Amitabh Chakraborthy, KolkataRs 4,58,000 over six monthsFor <strong>the</strong> production of Bishar Blues, a film on<strong>the</strong> fakirs of Bengal, examining <strong>the</strong>ir music and<strong>the</strong>ir deeply spiritual everyday life as a living practiceof radical syncretism. Bishar, <strong>the</strong> deviantbranch of Islam practised largely by <strong>the</strong> lowercastes, does not sacralise <strong>the</strong> Shariat, and its historyin Bengal is replete with <strong>the</strong> assimilation ofBuddhist, Tantric and Vaishnavite traditions andpractices. In a context where Islam is increasinglyunder attack from different quarters, <strong>the</strong> filmseeks to open up a crucial debate on secularism.Sandesh Bhandare, Pune, MaharashtraRs 4,80,000 over two monthsFor <strong>the</strong> editing, designing and printing ofTamasha: Ek Rangadi Gamat, a book in Marathion <strong>the</strong> Tamasha folk <strong>the</strong>atre <strong>for</strong>m. The book––one of <strong>the</strong> outcomes of an IFA-supporteddocumentation project––will contain about 250photographs, and <strong>the</strong> accompanying text willdescribe <strong>the</strong> different <strong>for</strong>ms of Tamasha prevalentin Maharashtra as well as <strong>the</strong> lifestyles of itsper<strong>for</strong>mers.how photographs can make <strong>for</strong> identificationand a sense of continuity with <strong>the</strong> past, how<strong>the</strong>y preserve memories, how albums are constructedon <strong>the</strong> basis of an idealised notion offamily, and how <strong>the</strong>y can move from havingpurely personal meaning to taking on historicaland archival relevance.Centre <strong>for</strong> Studies in Social SciencesCalcutta,KolkataPrincipal Investigator: Gautam BhadraRs 4,78,000 over two yearsFor <strong>the</strong> publication of a book that documents<strong>the</strong> history of print advertising in <strong>the</strong>Bengali language, analysing its various <strong>for</strong>msand modes, and <strong>the</strong> media through which itwas displayed and printed. The book will alsocatalogue commercial artists and <strong>the</strong>ir contributionto text and visual, and <strong>the</strong> impact of advertisingon <strong>the</strong> material culture of Bengali householdsand patterns of consumption. In addition,a visual archive of over 3,000 documents will bemade available on <strong>the</strong> Internet to trigger fur<strong>the</strong>rresearch in <strong>the</strong> area.Lalbhai Dalpatbhai Institute ofIndology, AhmedabadRs 4,31,000 over sixteen monthsFor digital photography and annotation ofsome 5,500 miniature paintings largely from <strong>the</strong>Jaina traditions of Gujarat and Rajasthan. Thepaintings, ranging from <strong>the</strong> seventeenth to <strong>the</strong>early twentieth century, <strong>for</strong>m an eclectic andunique collection. The biggest number is found invarious Jaina manuscripts. The project willimprove scholarly access to <strong>the</strong> miniature paintingsand facilitate preservation of <strong>the</strong> original materials.Nishtha Jain, MumbaiRs 5,00,000 over nine monthsFor <strong>the</strong> production of a film on familyphoto-albums. The film will explore personalrelationships to photo-albums. It will look at
‘The family portfolio is all aboutconventions and codes. It has nothingto do with “reality” and everythingto do with idealisation. Theprecise tilt of <strong>the</strong> head that willconvey an obedient quality in ason; <strong>the</strong> light that will add tendernessto a mo<strong>the</strong>r’s gaze; <strong>the</strong> hairstylethat imparts to a younger sister <strong>the</strong>pertness she must possess: it’s alldone by numbers almost.’From Nishtha Jain’s proposal to make a filmexploring <strong>the</strong> relationship between <strong>the</strong> familyalbum and personal history.Still from Nishtha Jain’s film.
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