An existential problem The history of the relationship between the state and the terrorist has always been one of ambiguous conflicts, while innocent civilians have continued to suffer. Staged as part of Nandikar?s ongoing 22nd National Theatre Festival, Babli highlights the mental torment that ordinary, culpable individuals go through when caught up in its frenzy. The young, eponymous protagonist of the play is faced with existential questions as she encounters a clash of identities, ideals and philosophies from different people who fill up the spectrum of her precariously poised life. In her desperate attempt to move on, she is trapped between the known world of her parents and her fianc?, Rohit, and the unknown, mysterious world of Korak and Arijit. The play confronts us with her problems and queries and the choices she is set to make, as she embarks on a journey of self-discovery within her life and the time that she must exist in. Written by Bratya Basu. Direction: Anirban Bhattacharya. Event: Play in Bengali, Babli, produced by Drishyapat When: Today at 6 pm Where: Academy of Fine Arts

art

Till December 23 at ITC Sonar Bangla Art Gallery; 2 pm - 9 pm: A show of Paban Das Baul?s paintings. Till December 23 at New Sabhaghar, Swabhumi; 2 pm - 8 pm: Vikalp Art Shop presents Starburst: Miracle in Small Canvas by eminent artists. Till December 24 at G.C. Laha Centenary Fine Arts Gallery, 7 Chittaranjan Avenue; 1 pm - 7 pm: An exhibition of the works of Canvas Artists? Circle members. Till December 24 at Gallery Sanskriti, 5C Alipore Park Road; 11 am - 8 pm: Evea ? Paintings by Shipra Bhattacharjee. Till December 31 (except Monday) at Aakriti Art Gallery, 1st floor Orbit Enclave, 12/3A Picasso Bithi, Hungerford Street; 3 pm - 7 pm: Works of G.C. Chakravarty, Gopal Ghose, Jamini Roy, K.H. Ara, N.S. Bendre, Nirmal Bhadra and Sailoz Mookherjea. Till January 31 at Idiyas Gallery, 15 Dover Road; 10.30 am - 7.30 pm: The Pageant of Life ? an exhibition of Indian art and sculpture by renowned artists. Till January 31 at Arts & Ideas Designshop, UZ 213 Swabhumi; 12 noon - 8.30 pm: Arts & Ideas presents Down to Earth, an exhibition of Bengali pottery. Participants: Arun Mukhoty, Gourab Malakar, Manik Das, Manoj Kumar Das, Mousumi Roy, Payel Sarkar, Partha Dasgupta, Soumen Basu and Tanmoy Das.

DRAMA

Till December 25 at Academy of Fine Arts: Nandikar?s 22nd National Theatre Festival. Today at 6 pm: Babli (Bengali; dir: Anirban Bhattacharya) by Drishyapat. December 22 at Bharatiyam, IB 201 Salt Lake; 6 pm: EZCC?s monthly theatre show features Bengali play Mess No. 49, written by Birendra Krishna Bhadra and produced by Birendra Krishna Bhadra Smriti Parishad. December 23 at Tapan Theatre; 6.30 pm: Theatron presents Shey. Direction: Saswati Biswas.

PERFORMING ARTS

December 22 & 23 at Rabindra Sadan; 5 pm: Raginee?s 33rd annual music conference. Today: Debjani Mazumdar (Bharata Natyam), Amalendu Chaudhuri (sitar), Phullara Mukherjee (vocal), Sudip Chatterjee (violin), and Maharaj Banerjee and Angshuman Chatterjee (duet harmonium). December 23 at G.D. Birla Sabhagar; 6.30 pm: On the occasion of Pandit Vijay Kichlu?s 75th birth anniversary, Devgandharva hosts classical recitals by Kishan Maharaj, Girija Devi, Birju Maharaj, Shiv Kumar Sharma and Anindo Chatterjee. Also, release of the album of first lot of education series on Indian classical music prepared by Vijay Kichlu. Till December 24 at Kala Mandir; 6.30 pm: Sangit Kala Mandir?s Annual Utsav ?05 features fusion/instrumental music by Louis Banks, Rahul Sharma, Taufique Qureshi and Abhijeet Banerjee on 22nd; Hindi thriller/comedy Chal Baaz by Paresh Rawal and his group on 23rd and 24th.

EXHIBITIon

Till December 24 at Sasha, 27 Mirza Ghalib Street; 10 am - 7 pm: Sasha Christmas Festival showcases pasmina & lambs wool shawls, stoles, woollen items, bamboo & madur grass products, silver tribal jewellery, candles, embroidered Christmas cards and hangings. Till December 26 at Soumya?s Creation, 57/9 Ballygunge Circular Road; 10 am - 7 pm: An exhibition to celebrate Calcutta?s brief winters, titled Dress-up December, offers home accessories including ceramic ware, durries, framed pictures and candles, and wearables including costume jewellery, T-shirts, bags, chanderi and cotton dresses.

TALK

December 22 at Seagull Arts and Media Resource Centre; 2 pm: ?Adoor Talks to Students?, hosted as part of A Retrospective of Films by Adoor Gopalakrishnan. December 22 at Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture, Shivananda Hall; 5.30 pm: Sitanath Goswami will speak in Bengali on Panchadashi.

FILM SHOW

Till December 23 at at Nandan; 6 pm: A Retrospective of Films by Adoor Gopalakrishnan, hosted by Seagull Foundation for the Arts in collaboration with the National Film Archives of India, Films Division and Nandan. Today: Elippathayam (The Rat Trap); 1981/col./121 mins.

PHOTOGRAPHS

Till December 31 at Seagull Arts and Media Resource Centre, 36C S.P. Mukherjee Road; 2 pm - 7 pm: Neon Tigers ? Asian Mega Cities, and Heimat ? Contemporary German Landscapes: An exhibition of photographs by Peter Bialobrzeski.

DISCOURSE

Till December 22 at G.D. Birla Sabhagar; 6.30 pm - 8 pm: Discourses in English on Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6, The Yoga of Meditation. Speaker: Swami Parthasarathy. Organised by Vedanta Cultural Foundation.

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