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The Mittal Institute Presents the 2023–24 Year in Review and Arts Program Reports

The Mittal Institute Presents the 2023–24 Year in Review and Arts Program Reports

The Mittal Institute is excited to announce the release of the 2023–24 Year in Review and 2023–24 Arts Program reports. Like every year, the comprehensive Year in Review Report includes updates on all major faculty-led programs, lists awards and fellowships, highlights the work of students, student organizations, and scholars, and summarizes events and other achievements. The Arts Program Report highlights the incredible impact and accomplishments of the Mittal Institute’s various arts initiatives, which include fellowships, exhibitions, and events. Both reports offer valuable insights into the institute’s mission of connecting Harvard with South Asia. 

An Extraordinary Day: Prime Minister of Nepal Speaks to Packed Audience at Harvard’s Renowned JFK Forum

An Extraordinary Day: Prime Minister of Nepal Speaks to Packed Audience at Harvard’s Renowned JFK Forum

On Friday, September 27, 2024, Rt. Hon. KP Sharma Oli, Prime Minister of Nepal, spoke to more than 400 students, affiliates, and faculty at Harvard Kennedy School’s JFK Jr. Forum. The Mittal Institute co-sponsored the event together with the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School, the Harvard Center for International Development, and the Asia Center at Harvard University.  

From Rituals to Resilience: A Conversation with Nepali artist Sneha Shrestha

From Rituals to Resilience: A Conversation with Nepali artist Sneha Shrestha

Sneha Shrestha, known by her artistic alias IMAGINE, is a Nepali artist who gracefully incorporates her native language and meshes the aesthetics of Nepali manuscripts with graffiti influences. We are also lucky enough to call her one of our own, as she is the Mittal Institute’s Arts Program Manager. We had the privilege of discussing her recent milestone as the first Contemporary Nepali artist to have her work permanently acquired by the MFA. We also eagerly anticipate insights into her latest exhibit in New York and the opening of her solo show, Ritual and Devotion.

Todd Lewis on the Revival of Newar Buddhism in Nepal

Todd Lewis on the Revival of Newar Buddhism in Nepal

The Harvard Buddhist Studies Forum launched its spring semester events series with a February 7 talk by Todd Lewis, Distinguished Professor of Arts and Humanities at the College of the Holy Cross and Research Associate in Harvard’s Department of Sanskrit and Indian Studies. His talk, co-sponsored by LMSAI, explored “Reconfiguration and Revival: Newar Buddhist Traditions in the Kathmandu Valley (and Beyond).” We spoke with Todd to learn more about the motivations behind his research on South Asian religions, and what society can glean from their teachings

From New York City to Nepal: How Francis X. Clooney, SJ, Became a Leading Scholar of Hindu-Christian Studies

From New York City to Nepal: How Francis X. Clooney, SJ, Became a Leading Scholar of Hindu-Christian Studies

Francis X. Clooney, a born and bred New Yorker, was following a fairly traditional path toward Jesuit priesthood when he took an unexpected detour that would change his religious and world view forever. Clooney, now Parkman Professor of Divinity at Harvard, is a leading scholar in the Sanskrit and Tamil traditions of Hindu India and the developing field of comparative theology. He has written numerous books, including Hindu God, Christian God (2001) and the more recent Reading the Hindu and Christian Classics (2019). How he found himself at the forefront of Hindu-Christian studies began in 1973 with a trip to Kathmandu, where different religious traditions were not just in books but all around him.

Calling All Harvard Photographers! Submit Pictures to the LMSAI Photo Contest

Calling All Harvard Photographers! Submit Pictures to the LMSAI Photo Contest
Calling all Harvard photographers! The Mittal Institute seeks images of South Asia for our inaugural PHOTO CONTEST. Deadline Extended to 5pm EST on Friday, March 10 in the following categories: CATEGORIES: 1. Nature + Landscapes 2. People 3. Urban Landscapes and...

Greening Nepal: Shrinkhala Khatiwada Earns LMSAI Student Grant to Study Kathmandu’s Urban Planning

Greening Nepal: Shrinkhala Khatiwada Earns LMSAI Student Grant to Study Kathmandu’s Urban Planning

Shrinkhala Khatiwada, a Master of Urban Planning candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, earned an LMSAI student grant to study urban planning in Nepal. She spent a three-week internship at Daayitwa Nepal Public Policy Fellowship, a program that fosters collaboration on economic policy research between young professionals and the Nepalese government. During her internship, Shrinkhala worked with the Nepal National Planning Commission to explore the potential for mandating a dedicated Urban Green Infrastructure department in every major metropolitan city in Nepal.

Visiting Artist Fellowship Lecture Series: Decentralizing the Creative Process by Asim Waqif

Visiting Artist Fellowship Lecture Series:  Decentralizing the Creative Process by Asim Waqif

The Mittal Institute recently concluded the 2020–2021 Visiting Artist Fellowship, which annually brings four mid-career visual artists to Cambridge to engage with Harvard faculty and students, participate in art exhibitions, and perform research using Harvard’s intellectual resources to further their art practice. Due to COVID-related programming changes this year, the fellowship was reimagined, bringing 13 of the top applicants from India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Nepal to the virtual world for a series of four online seminars curated to support the artists’ long-term practice. In these courses, the artists participated in thought-provoking discussions centering on art history, creative writing, urban design, and more, with both their peers and the expert facilitating the class. For the final installment of the VAF Lecture Series, the Mittal Institute welcomed Asim Waqif, a Delhi-based artist whose international work revolves around architecture, ecology and design.