Khayal Darpan

By Yousuf Saeed

100 mins /Urdu/Hindi (with English subtitles)

Friday, 22 Oct 2010
6:30 p.m.
Smriti Nandan Cultural Centre
Nanda-deep, 15 /3 Palace Road
Bangalore 560 052
Tel: 22258091 / 65979732
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The screening is free for members of Smriti Nandan.  All others are requested to make a donation of Rs. 49 or above.

Synopsis

In 2005, the Delhi-based filmmaker, Yousuf Saeed, spent more than 6 months in Pakistan as part of a research fellowship where he surveyed the development of khayal and other forms of classical traditions in Pakistan after 1947. After travelling in the 3 main cities of Pakistan – Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad - interviewing musicians and scholars, attending music concerts, and observing the teaching of music in various institutions, Yousuf not only managed to document some of the surviving practitioners and patrons of art music, but also raised many vital questions about cultural identity, nationalism, legitimacy of music in Islam, Pakistan's popular culture and its affairs with India, and the survival of classical music itself in South Asia. The film features some well-known as well as many lesser known but talented musicians of Pakistan, breaking many stereotypes about the country. Khayal Darpan (http://www.khayaldarpan.info) is a tour-de-force for a new generation of South Asians who are bent upon defining their cultural and national identities according to their religion.