Jazz, films and history as Mumbai gets set for a fest

The African-American Utsav, is set to begin today at the American Center 

The city will witness a cultural fiesta of sorts in the eight-day African-American Utsav, to be held at the American Center, from today.

The event, organised by the American Center, in association with the Katha Centre for Film Studies, will kick-off with a Jazz concert, followed by seven days of action comprising music, dance and films like Mississippi Burning and the Oscar award-winning movie Ray.

The festival will mark Black History Month, which has been celebrated in the US since 1976, as a mark of respect towards African-American artists. The month is also observed by the American Centre in Mumbai, every year.

But why Mumbai? What connection does Mumbai have with African-Americans?
Prabodh Parikh, director of the Katha Centre for Film Studies feels that the Utsav is a way of making African-American history that much more visible to those living in our part of the world.

“In a place like Mumbai which has the culture of a mega-metropolis, nothing human is alien to its inhabitants. Also I personally think that there was a parallel history at work in terms of what the city experienced as part of the Dalit Panthers movement which was inspired, to an extent, by the Black Civil Rights movement in the USA,” says Parikh.

The festival, will also feature lectures by scholars, invited by the American Centre as well as local intellectuals who are familiar with African-American literature and culture.
b_ameya@dnaindia.net