Chaitimeradio

Kaavad, from Marwar, Rajasthan India, is a storytelling box that storytellers use to tell traditional Indian tales of the Gods, Goddesses, Saints, Local Heroes and Patrons. In this Chaitime interview, we talk to Akshay Gandhi, Project Director of the Kaavad Project(https://www.facebook.com/KaavadProject/). Currently Akshay is visiting USA to bring an inspired collaborative performance work, Kaavad katha – Maya to the US audience. “Kaavad Katha – Maya” is a collaboration between theatre artists, visual artists & illustrators, musicians, a movement artist and a mask maker. A glimpse of Akshay’s performance can be found on here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlMJGlpySW4 This interview was recorded in Berkeley Language Lab and I was joined by UC Berkeley students Mohan Ganesan, Desiree Nayak, and Maya Reddy for the interview. The music included is composed by Kartik Raman.

In this Chaitime, we talk to Padmashri Prahlad Tipaniya about Kabir’s poetry and its relevance in today’s world. We will also listen to some of the bhajans sung by him and his group in the Malawi folk style from Central India (Madhya Pradesh). Prahlad Tipaniya combines a powerful singing style with a magnetic ability to connect with his audience. In his current tour of USA he is accompanied by Ashok Tipaniya, Devnarayan Saroliya, Ajay Tipaniya, Vijay Tipaniya, and Dharmendra Tipaniya. He and his group has recently released a new CD Halke Gaadi Haanko Re. This CD is accompanied by a booklet which contains english translation of all 10 audio tracks included in the CD. More information about this CD can be found by contacting atipaniya@gmail.com. In 1997, Tipaniya started Kabir Smarak Seva Shodh Sansthan in his home in the village of Luniyakhedi. This registered trust organizes an annual event, where thousands come to listen to Kabir’s words through bhajans. This organization also runs a primary school and

In this Chaitime, we talk to violinist Ambi Subramaniam, Singer-Songwriter Bindu Subramaniam and Singer Raju Chithambaram of Andaz Creations about their upcoming concert Ek Pyar Ka Naghma Hai on April 8th, 2017. The program features select music from Ambi and Bindu's musical repertoire and violin based Bollywood songs. Details of the concert can be found here: www.indiacc.org/Subramaniaconcert Ambi and Bindu Subramaniam are children of Indian violin legend L. Subramanium and Padmashri Kavitha Krishnamurthy. Known as the 'new king of Indian classical violin', Ambi has been on stage since the age of seven. His greatest musical influence is his father and guru, the legendary violinist Dr. L. Subramaniam. Bindu Subramaniam, having been dubbed a third-generation prodigy and an assured young soprano by the press, Bindu is an accomplished songwriter, singer, and pianist. Bindu has performed and recorded alongside artists like Dr. L. Subramaniam, Kavita Krishnamurti, Al Jarreau, George Duke, Stanley Clarke, Billy

In this Chaitime, we talk to Sufi Murshid (Guide) Kiran Rana about sufism, mysticism and the art of Qawwali, which is a musical rendition of Sufi poetry. Kiran Rana and his group will be performing live at The Center SF, 548 Fillmore St, San Francisco, CA 94117, on Saturday, February 25, 2017 Saturday from 3 pm to 6 pm (gate opens at 2). The entry to this event is free and it is being organized by the Hindi Urdu Sufi Poetry Meetup group. Hindi Urdu Sufi Poetry group is an active meetup group in San Francisco. This group was started by Mahendre Kutare, a San Francisco based engineer and a poet, as an experiment to bring together like minded people to read, explore and spread the beauty, love, mystic and spirituality expressed in Hindi, Urdu and Sufi Poems and Literature. The group is now more than 250 people strong and is growing. Kiran Rana was born and raised in India. He became dissatisfied at an early age with traditional responses that emphasized acceptance of scriptures or the elevation of one fait

In this show we talk to Sankara Eye Foundation co-founders K. Sridharan and Murali Krishnamurthy about the Spirit of SEF Dandia: the joy, the smiles, the colors, the style - all culminating into a larger than life cause of Eradicating curable blindness in India Tickets: http://giftofvision.org/sef-dandia-2016?SID=fb More than 40 million people in India suffer from some kind of blindness. Of those, 12 million are totally blind, which means ¼th of the world’s blind population resides in India. These are incredibly large numbers. Urged by their uncle Late Sri. P. Balasubramaniam, who was a longtime friend and associate of the Sankara Movement, brothers, Murali and Sridharan initiated Sankara Eye Foundation in USA in the year 1998. Since then their progress has been phenomenal. Sankara Eye Foundation is entirely run by volunteers and works in multiple ways to make Sankara’s mission towards eradicating preventable blindness a reality. More information about SEF can be found at: www.giftofvision.org

In this show we are privileged to have Dr. Vikas Amte, son of late Sh. Baba Amte. Baba Amte setup Anandwan in 1951 to help patients of leprosy on the outskirts of Warora in Chandrapur district in Maharashtra. He transformed a barren piece of land into an oasis which today shelters about 2500 people with severe disabilities, leprosy survivors, and other destitute people who are looking for a better life. Dr. Vikas Amte along with Mr. Gautam Karajgi are travelling to the USA to spread awareness about the excellent work done by the residents of the Anandwan, and tell the world the story of success and enterprise of the people who were once forgotten by all. These people not only changed their own lives but now provide a model which can be used to transform rural India, as well as the lives of other downtrodden people, so that they can move from being forgotten to being indispensable. Dr. Amte will turn 70 years old next month and his life story is intertwined with the history of independent India and one of th

In this Chaitime, we celebrate the genius of famous Hindi/Urdu poet and lyricist, Javed Akhtar. We try to relive his life and struggles through his own autobiography and collection of his poems - Tarkash. We weave this with some of the most popular Hindi movie songs penned by him. Javed Akhtar is a poet, lyricist and scriptwriter. Some of his most successful work was done in the late 1970s and 1980s with Salim Khan as half of the script-writing duo credited as Salim-Javed. Akhtar continues to be a prominent figure in Bollywood and is one of the most popular and sought-after lyricists. Javed Akhtar was awarded the Padma Shri award by the Government of India in 1999 and received the Padma Bhushan in 2007. Akhtar has also won the Filmfare Award fourteen times, seven times for Best Script, and eight times for Best Lyrics for Ek Ladki Ko Dekha... in 1942-A Love Story, Ghar Se Nikalte Hi... for Papa Kahte Hain, Sandese Aate Hain.... for Border, Panchhi Nadiyan Pawan Ke Jhonke... for Refugee, Radha Kaise Na Jal

In this Chaitime, we talk to author and journalist Zahir Janmohamed. He went to India for the first time in 2002 to Gujarat, India and found himself in the midst of one of the worst incidents of communal violence. He was 25 years old then, and this experience changed his worldview forever and motivated him to work in politics, human rights and now as a journalist and author. Zahir Janmohamed is based in Portland, Oregon and Ahmedabad, India. He is currently writing a book about the largest ghetto of Muslims in India, an area known as Juhapura. He has received fellowships from the MacDowell Colony, where he was the inaugural co-recipient of the Anne Cox Chambers fellowship for long-form journalism, as well as from the Mesa Refuge, the Djerassi Resident Arts Program, the Norman Mailer Center, and the San Francisco Writers’ Grotto. His articles have appeared in The New York Times, Foreign Policy, Guernica, The Washington Post, The San Francisco Chronicle, Newsweek, The Boston Review, The Guardian, Scroll I

In this Chaitime show, we talk to one of the most popular Indian singers Kailash Kher, and Dr. Vijay Tiwari, founder of Daya Sumitra Educational Society Inc(DEST). Kailash Kher is not only one of the most loved Indian artists internationally, but he is also respected for his modest and inspiring lifestyle. He is the founder of famous band Kailasa, which has produced many smash hit albums. Kailash Kher is visiting the San Francisco Bay Area on Aug 21st, 2016 as part of his Ishq Anokha World tour. This is one of those unique shows where 100% of the proceeds will go to fund rural kids in India for their books, uniform, and tuition as part of the school run by DEST. Tickets for the show are available at sulekha.com/kailash or TicketHungama.com/Kailash. In this intimate interview conducted on phone, Kailash Kher talks about value of education, his love for the Bay Area, achievements of Indian diaspora in USA, his difficult childhood, his struggles and inspiration, his band Kailasa, his various socio-poli

In this Chaitime show, we talk with Naatak’s team about their upcoming comedy Noises off which is being dubbed as one of the most outrageous comedy ever staged. The play is a Hindi adaptation of the award winning comedy by Michael Frayn. We talk to the director of the play Harish Sunderam Agastya and actors, Navjoyti Sharma and Niranjan Page about the play. Listen to this fun interview to get an insight into what is in store for the audience in this laugh riot. The details about the showtimes and tickets can be found on Naatak’s website: www.naatak.org Naatak, a 501©(3) registered non-profit, is a theater company in the San Francisco bay area, dedicated to producing intelligent and entertaining plays. Started in 1995 by students at the University of California, Berkeley, and Stanford University, Naatak is now the most prominent and largest Indian theater company in the United States, having performed continuously over 20 years. In those two decades, our plays have been watched by tens of thousands. Our m

In this ChaiTime we talk to director Aditya Kulkarni, and actors Abhay Pranajape and Avadhoot Bhambare about the CalAA’s 42nd production, “Art”. The play was originally written in French by Yasmine Reza and was adapted by Aditya Kulkarni for this production. Following are the timings for this play and tickets are available on www.calaaonline.com. Sunday, April 10th, 2:00pm@Cubberley Theater, Palo Alto Sunday, April 16th, 2:00pm@Front Row Theater, San Ramon CalAA-California Arts Association is a fourteen-year-old organization founded by San Francisco Bay Area drama enthusiasts with a mission to produce and preserve creative performing arts. It aims at promoting experimentation while maintaining high quality. CalAA is a ‘not-for-profit’ organization, which financially supports itself through net proceeds from its events. The actors and actresses, directors, producers, and all other talent come from the local volunteers who donate their time for CalAA. CalAA has major events planned around the year covering

In this Chaitime we pay tribute to great Indian poet Nida Fazli who has left a rich legacy of Hindi and Urdu poetry for his followers. He passed away on Feb. 8, 2016. He has a special place in the world of Urdu Ghazal's and some of his best work has been immortalized by late singer Jagjit Singh.

Happy new year and welcome to Chaitime. In this Chaitime show we relive the lyrical genius of famous shayar Kaifi Azmi Sahab through his poetry and songs from the golden era of Hindi music.

In this Chaitime we talk to renowned Indian jornalist Rajdeep Sardesai about his book "2014: The Election that Changed India" as well as his opinion and ideas on various topics. This interview was recorded during Rajdeep's visit to UC Berkeley. Rajdeep Sardesai is a senior journalist with 26 years of journalistic experience in print and TV, Sardesai was managing editor of the NDTV network before he set up the IBN 18 network with channels like CNN IBN as founder editor. He began his career with the Times of India and was the city editor of its Mumbai edition at the age of 26. He is presently a consulting editor with the India Today Group and anchors a prime time show on India Today. Specialising in national politics, Sardesai has won numerous awards for journalistic excellence including the prestigious Padma Shri for Journalism in 2008, the International Broadcasters Award for coverage of the 2002 Gujarat riots, and the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award for 2007. He has also won the Asian Televi

We are living in a world in which either we are striving for something which we don’t have or destroying what we have in order to gain something else. But in the end, we realize that we all are looking for shaanti or peace. Somehow, most of us look outside to seek this fulfillment. I believe that the combination of art and exercise and relating to the world through dance, music, pranayam, exercise, one can attain what he or she is striving for. In this Chaitime show, we talk to Dr. Swati Daithankar, an accomplished internationally acclaimed Bharatanatyam dancer, professor and performer. Along with her, we also have Smt. Vasanthi Bhat on the show. She is an internationally recognized yoga teacher, author, publisher, and producer, who has been serving the bay area for last 40 years and so with her knowledge of Yoga. Both, Dr. Daithankar and Smt. Bhat came together to produce an unique show Nritya Yoga which was presented to bay area audience on Aug. 30, 2015. Smt. Bhat has an upcoming event, Instant Rejuv

In this Chaitime we listen to some of the most recent love songs.

In this Chaitime show, we present Sufi music from great musicians: Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Abeeda Parveen, A R Rahman, Kailash Kher and more.

Link to Blog page with Preston's photos: http://chai-time-radio.tumblr.com/post/122110585443/photographing-the-indian-diaspora-in In this show, we talk to Preston Merchant about the Indian diaspora, India, politics, California, photography, and other fun things. Preston Merchant is a California based photo journalist. He teaches photography as an adjunct professor at the Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism in New York. His pictures can be found at his website:archive.prestonmerchant.com Preston is currently working on INDIAWORLD, a book-length photo essay about the Indian diaspora communities of North America, the Caribbean, Britain, Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and the South Pacific. Part of his work is featured in the Smithsonian Institution’s exhibit, “Beyond Bollywood: Indian Americans Shape the Nation.” The exhibition is coming to the Bay Area starting August 1st and can be seen at the Olive Hyde Art Gallery in Fremont, CA . Preston has contributed to media in the US,

In this show, we talk to Harish Sunderam Agastya, Kamala Subramanium and Geeta Rai about NAATAK’s upcoming production Rabbit Hole. The play will be performed at the Cubberley Theater, Palo Alto from June 13-20, 2015. More information about the play, showtimes, and tickets can be found at: http://naatak.com/portfolio/rabbit-hole-2015/. Winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Rabbit Hole by David Lindsay-Abaire is a play about a family’s attempts to come to terms with a tragic loss. Set at a time well after the bereavement, the play examines the lives of 5 people directly impacted by it, as they try to relive their past and reconstruct their future. Rabbit Hole is an unsentimental, witty and improbably funny exploration of grief and is widely regarded as one of the best scripts in this genre. It was also made into a film starring Nicole Kidman, who received nominations for an Oscar and a Golden Globe. Harish Sunderam Agastya has been with Naatak since its inception in 1995. Rabbit Hole will be his 9th

In this Chaitime, we talk to Sindu Singh and Basab Pradhan about Bay Area Drama Company’s second production, A Doll’s house. Details about this event, showtime and tickets can be found at: http://www.bayareadrama.company/upcoming/ Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House is one of the most performed plays of modern times. It created waves across the artistic world when it premiered in 1879 with its unusually bold take on gender issues. This adaptation of “A Doll’s House", written and directed by Basab Pradhan, retells Ibsen’s classic by exploring gender stereotypes within a seemingly perfect Indian marriage in the Bay Area. This play has an original composition, Koi Nazm Nahin, sung by Sindu Singh, written by Shekhar Hemnani and composed by Aalap Desai. Bay Area Dance Company or BAD company was founded by Ravi Bhatnagar, Sindu Singh and Basab Pradhan. Bay Area Drama Company is a registered 501(3)© non-profit organization and aspires to present unique and inspired theatrical productions. Sindu Singh is an acco