The Indian High Commission, Ministry of Culture, Indian Council for Cultural Relations and leading Indian festival producer Teamwork Arts will deliver a festival of Indian culture from May to November 2017 in the UK. UK/India2017 is a year-long celebration of the longstanding relationship between India and the UK, which will see a vast programme of cultural exchange and activity take place in cities across both countries.
Working with a huge number of partners and institutions, the British Council is developing a programme of cultural activity which will connect and inspire people in both countries; and strengthen and celebrate the UK and India’s cultural ties. The festival will be delivered in association with Shakespeare’s Globe, British Library, Barbican Centre, Sadler’s Wells, Tramway, mac birmingham, Festival Theatre Edinburgh, Birmingham Hippodrome, Sampad Arts Birmingham and Royal Festival Hall at the Southbank Centre.
The festival’s five strands will showcase the cultural diversity of India - ZEE JLF @ British Library, India @ Edinburgh, Independence Gala @ Southbank Centre, Festival of Dance & Theatre; and the UK premiere of the Freedom Symphony by Dr L Subramanium and the London Symphony Orchestra.
The Festival of Dance & Theatre programme includes the Darbar Festival at Sadler’s Wells, showcasing Aditi Mangaldas as a renowned Kathak dancer and choreographer, now remoulding Kathak’s traditional vocabulary with 21st century sound, rhythm and light. An Independence Gala at Royal Festival Hall at the Southbank Centre will see a rich and eclectic coming together of India and UK through dance and music. The show will include indigenous Gotipua, Pung Cholom and Churkula dancers lighting up the stage with Scottish bagpipers, highland dancers and British Morris performers. India @ Edinburgh will showcase some of the best music, dance and theatre in association with Festivals Edinburgh. Telling the tale of Majuli, the world’s largest river island in Assam’s Brahmaputra river, through an evocative narrative of movement, dance, music, and theatre, Shilpika Bordoloi celebrates the spirit of Majuli and the intricate bond between people and their land at Edinburgh’s Dance Base.