Dalai Lama to speak at Delhi University

NEW DELHI - Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama will give the valedictory address at a conference on Tibetan history and culture at Delhi University Saturday in which more than 40 scholars from across the world are participating.

Santhali literature is booming, but needs government help

JAMSHEDPUR - Contemporary Santhali literature has taken off in a big way since it became an official language of Jharkhand in 2003, but it has not come of age because the government has not added it to the list of official Indian languages, says a pioneer of the Santhali book trade.

With art and grit, she helps women in Maoist badlands (Feature with images)

BUNDU - Deep in the heart of Maoist country in Jharkhand, a young woman is reviving ancient artistic genres to “bring new meaning into the lives of tribal and backward caste women” whose husbands and kin have taken to arms.

Dalrymple, Brown continue to dominate bestseller charts

NEW DELHI - “Nine Lives: In Search of the Sacred in Modern India” by William Dalrymple continued to retain the number one position in the non-fiction section of the bestseller list for the fourth consecutive week while Dan Brown’s “The Lost Symbol” topped the fiction category.

Transgenders and Shankaracharya come together on canvas

NEW DELHI - South Asian theatre, traditional Kathakali dance, a festival of transgenders and Adi Shankaracharya’s text “Saundariya Lehri” (Waves of Beauty) fuse in Chennai-based artist George Kuruvilla’s works, now on display in the capital.

Ancient Chinese characters come together at new museum

BEIJING - The full range and history of Chinese characters, one of the world’s most archaic writing systems which is still in practice, came together Monday when China’s first museum for sinograms opened, Xinhua news agency reported.

After Tagore-Yates union, Indian and Irish poets to meet in India

LONDON - Nearly a century after the Irish poet W.B. Yeats helped launch Rabindranath Tagore to global fame, some of Ireland’s most distinguished poets have teamed up with their Indian counterparts to celebrate a week-long festival of languages and culture in New Delhi, Hyderabad and Kolkata.

Joint show of Dhaka, Kolkata artworks in Bangladesh

DHAKA - Works of prominent artists from Bangladesh and India’s West Bengal state are on display here in a rare show of artistic bonhomie.

Goethe Institut to organise year-long cultural fest in India

KOLKATA - To promote and strengthen bilateral ties, Germany’s cultural arm Goethe-Institut Max Mueller Bhavan plans to organise a year-long festival at 15 locations across India in 2011.

Anonymous ex-call girl blogger revealed to be British scientist

LONDON - The anonymous author of three bestselling autobiographical books on a student turning to prostitution - themselves the product of a notorious blog - has been revealed to be a British research scientist.

Children’s Day celebrated with fanfare in the capital

NEW DELHI - Cultural programmes, NGOs taking street children on a trip to the zoo and distributing warm clothes, an award ceremony to encourage talented kids - Children’s Day celebrations in the capital Saturday were multi-hued.

Youth theatre festival begins Sunday in Delhi

NEW DELHI - Theatre lovers in Delhi are in for a treat as the five-day new age theatre festival begins Sunday.

Cultural shows, trips, campaigns mark Children’s Day celebrations

NEW DELHI - Cultural programmes were held in several schools, NGOs took street children on a trip to the zoo and distributed warm clothes to brave the winter chill - Children’s Day was celebrated in a variety of ways in the capital Saturday to commemorate the birth anniversary of India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

Pakistan releases book on ‘humour’ in Sindhi

KARACHI - Pakistani author Imtiaz Abro’s book ‘In a lighter vein’ - the first book on humour in Sindhi language after a gap of 15 years - has been released by the Matiari provincial government.

Penguin India leaps into digital future - with 3D promos

NEW DELHI - The next time you are at the Delhi airport, look around for a 3D high-definition plasma screen. Coming out of it will be super sleuth Feluda and his trusted companion Topshe in hot pursuit of a criminal - in images taken from Penguin’s just-published Feluda comics.

Artefacts by leprosy patients a hit in capital’s handicrafts fair

NEW DELHI - From exquisite candles and jewellery to beautifully embroidered shawls and salwar-suits - a range of handicrafts made by leprosy patients is up for sale at the 17th Dastkaar Nature Bazaar in the capital.

Cuba art auction falls short of expectations

HAVANA - An auction of 69 lots of Cuban plastic and decorative art raised some 400,000 euros (about $600,000), less than half the expected total, organisers said here.

Warhol’s painting of cash sells for $43 mn

NEW YORK - A silk-screen painting by iconic American pop artist Andy Warhol sold for $43.8 million Wednesday night in New York, Sotheby’s auction house said.

My art flourished in isolation: Jharkhand photographer

JAMSHEDPUR - For veteran artist-cum-photographer Bhudev Bhagat, the winner of 350 national and international awards in photography, geography may have been a constraint in reaching out, but the “relative isolation from urban glare has helped” his photography scale new heights.

Dalrymple, Dan Brown dominate bestseller charts

NEW DELHI - William Dalrymple’s “Nine Lives: In Search of the Sacred in Modern India” maintained its No.1 position in the non-fiction section of the bestseller list for the third consecutive week while “The Lost Symbol” by Dan Brown bounced back to dominate the fiction category.

Smell of old books can tell you about their condition

LONDON - There is something lovable about the faint yet familiar smell of old books, which could also tell you about their condition, says a new study.

Post-Independence Indian, Pakistani masters to feature in New York show

NEW YORK - Works of post-Independence Indian and Pakistani masters will be featured in an art show titled “In Search Of The Vernacular”, opening here Thursday at the Aicon Gallery.

Kathak king Birju Maharaj enthrals Trinidad and Tobago

Port-of-SPAIN - Noted Kathak exponent Pandit Birju Maharaj mesmerised Trinidad and Tobago, capturing the imagination of the packed audience at Queen’s Hall that is a premier venue for cultural shows here.