Ramayana show (10 Nov); How India's progressive parties can better engage diaspora
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Hi there,
Not long left now to book our Ramayana Puppet Show in London on 10th November.
Want to become a Member? Our next social mixer for Members is on Thurs 9 November in Covent Garden. If you’d like to become a Member and to find out more about this, please get in touch.
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Member news
Pop artist Ketna Patel is continuing to host her latest BRITINDIA exhibition at the Headstone Manor and Museum in London (10 Oct 23 - 28 Jan 24). If you’re interested in free artist guided group tours and talks, please call Ketna on 07982 654310.
Congratulations to Ragasudha Vinjamuri for performed Indian classical dance at the European Parliament in Brussels last week. H.E. Santosh Jha, Hon Ambassador of India to Belgium, Luxembourg and the European Union and H.E. Gajendra Rajbhandari, Hon Ambassador of Nepal to Belgium, the Netherlands & Luxembourg, and Head of Mission to the EU were in attendance, besides other MEPs and diplomats.
A few weeks back Partish Dubey had the opportunity to meet the Hon Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Pushkar Singh Dhami, in London. Partish was able to present him a special book of poems written in Hindi by his late father.
Congratulations to Santosh Bhanot for her incredible work at the Peepul NGO in Delhi. She is pictured above visiting them a few days ago, with a focus on training and upliftment skills for women including sewing, beauty Parlour (19 treatments / six-months’ course), after which the girls are much more likely to gain employment. This work is supported by the Leicester-based Ethnic Inclusion Foundation.
To complement the publication of the tenth in our Special Series on Kashmir by Kashmiri journalist Venus Upadhayaya, she discussing historic geopolitics and the Great Game in Kashmir:
How progressive parties can better engage with India’s diaspora
In this exclusive article on our website, Pratik Dattani says:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to the US in June this year was a tour de force in strategic communications. On his last visit, 50,000 Indian diaspora came to see him in Houston, and he’s filled stadia in a similar manner around the world. Progressive parties from India would do well to engage with the Indian diaspora abroad in a similarly enthusiastic manner.
The first and second generation of the Indian diaspora are highly engaged in what happens back home. They see fellow Indians become CEOs of global companies, or the Prime Minister of the UK, and they feel proud. They see Modi pack Wembley Stadium on a bitterly cold night, and their chests swell with pride.
So when Opposition leaders come abroad with the message that the country they love is broken, like Rahul Gandhi has done a few times recently, the diaspora does not necessarily respond well. The message might be right, but the messaging leaves a lot to be desired.
Progressives need a playbook that is not just anti someone, but pro something.
There are plenty of good recent examples of this: Women’s Reservation Bill activisit Kavitha Kalvakuntla during her recent visit to London, Raghuram Rajan on democracy and AI in conversation with Newslaundry’s Abhinandan Sekhri, Telangana Minister KT Rama Rao at a keynote address, Pradyot Manikya Deb Barman from Tripura on why the North East of India matters.
Upcoming events:
Bridge India Members’ meetup (6pm, Thurs 9 Nov | Covent Garden)
For old and new Members alike, an informal meetup in central London. If you’d like to attend and are not yet a Member, please sign up by 12pm Tues 7 Nov, and we’ll send you the full details.
Ramayana: A puppet show (6pm, Fri 10 Nov | Waterloo Campus, King’s College London | Book here)
The Ramayana Puppet Show is StoryHour UK flagship performance. A timeless piece of culture and art, this story narrates the epic tale behind the festival of Diwali, using uniquely hand-crafted puppets. Having been performed across many different audiences, this puppet show has been celebrated for capturing the essence of a classic. The show has been screened at various Indian embassies across Europe and schools in London while also being readily available in 6 languages here.
Alongside a screening of the puppet show, there will be live puppeteers demonstrating scenes from the Ramayana, with an installation of the six puppets, followed by a talk and Q&A with producer Neelima Penumarthy. The event is hosted alongside the KCL Hindu Society.
When: 6 - 8pm, Fri 10 Nov
Where: B5 Auditorium, Franklin-Wilkins Building, Stamford Street, King's College London, London SE1 9NH
Book: Bridge India Members: £10 | Others: £20 bookable here | Drinks and snacks provided
Why become a Member of Bridge India?
Well, because just in the last few months, we’ve won an Award for our work, being featured in The Daily Telegraph, NDTV and elsewhere for our initiatives and events, and hosted multiple events with change-makers in London and elsewhere. Not to mention we’ve some facilitated incredible connections between Members from Florida to London to Delhi.
Become an Individual or Corporate Member of Bridge India. Here’s what we offer:
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Individual Membership is £250 annually (with Gift Aid for UK tax payers; Concessions £125) and there are several Corporate Membership options available.
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