Australian High Commission
New Delhi
India, Bhutan

PA/07/12 Celebrating 20 years of Australia-India exchange

PA/07/12                                                                    15 March 2012

Celebrating 20 years of Australia-India exchange

The Australia-India Council arrives in New Delhi on 16 March to mark its 20th anniversary and to celebrate two decades of bilateral exchange. Chair of the Australia-India Council and former Australian High Commissioner to India, Mr John McCarthy AO, will lead the delegation, which is also visiting Mumbai and Chennai. Other members of the delegation are Ms Suzanne Davies, Professor Gillian Whitlock and Professor Brien Holden.

Australian High Commissioner to India, HE Peter Varghese AO, said ‘the Australia-India Council has led the way in strengthening links between Australia and India. I commend the Council for its commitment to developing cultural, academic and people-to-people links over 20 years.’

In honour of the 20th anniversary Australia-India Council board member, Ms Suzanne Davies, has co-curated the exhibition and publication Kindness/Udarta. Australia India Cultural Exchange with Dr Alka Pande from the Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre. Dr Karan Singh, President, Indian Council for Cultural Relations, will inaugurate the exhibition and launch the publication on 16 March 2012 at the Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi.
 

More than 140 Indian and Australian visual artists, writers and musicians have contributed and brought life to the project, including Thomas Kenneally, Alexis Wright, Les Murray, Robyn Beeche, Callum Morton and Jenny Watson, Haku Shah, Giriria Prasad, Pushpamalan, Nalini Malani, Bharti Kher, Shilpa Gupta, Subodh Gupta, Pradyumna Kumar and Ranbir Singh Kaleka.

Mr Varghese said, ‘Kindness/Udarta. Australia-India Cultural Exchange demonstrates the resonance and strength of relationships built on cross-cultural dialogues which the arts can so readily engender. It is a journey of creativity, and of studying each other's cultures, traditions and lands.’

At the launch, musicians Sandy Evans and Adrian Sherriff from The Australian Art Orchestra will perform with Guru Kaaraikkudi Mani’s Sruthi Laya Ensemble. Celebrated authors Kiran Nagarkar and Christopher Kremmer will also speak.

The Australia-India Council has promoted the relationship between Australia and India since its foundation in 1992. The key purpose of the Council is to broaden the relationship between Australia and India by encouraging and supporting contacts and increasing levels of knowledge and understanding between the peoples and institutions of the two countries.

The Kindness/Udarta exhibition will be open for public viewing from 17 March through to 29 March 2012 between 10:00 am and 8:00 pm daily.