Concepts of Equality

Using Karah Prashad to explore equality. Karah Prashad is given out at Sikh temples and is made of equal parts water, butter, sugar and flour.

Jason Taylor, the filmmaker behind the 'Concepts of Equality' video beautiful explains "By using equal amounts of each ingredient, then blessing it and sharing it equally, this simple offering represented to people the message of equality of both men and women, a message the world seems to have forgotten, not just in the east but in the west too. The three ingredients were at one time sourced from local families who farmed the Gurdwara’s surrounding lands. They would donate them as part of their Dasvand, which literally means, one tenth. Whether financial, agricultural or as service to others, all Sikhs believe that one tenth of everything we have to give should be shared with those less fortunate than us."

Click here to read more about the video and here for more about the project.

Freedom of food and the Golden Temple

To the sounds of  DJ Shadow's 'Organ Donor' this video brilliantly captures Langar at Harimandir Sahib aka The Golden Temple. It shows the food being made and served while asking us to imagine a food system based on compassion. Something to think about while people are turning to food banks to eat:

"This short film comes from the kitchens of the golden temple where every day around 100,000 people, regardless of colour, caste or religion, donate, prepare, consume and clean for nothing more than compassion. Are we really moving in the right direction?
This year the world will produce enough food to feed twice the world's population, yet every day almost one billion people will sleep hungry".
Food for thought. 

Jason Taylor, the filmmaker behind the 'Freedom of food and the golden temple'

Click here to read more about the video and here for more about the project.

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Tying the Knot - BBC3 short film #Sikh

I was surprised to discover this short film on the BBC THREE youtube channel but I'm glad I did. It touches upon a myriad of subjects. It's worth watching, monologue pieces are hit and miss but I feel this one is strong. 

It's great to see the BBC actually create some Sikh related content, hopefully BBC THREE can help nurture the next generation of filmmakers.

This short film has been written by Rena Dipti Annobil and stars Mawaan Rizwan as Ronnie, a man struggling to prepare for his wedding day. Over the course of five minutes it touches on a variety of topics related to the Sikh diaspora.

It's part of a new BBC venture called 'The Break',  between BBC Taster, BBC Writersroom and BBC Drama Production that has seen five original short dramas written by up-and-coming writing talent from across the UK. Each short consists of a standalone, contemporary individual monologue, the others are really inventive and worth checking out too.

 

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Heart and Soul - Me and My Turban

Here's an insightful radio programme about Sikh women who wear turbans, it's part of the BBC series Heart and Soul. Presented by Nikki Bedi, the episode follows several Sikh women who discuss their decisions to wear a turban as part of their faith and spiritual growth as Sikh women.

Click here to listen to the programme. 

Image of Davinder and her daughter Har-rai who feature in the episode, taken by Rajeev Gupta .

Presented by Nikki Bedi
Produced by Rajeev Gupta

 

Exhibition in London - Rich Mix

The Hola Mahalla exhibition will be shown at the Rich Mix in London this May. Previously the exhibition has been shown at the National Media Museum and at Kala Sangam

DATES

EXHIBITION: 4 to 20 May 2016

Open Daily 10am to 9pm

Closed to the public on 18 May.  

Open House Launch: Wednesday 4 May 2016

6pm to 8pm 

Join us on Facebook for this event.

FAMILY event Saturday 14 May 2016

12pm to 3pm.

Join us for a special Hola Mahalla Family event featuring:
* Short films on Hola Mahalla and the Sikh diaspora
* Live music in the form of Kirtan and Katha performed by Sukhy Singh from Birmingham
* Sikh martial arts Gatka, performed by Sahibzada Baba Ajit Singh Akhara

To get a flavour of what this unique festival has to offer check out the trailer for documentary film 'Hola Mahalla: The Forgotten Festival' at the bottom of this page.

Free soft drinks and food will be available.

Join us on Facebook for this event.

 

ADDRESS

Rich Mix

35 - 47 Bethnal Green Road
London
E1 6LA

 

Contact:
Box Office: 020 7613 7498
Office/Admin: 020 7613 7490
Fax: 020 7613 7499
E-mail: boxoffice@richmix.org.uk

To buy the documentary on DVD click here or to watch it online via On-Demand click here.

Hola Mahalla is a little known Sikh festival that takes place annually in Anandpur, India. Dubbed the Sikh Olympics, it involves sword fights, daring horse stunts and a dab of spiritualism.

This documentary focuses on the festival Hola Mahalla that has been running since the 17th century, showcasing skills such as swordsmanship and daring horse stunts that are with an ever decreasing number of nomadic Sikhs.

Featuring key interviews with Nihang Jatherdar (High Priest) Baba Nihal Singh and Kesgarh Sahib Jathedar, Late Giani Tirlochan Singh. This beautifully shot film takes the viewer on a journey through the festival and Anandpur Sahib, the "City of Bliss", providing a snapshot into a world rarely experienced outside of India and exploring this Forgotten Festival.