This Week In Culture: Mumbai Gallery Weekend, Payal Kapadia x The Golden Globes, & More

"So we go into this happy new year, knowing that our species has learned nothing, can, as a race, learn nothing — that the experience of ten thousand years has made no impression on the instincts of the million years that preceded. Maybe you can find some vague theology that will give you hope. Not that I have lost any hope. All the goodness and heroism will rise up again, then be cut down again and rise up. It isn't that the evil thing wins — it never will — but that it doesn't die," the American author John Steinbeck wrote in a letter dated January 1, 1941.

More than eight decades later, it's strange to read his words and think how little has changed. There's war in Europe, civil wars in Africa, genocide in the Middle East, and wildfires in North America. It's hard to look at all that's happening in the world and not succumb to despair. January is always weird and confusing like that: on one hand, there's the seasonal sadness of the bleak midwinter; and on the other, it's the season of restoration, rejuvenation, and rebirth. Culturally, this is the time when we celebrate the beginning of the winter harvest season in India.

As we look forward to the rest of 2025, it's important that we don't lose hope — that we don't lose sight of the fact that, however fleeting, there is still good, and hope, and happiness in the world: that there is always potential to learn, grow and evolve. After all, what are New Year's rituals like resolutions if not exercises in our willingness and ability to do better and be better?

To borrow from another literary great, the French existentialist Albert Camus:

"In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer. And that makes me happy. For it says that no matter how hard the world pushes against me, within me, there’s something stronger — something better, pushing right back."

In recognition and celebration of that spirit of strength, resilience, and something better, here's what we have for you this week:

A Homegrown Guide To Must-See Exhibitions At The Mumbai Gallery Weekend

In its thirteenth year, the Mumbai Gallery Weekend is the largest-ever coordinated art event in the city. Taking place over four days from January 9 till January 12, at over 30 leading art galleries across the city, there's a lot to see and do this year.

Read our guide to MGW 2025 here:

Kolkata Queer Arts Month Asks Us To Confront Our Often Exclusionary Cultural Spaces

Is a gallery, by definition, an exclusionary space? Are galleries defined by a series of otherings — arts vs crafts, artists vs artisans, curators vs practitioners, queer vs mainstream and so on — based on structural notions of gender, class, caste, race, and taste? These are the questions about contemporary art and cultural spaces that Kolkata Queer Arts Month 2024 asks us to confront. Learn more about Ko:QAM 2.0here:

'Skater Uktis' Is A Celebration Of A Global Sisterhood Of Muslim Girls On Skateboards

Indian-born, London-based filmmaker Mehek Azmathulla's Skater Uktis is a joyous glimpse into the world of skateboarding, seen through the eyes of the eponymous globe-spanning Muslim girls' skate crew, as they tenderly redefine what it means to be a 'skater'. Learn more about the film here:

BLEGH: Bengaluru Metalcore Band Among The Signs' New EP Is Unfiltered Dystopian Grandeur

"Tell me doing endless dishes and laundry isn’t our version of Sisyphus pushing that rock. Even in a ridiculous, brain-rot era of late capitalism, it’s all still there: the hero’s journey, the fall from grace, the redemption arc, creating our personal mythos; it's lore," Disha Bijolia writes. "That spirit of modern mythology takes center stage in Deluge, the latest EP from the Bangalore-based progressive metalcore outfit, Among the Signs."

Read her article about Among The Signs' latest EP here:

How Do You Style A Subversive Homegrown Filmmaker For The Golden Globes?

"It seemed strangely befitting to see Payal Kapadia on the Golden Globes red carpet wearing Payal Khandwala, representing her movie, ‘All We Imagine As Light’," Fathima Abdul Kader writes. "Styled by Indrakshi Pattanaik, Kapadia’s appearance at the Golden Globes is one that made a distinctive mark".

Read Fathima's story about how Pattanaik created the award-winning director's Golden Globes outfit here:

The Tropical Way: Paloma Monappa's Guide To Discovering The Paradise That Is Sri Lanka

Tibetan-Indian model, DJ, and Discovery Channel host, Paloma Monappa splits her time between India and Sri Lanka, weaving her love for nature, adventure, and surfing into her lifestyle.

From dreamy stays to must-try food joints, here’s Paloma’s ultimate guide to Sri Lanka:

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