DESI DIARY
What’s on in MARCH
Home page image of Madhur Jaffrey by CHRISTOPHER HIRSHEIMER. Above: Vikas Khanna by VIKAS KHANNA HOSPITALITY GROUP.
June 5: The Incredible Indian Kitchen: Madhur Jaffrey and Vikas Khanna in Conversation. Celebrate the rich traditions of Indian cuisine with renowned chefs and authors Madhur Jaffrey and Vikas Khanna, in support of the ROM’s exhibition Treasures of a Desert Kingdom: The Royal Arts of Jodhpur, India. Moderated by award winning journalist Jacob Richler, explore the deep history of Indian regional flavours in both traditional cuisines, and how it has influenced the personal gastronomies of two of the industry’s most influential personalities. Madhur Jaffrey is the author of many cookbooks – seven of which have won James Beard Awards – and was named to the Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America by the James Beard Foundation. She is the recipient of an honorary CBE and is also an award-winning actress, having won the Silver Bear for Best Actress at the Berlin Film Festival, with numerous major motion pictures to her credit. Vikas Khanna is an internationally acclaimed Indian American chef. He is a James Beard nominee and one of the first Indian chefs to be awarded a Michelin Star in the US. He has been the host of MasterChef India since 2011 and has hosted Twist of Taste and Mega Kitchens on National Geographic. Program partner: Consulate General of India. 7-8 pm, reception to follow. Royal Ontario Museum, Samuel Hall Currelly Gallery. Tickets, $20. Contact 416-586-5797 / programs@rom.on.ca.
June 7: Seva Food Bank’s fundraising gala, Seva Spark 2019. The award winning Dr Rumeet Billan is keynote speaker and the evening will be sprinkled with great entertainment as Seva celebrates some of its top supporters. The gala goal is to raise funds for kitchen programs, which will allow Seva to go beyond providing groceries to its clients. Vital cooking skills are taught, warm meals served and engagement with community organizations takes place at the brand new community teaching kitchen at its Malton location. Fundraising goal: $50,000. Tickets: Individual, $175 (tax receipt $100); table $1600 (tax receipt $900); youth $85. At Avani Event Centre in Vaughan. Email angie@sevafoodbank.com for sponsorship opportunities.
June 13: In The Name Of Your Daughter, Giselle Portenier’s award-winning documentary that celebrates the bravest girls in the world, comes to the Hot Docs Cinema (506 Bloor West). An inspiring documentary about girls whose voices have never been heard, children who dare to stand up for their fundamental human rights and follow their dreams, the film tells the story of Tanzanian girls like 12-year-old Rosie Makore who had to make the most difficult choice a child should never have to make: submit to female genital mutilation (FGM) and child marriage, or risk her life and family and run away from home. And it’s about Rhobi Samwelly, the indomitable human rights activist who confronts her community to protect the girls in her Safe House. The screening, a Women Deliver Satellite Event, will be followed by a panel discussion. Female genital mutilation: A Canadian issue too? Author and activist Farzana Doctor will be part of the Q&A panel after the screening as a rep from WeSpeakOut and the End FGM/C Canada Network. 6:30 pm. More info at inthenameofyourdaughterfilm.com.
Until end-July: The Second City’s 82nd mainstage revue, Walking On Bombshells. An explosive, fast-paced take on the minefield we’re all currently living in, this show turns our universal internal monologues into uproarious reflections, leaving you questioning everything (especially where you sit on public transportation). Starring Nadine Djoury, Stacey McGunnigle, Sharjil Rasool, Allana Reoch, Chris Wilson and PHATT al. Tickets start at $27. Visit http://www.secondcity.com
Sept. 13-14: Canadian comedy superstar Sugar Sammy returns to perform live in Ontario. His comedy has changed the landscape of our cultural reality by confronting language and social issues and exploring the great cultural divide. He can hit on cultural, social and political themes with such charm and finesse that it allows him to push the envelope a little farther than most, especially in his famous improv moments, which allow him to interact with audiences at every one of his shows, both onstage and after the shows. Sugar Sammy consistently has one of the most colourful audiences in Canada. With all this Canadian success, he promptly decamped to Paris and started over from scratch to see how far he could push French audiences. Pretty far, it turns out! After selling over 60,000 tickets in France, Belgium and Switzerland, his residency at the Alhambra theatre in Paris continues through June. And he keeps popping back home, here in Canada, to remind audiences how good Canadians have it. In 2017 he toured Canada, hosting the Just For Laughs Comedy Tour, which visited 12 cities across the country and this past February he sold out three shows at Toronto’s Randolph Theatre. At the Canadian Museum of History, Ottawa. Tickets: $42.99 - $56.99 at www.sugarsammy.com.
Until Oct. 12: Rope, a psychological crime drama by Patrick Hamilton at the Shaw Festival’s Royal George Theatre. Loosely based on the infamous Leopold and Loeb 1924 murder case. Inspired by debates surrounding amorality with former teacher Rupert Cadell (Michael Therriault), Wyndham Brandon (Kelly Wong) and Charles Granillo (Travis Seetoo) murder a fellow student. Drunk on their arrogance and the thrill of committing the ‘perfect murder’, they throw a party and use the locked wooden chest containing the body to serve the evening’s buffet. Tickets at 1-800-511-SHAW and www.shawfest.com.
Ongoing: Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirrored Room – Let’s Survive Forever is now a part of the AGO collection. Fewer than 20 of his Mirror Rooms are on view worldwide and Let’s Survive Forever is larger than most, featuring mirrored orbs suspended from the ceiling and arranged on the floor. A mirrored column inside the room invites visitors to peer into a seemingly infinite field of silver spheres. Access is included in general admission. Info at ago.ca.
Free Desi Diary listings. List your event for free in Desi News print and online editions, e-mail: desinews@rogers.com. Deadline for July 2019 listings: June 20, 2019.