews and photographs of bottom level workers and of people displaced due to the project, he has tried to draw different perceptions of the city and development. Naveen also travelled to Calcutta to be able to draw a comparative analysis with the Calcutta Metro project. 3. Rickshaw wale ki jeevan yatra: shahar tak, shahar mein Study of the specific migrant experience of rickshaw pullers in Delhi Rajendra Ravi Rajendra Ravi's study tries to document the everyday in the lives of rickshaw pullers in Delhi. He has looked into a number of issues relating to the nature of migrant labour; the process of initiation into the trade; restrictive policies with respect to ownership and their implications for the lives of rickshaw pullers; police violence; spatial issues including the absence of designated parking spaces and the need to see the relationship between owners and pullers of the rickshaw in complimentary terms rather than in an antagonistic one. 4. Neighbourhood Research Project Mapping the vicinity of the Jamia Millia Islamia Campus Students of the Jamia Sociology Department (Biswajit Das) In an effort to map the neighbourhood of their institution, the Jamia Millia Islamia University, the students focussed on two areas: a study of organisations located in the area and a study of the locality itself. Four papers were presented. The organisations studied were Spectramind, a call centre that employs hundreds of young English-speaking people in Delhi and the Software Technology Park located in the Okhla Industrial Area. Studies of the area focussed on the emergence of cybercafes and the changing physical and cultural landscapes. 5. Changing Face of Chiragh Delhi A study of the morphology of an urban village Ranjana Sengupta Ranjana Sengupta has been enquiring into the the process of urbanisation in Chiragh Delhi, an urban village situated in the heart of Delhi which has now changed over from generations of agricultural activities to different professions. She has delved into the relationship of the village to the dargah, community relations within the village and how the residents of Chiragh Delhi (themselves quite heterogenous) interpret and resolve varying aspects of their history. 6. Whose City is It Anyway? Reportage on Education, Law and Transport in select localities in Delhi Anjali Mody Anjali Mody has concentrated her research in the Jamianagar area of Delhi - an area which houses a cross-section of people from different communities, classes, professions and also houses a large number of students. She looked into local print cultures and the relationship of the neighbourhood with the charismatic local MLA now in prison under POTA. Part of her presentation also discussed the status of urban reporting in newspapers. She plans to publish a series of articles based on her research in the near future. 7. Built Environment and Women Study of the gendered logic of housing structures, work and public spaces Vandana Khare Women often encounter difficulties in dealing with urban spaces - both within the home and outside. Vandana Khare argues for the need of a gendered designing of city spaces. She is studying work spaces, public transport and housing facilities in Mumbai to enable viable solutions, especially for working class women, 8. Slums in Delhi - Demolitions & Relocation Housing policy and land relations in Delhi Harini Narayanan Harini Narayanan presented her findings from an ongoing research on slum policies and demolitions in Delhi. Two aspects were highlighted in her presentation. First, the act of demolition is a process, as much as an 'event' so that to live with violence and housing uncertainty is the 'normal' way of life for most poor inhabitants of the city. Second, she stressed on the general silence on the issues involved in slum housing, with the exception of the depiction of the 'act' of demolition. She pointed out the marked differences in representation, depending on the kind of structures being demolished. II Films @ Sarai All screenings are on Fridays, 4:30 pm, at the Seminar Room, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, 29 Rajpur Road, Delhi -110054. The films are listed in the order of screening. Focus on the Documentary August 2, 2002 Apoornathakal (The Incomplete), 2001, 23 mins Directed by Salil R. Aluvila Colour, VHS, English subtitles What is friendship? And how do you deal with the loss of a loved one, especially when there are indications that the death may not have occurred under natural circumstances? Apoornathakal is the story of a young man trying to come to terms with the death of his childhood friend - a friend with whom he shared intense love. It is the memory of moments spent together, of shared conversations and hints of intrigue surrounding the death that continue to haunt the living. Apoornathakal is based on a true story. Asian Film Cultures: Japanese Cinema We return to Asian Film Cultures Series this month with three films from Japan that engage with the post-war Japanese city, a city that is invariably connected with crime and a quest for criminals. Critics have often remarked on Kurosawa's films as quests, and much of Stray Dog is taken up with the desperate attempts by Detective Murakami (Kurosawa stalwart Toshiro Mifune) to retrieve his gun, which is being used to commit murder. Murakami spends much of his time in literal frantic pursuit, chasing his quarry and accomplices through the ragged streets of heat-drenched, occupied Tokyo. Like many a noir hero, Murakami is a good man drawn into a criminal demimonde, here the squalid world of postwar profiteering, corruption and murder. And like these heroes he has an unsettling link to that world in the form of his gun, which makes it impossible for him to return to normal life. Kurosawa uses his quest to explore a series of seedy tableaux, from opium dens to western-style grindhouses, and the social casualties that populate them. The montage sequence, where Murakami takes to the streets to find the pickpocket, is remarkable for the neo-realist recording of life on the teeming city streets, whilst maintaining the pace of Murakami's desperate search. Kurosawa even provides a classic doppelganger for Murakami in the form of the thief: much is made of their similar backgrounds and very different, but inextricably joined, fates. Kurosawa returns to the police procedural thriller again in High and Low. Using big-city slums (low/hell) in direct contrast to the privileged world of a powerful businessman (high/heaven), High and Low is the very human story of a misfired kidnapping and its consequences on all concerned. Bit by bit the shattering impact the crime has on the victim, his family, the police, and the kidnapper are slowly revealed as the police doggedly pursue every scrap of evidence. Kurosawa presents his characters' ’struggles as not only a suspenseful and clever detective story, but also a moral battleground where "good" has to pay a heavy price to win out over "evil" if in fact it is possible at all. The film is at once a procedural crime story, a social commentary on the casualties of industrialization and the redemption of a man's soul. The low lying squatter hovels, addict-infested Dope Alley, and red light district basement bar provide an incongruous foil to the prosperity and seeming order of modern Japan. While not one of Kurosawa's master works, the film, with its grim reality and moral ambiguity stands as a superb example of film noir at its best. Tokyo Drifter has free for all neon jazz characters jiving to the boogie woogie backdrop of 1960's industrial Tokyo. A yakuza film of the purist form, Seijun Suzuki presents us characters of extreme brightness and colors that match the environments around them. Suzuki uses a lot of incongruous jump cuts, like the beautiful shot of Yoyogi stadium that comes up, to create a kind of travelogue view of Tokyo that is used under the credits. From dak at sarai.net Wed Aug 21 17:31:06 2002 From: dak at sarai.net (The Sarai Programme) Date: Wed, 21 Aug 2002 17:31:06 +0530 Subject: [Sarai Newsletter]Applications Invited for PHP Programmer Message-ID: <02082117310600.01099@saumya.sarai.kit> Applications Invited for PHP Programmer for the Sarai Web Site The Sarai Programme:  Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, Delhi Sarai, an interdisciplinary programme with interests in cinema, urban cultures,  digital media and free software, is looking for an experienced PHP Programmer with the ability to collaborate on the Sarai Web Site, and realize new projects. The applicant should be able to work within the LAMP (Linux-Apache-MySQL-PHP) environment and should have a high degree of programming expertise backed by the ability to conceptualize innovative solutions to the problems of rendering media rich content online on a regular basis The applicant should be able to devise software solutions for contexts, editorial systems, CMS (content management system) and publishing systems. Where necessary, solutions will require to be customised to fit Sarai's specific requirements. This means that we are looking for a creative programmer, someone who does not necessarily rely on existing systems or components, but is able to create original solutions. Additionally, the programmer should be able to handle - template based dynamic front ends for the website - MySQL for Database building - Multi-type document Handling (Text/Images/pdf's)  and user/category-based uploading/publishing mechanisms S/he should be able to design a modular and extensible architecture which enables the inputting of additional features later (.pdf-output/xml, etc) with an object-oriented structure, as well as configuration and administration-features. Sarai is committed to free software and is an equal opportunity employer. The applicant should have prior work experience involving similar responsibilities. Competitive salaries will be offered. For more details about us, visit our website www.sarai.net Apply immediately with a CV to application at sarai.net We will only accept email applications. From ranita at sarai.net Wed Aug 21 17:33:34 2002 From: ranita at sarai.net (Ranita Chatterjee) Date: Wed, 21 Aug 2002 17:33:34 +0530 Subject: [Sarai Newsletter]Applications Invited for Assistant System Administrator Message-ID: <02082117333401.01099@saumya.sarai.kit> Applications Invited for Assistant System Administrator The Sarai Programme:  Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, Delhi Sarai, an interdisciplinary programme with interests in cinema, urban cultures,  digital media and free software, is looking for an assistant system adminstrator with analysis, installation and administration skills to assist in the management of  mission critical Linux and Unix systems. Qualifications: You should have experience as a Linux/Unix system administrator; proficiency in TCP/IP, DNS, Samba, NFS, Apache Web server, mail configuration, system backup strategies, system and network security, shell scripting, system installation and upgrade, and system performance analysis and tuning. The Linux Assistant System Administrator will be a key technical resource person for other colleagues, providing advice, training and technical support for various projects. S/he will be responsible for the care and maintenance of computers at Sarai and will liase with  external service personnel who come to address any hardware problems. S/he will share all the responsibilities of the System Administrator, and fill in all the administrative functions in the absence of the System Administrator. You will also be responsible for providing support to the administrators/moderators of the various email discussion lists running on the Sarai server. In addition, you will work closely with the free software team at Sarai in evaluating current systems and making decisions on future projects and processes. Sarai is committed to free software and is an equal opportunity employer. The applicant have prior work experience  involving similar responsibilities. Competitive salaries will be offered. For more details about us, visit our website www.sarai.net Apply Immediately with a CV to application at sarai.net We will only accept email applications. From dak at sarai.net Thu Aug 29 17:28:00 2002 From: dak at sarai.net (The Sarai Programme) Date: Thu, 29 Aug 2002 17:28:00 +0530 Subject: [Sarai Newsletter]September 2002 Message-ID: <5.0.2.1.0.20020829172354.00a75138@mail.sarai.net> Contents 1. Sarai Presentation in Indore 2. Sarai team participates in Emoção Art.ficial Exhibition, Sao Paulo. 3. The Making of New Delhi, urban workshop report 4. Films @ Sarai 5. Forthcoming Announcements. Sarai Presentation at the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan, Indore Ravikant from Sarai made at the 54th National Convention of Hindi Sahitya Sammelan held in Indore between the 17th and 20th August, 2002. Organized by the Madhya Bharat Hindi Sahitya Samiti, the convention offered a range of platforms for debates and discussions amongst people who work in Hindi. These were the four panels: 1. Concerns of Literature, 2. Hindi and Nationalism, 3. Hindi in Globalized times, 4. Gender Discourse in Hindi Literature, 5. Hindi Cinema in the world Context. The convention also hosted a number of ‘Meet-the-author’ sessions. Ravikant spoke on the ‘Media, ICT and Hindi. Some of the other speakers in the panel included Prabhash Joshi and Ashok Chakradhar (who presented his usual entertaining package on what computers can do) from Delhi, the editor of Dainik Bhaskar, Indore and a representative from webdunia.com. Most of these speakers talked critically about the developments in the Hindi domain. Sarai at the Emoção Art.ficial Exhibition & Symposium at the Itau Cultural Centre, Sao Paulo, Brazil. A team from Sarai (Ravi Sundaram, Jeebesh Bagchi, Monica Narula, Shuddhabrata Sengupta and Supreet Sethi) visited Sao Paulo, Brazil earlier this month to participate in the Emoção Art.ficial Exhibition & Symposium at the Itau Cultural Centre. (www.itaucultural.org.br) The Itau Cultural Centre is a space for exhibition, publication and documentation of contemporary art and cultural practice in Brazil. The Emoção Art.ficial Exhibition and Symposium was an initiative to showcase contemporary new media arts practices and had invited several international new media initiatives, such as Laboratorio Arte Alameda (Mexico City), Banff New Media Institute (Alberta), Mecad (Barcelona), V2_Organisation (Rotterdam), WRO Centre for Media Art (Wroclav), ZKM Centre for Art and Media Education (Karlsruhe), and Ars Electonica Futurelab (Linz). Raqs Media Collective presented Location (n) - an inter-media installation produced at the Sarai Media Lab at the exhibition. The installation was conceived and created by the Raqs Media Collective, software coding was done by Supreet Sethi, the sound design by Vipin Bhati. Parvati Sharma, Ashish Mahajan and Pradip Saha, assisted in production. "Location(n)" is an installation with eight clocks (representing eight cities located in different time zones), seven computer terminals, a video projection and a multi layered soundtrack designed to offer the visitor to the work a critical meditation on simultaneity, time and emotion across the world. Ravi Sundaram and Monica Narula made presentations at the symposium that took place in tandem with the exhibition. The Making of New Delhi: Urban Workshop at Sarai Sarai organised a one-day workshop on August 24th to explore the possibilities of collaborative research on contemporary and historical Delhi. The workshop was attended by over 30 young scholars. Ravi Sundaram and Awadhendra Sharan, Sarai fellows, began the proceedings by outlining the research projects currently being undertaken at Sarai. This was followed by presentations by other participants on their research interests, methodological issues and theoretical approaches to urban studies. The workshop was conducted in an interactive style, so as to promote dialogue and seek out possible areas of collaboration. Labour, violence, planning and welfare emerged as some of the issues on which there was general interest. Participants agreed that we should meet regularly, on the last Saturday of the month, to do a set of readings on these themes. Prabhu Mahapatra,together with Shankar Ramaswamy and Navin Chander, volunteered to put together the first set of readings on the issue of labour and the city. The next meeting is proposed to be held on Saturday,28th September. For details write to sharan at sarai.net Curated Film series: City in Film Noir Time: every Friday 4.30 pm Films @ Sarai: The City in Film Noir - Curated by Ranjani Mazumdar, Film Scholar and Independent Film maker Noir is the French name for black. As one of the important Hollywood genres that flourished in the period 1941-1955, film noir emerged in the post war crisis of American society. The genre used low-key photography to imbue the cinematic image with darkness in both form and content. Drawing on the cinematic traditions of German expressionism of the 1930's and French street realism of the 1920's, film noir absorbs the facts of economic life and then expresses it in the movies as moods and feelings. Thus experiences of loss and alienation expressed by many of the characters in film noir can be seen as a product both of post war depression and of the reorganization of the American economy. Bringing together the stylistic and narrative devices of the gangster and the detective genre, film noir was an attempt to interrogate and explore the dark side of the American city. Like the expressionists, film noir projects violent emotion on to the world as all the characters seem to map out their own death wish. The characters motives are usually furtive, ambivalent and psychologically driven. Their innermost conflicts are rooted in urban claustrophobia as they walk a shadowy borderline between repressed violence and vulnerability. The genre also explores the negative power of sexuality seen primarily as a battle between the sexes, thus leading to the emergence of the classic femme fatale of Hollywood cinema. The city as a maze and labyrinth is crucial to entering the psychological and aesthetic framework of film noir. The city is seen as a jungle of human construction, steel, stone and glass, after hour offices, dark alleys, decaying industrial zones, rain slicked streets, cars and trains. Through a melancholic and baroque framing, noir seeks to interrogate the monumental spectacle of the modern city. The films in the series have been selected as representative of the genre directed by some of the most well known film makers of the period. The Series begins with a thematic introduction by the curator on September 6th, 2002 at 4.30 PM. September 6, 2002, 4.30 pm Double Indemnity (1944), 107 minutes Director: Billy Wilder Double Indemnity directed by Billy Wilder has been called a cynical, witty and sleazy thriller. Narrated in the past tense, Double Indemnity is the story of Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray) and Phyllis Dietrichson (Barbara Stanwyck) involved in a plot to kill the latter’s husband for lustful desire and financial gain. The perfect crime leads to guilt, suspicion, betrayal and thrilling intrigue. September 13, 2002, 4.30 p.m Out of the Past (1947), 97 minutes Director: Jacques Tourneur Out of the Past directed by Jacques Tourneur is considered one of the greatest multi-layered film noirs of all times. An ex-detective, Jeff(Robert Mitchum) has traded his .38 for the ownership of a gas station. Suddenly Kathie Moffet (Jane Greer), a woman from Jeff’s past comes back into his life, forcing him to confront old enemies including gangster Kirk Douglas. September 20, 2002, 4.30 pm Kiss Me Deadly (1955), 106 minutes Director: Robert Aldrich Kiss Me Deadly directed by Robert Aldrich follows the exploits of Mike Hammer(Ralph Meeker). Hammer is searching for a mysterious box that leads him and his assistant Velda (Maxine Cooper) into a convoluted network of murder, shadowy deceit and military conspiracy. September 27, 2002 4.30 pm Touch of Evil (1958), 106 minutes Director: Orson Welles Touch of Evil directed by Orson Welles is an exceptional film noir portrait of corruption and morally-compromised obsessions starring Welles himself as Hank Quinlan, a perfect police chief who frames a Mexican youth as part of an intricate criminal plot. Charlton Heston plays an honorable Mexican narcotics investigator who clashes with the bigoted Quinlan after probing into his dark past. Forthcoming Announcements Announcements for Short Term Independent Research Fellowships: Sarai will be soon calling for proposals for short term fellowships. This will be a special announcement in this list. Call for Sarai Reader 03: The call for submissions for Sarai Reader 03 will also be made in a separate announcement. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: