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List of selected Sparrow Films
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Homai Vyarawalla
Homai Vyarawalla, born in 1913 into a priestly family in
Navsari, Gujarat, was the first woman photo journalist in
the country. Beginning her career as a photographer with
the Bombay Chronicle and later the Far Eastern Bureau of
the British Information Services, she soon came to be known
for her compelling photographic images taken both before
and after independence. She has a rare collection of interesting
picture of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Dr Radhakrishnan and
Mahatma Ghandhi. She freelanced for SPAN, life and many
international publications and finally gave up photography
in 1970. She was married to Maneckshaw Vyarawalla who was
himself a photographer. She lost her husband 34 years ago
and her only son 15 years ago. She currently lives in Baroda
keeping herself busy with plants on her terrace and all
the work, including repair and maintenance, of the household.
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Ambika
K. R. Ambika is a Tamil theatre artiste who acts in
folk and musical dramas performed in villages and towns.
Her father was famous as an artiste and as a drama teacher.
This video documentation of Ambika's life and work was
done in Melalakshmanampatti and in Karur, Tamilnadu, where
Ambika lives. |
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| G.V.Malathamma is the daughter of Gubbi
Veeranna, a legendary figure in the history of Kannada
theatre. Malathamma began to act in her father's theatre
company from the age of four. She and her husband Basavaraj,
became famous for their roles as Sita and Rama in the
play Lava-Kusha. Malathamma has two daughters, B. Jayashree
and B. Padmashree both of whom are well-known in the contemporary
theatre world. Disabled and virtually blind, Malathamma
is now seventy-five years old and lives with her daughter
Jayashree in Bangalore, in a far away suburb. For company
she has two dogs and her memories of her theatre days.
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Ritha
View
| Ritha Devi was born in the cultured
and erudite family of poet Rabindranath Tagore and Lakshminath
Bezbaroa, father of modern Assamese literature. Ritha
Devi feels that she has truly found herself in the lyrical
dance-form of Oudra Nritya, the special tradition of the
Devadasis of Orissa. Ritha Devi was the first to rescue
this art from near extinction and to perform it in many
parts of India, Europe and U.S.A. She currently lives
in Pune after living for many years in New York, teaching
and performing. |
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Pramila
Esther Victoria Abraham
View
| Pramila tells stories of fighting
queens, persian cats and a woman with a whip in these
video notes, based on the Visual History Workshop held
on August 31, 1997 in Mumbai. |
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Kanaka
View
| Kanaka Murthy, a traditional sculptor,
braved aspersions on her character to learn her craft
from master sculptor Vadiraj. Based on video recordings
made in Bangalore on November 26, 1997, and during the
Visual History Workshop in Mumbai on November 30, 1997 |
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Damayanti
Menaka's Daughter
View
| Damayanti Joshi, a Kathak dancer, dared to dance at
a time when it was considered disrespectable. Based
on video recordings made at her house during the Visual
History Workshop in Mumbai on February 13 and 15, 1998
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Sushma
Vhay, Mee Savitriba
View
| Theatre artiste Sushma Deshpande describes
how she recreated the spirit of Savitribai Phule for her
audiences. Based on video recordings made at her house
in Pune and during the Visual History Workshop in Mumbai
on August 27 and 30, 1998 |
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Maya
View
| Theatre artiste Maya Krishna Rao talks
about the constant inventions that keep her audiences
curious, in the Visual History workshop held on October
25, 1998. |
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Neela
Colours of Tradition
View
| Neela Panch realised her childhood dream of becoming
a painter. Her traditional Mysore paintings have been
captured in these video recordings made in Bangalore on
November 14, 1998, and during the Visual History Workshop
in Mumbai on November 29, 1998 |
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Vithabai
View
| Legendary
tamasha artiste Vithabai performed even when she was nine
months pregnant, stopping only to deliver her baby behind
the stage. Based on video recordings made in Narayangaon,
Maharashtra on March 31 and April 1, 2001. |
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Complete List of Sparrow Films | Back to Sparrow Homepage
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