When a mighty tree becomes a muse

Plus 3 more must-catch events



From Sunday (5 pm onwards) Till June 14 (12 noon to 8 pm)
Where National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA), NCPA Marg, Nariman Point.
Call 22824567 / 66548135
Star-crossed lovers with little regard for public spaces etch their names on their trunks, hoping that their relationship will last as long as the engraving. Some consider their bark as bull's-eye for their paan residue while some mercilessly chop them down for firewood. There is no contesting that trees are shown the least respect, and that is precisely what Sham Manchekar hopes will change through his photo exhibition. The freelance photographer and artist has been capturing trees on lens, particularly the ones who have silently witnessed history unfold around them, since more than two decades. "Typically, people don't notice trees around them, except when it's flowering season," he says. "I try to capture them from an aesthetic point-of-view to show people the beauty they hold." 'Tree'priciation, the title of his current exhibition at the NCPA, will take you across Indiau00a0-- from a Coconut tree with two branches at the Sindhudurg fort in Maharashtra to the oldest Ficus tree in India in Kolkata's botanical gardens, from a Banyan tree in Konkan that springs dozens of roots to a Baobab tree with a massive trunk at Mandu in Madhya Pradesh. "There are times when I go back to a place where I shot a tree, and it is chopped off to make way for a new building or a flyover. In a way, I am capturing something that is a reality today but might not be so tomorrow." Quite fittingly, this exhibition kicks off on World Environment Day.



It's a shopper-happy weekend
Remember those weekends when you were craving for retail therapy but there were no discounts or sales to lure you? Well, turns out that this weekend will be anything but that! First off, there's a super Saturday sale at Vero Moda, Only and Jack & Jones (all on Linking Road) where everything will be available for a flat 60% off. We suggest you walk in around noon because even though the sale goes on till midnight (kicks off at 10 am), we doubt there would be much to choose from at the end of the day. It gets better with a sale at Bombay Electric (Colaba) where brands like Manish Arora, Cue, Pero, Ela, Rachana Reddy, Ashish Soni, Pashma, Sonali Mannsigha and Small Shop are all going with a 30% to 90% discount. The happiness continues with uber funky Dilli brand Play Clan that is selling 7 of its pieces (we are eyeing the Krishna tee and the Balidaan boxers) on its website, all with a 20% off. Log on to www.shop.theplayclan.com to get your hands on these.



Celebrating sanskruti at Sula
From Today to Sunday, 6 pm to 10 pm
Where Sula Vineyards, Govardhan Village, off Gangapur-Savargaon Road, Nashik.
Call (0253) 2231663 / 1720
If you thought performances at Sula Vineyards were all about head-banging to desi rock bands or grooving to English lyrics, you are mistaken. The vineyards are now looking at our state for inspiration, with a three-day festival of dance, art and music that will be held at its amphitheatre. The fest, Sanskruti, will see an art exhibition with subjects of artworks ranging from Maharashtrian culture to local life. Saturday will see neo-classical and fusion dance performances as well as a dance drama called Maharashtra Chi Lokdhar. Sunday will witness a musical strain in the air, thanks to Swaranjali, a Hindustani Classical troupe that will present performances by Ragini Kamtekar, Shriram Satwawadi and Shubhanjali Padekar among others. A glass of Dia and an evening of good music or danceu00a0-- what more could one ask for over a weekend?



Pick up a saree handmade the forgotten way
From Saturday (June 4) to July 3
Where Artisans' Centre, Dr VB Gandhi Marg, behind Rhythm House, Kala Ghoda.
If you are done wearing mass-produced fabrics, make that trip to the Artisans' Centre at Kala Ghoda this weekend for clothes that are 'handcrafted the forgotten way'. At The Textile Treasures of India exhibition, you can pick up handcrafted sarees, dupattas, shawls and stoles that wove their way into existence through the efforts of Rta Kapur Chishti (makes handspun handlooms and light silks), Vankar Vishram Valji (hand weaver) and Abdulrazak Mohmed Khatri (hand block printer). Every day till June 7 a workshop will be held by Rta Kapur Chishti on Sari School (2 pm to 5 pm). The exhibition has been organised by PotliArts, a folk and tribal art and craft venture that aims to revive, showcase and promote the rich heritage of Indian hand-made arts, crafts and hand-woven weaves.