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Literature as Philosophy
Thu Oct 29, 6:30 PM
Lamakaan
Literature as Philosophy A Talk
By Sasi Sekhar (Editor, Taattvika)

A poet or writer will not be considered imperfect for not reading Plato’s Republic or Aristotle’s Ethics. But a philosopher, unfamiliar with Homer or Shakespeare, may lack insight into his theoretical systems. Philosophy seeks truth through concepts; literature discloses it through lived possibilities.

Literature deals with embodied human experience. Concrete instances of everyday life feed it. Literature accommodates contradictions and incongruities of mundane life, and makes them meaningful. Philosophy tries to eliminate all subjective elements from its domain. It rules the kingdom of Abstraction and doesn’t consider the vagaries of human life worth pondering.

Philosophy seeks conceptual clarity, logical consistency, and arguments for validation. It treats things that fall outside these criteria as irrelevant and meaningless. Literature, in contrast, is characterised by ambiguity, opacity, ineffability, and uncertainty. These are not literature's shortcomings but are its own philosophical paraphernalia with which it can reveal the complexity of human experience.

Literature does not deliberately philosophise, but it can create alternative worlds as a philosophical act. Philosophy is worried by the question “ What is?” and literature by “ What could be?”. Through metaphor, narrative, and ambivalence, literature takes us to the uncharted terrains of reality. Philosophy makes us think. Literature makes us experience in ways we never thought possible—and then refuses to let us stop thinking about that experience. Philosophy is considered the gateway to the truth of reality, but it is literature that opens the gate.
The History-Sheeter
Fri Oct 30, 7:00 PM
Lamakaan
The History-Sheeter by Dr. Kafeel Khan - Book Discussion.

The discussion will be moderated by Prof. Murali Karnam, Director, Access to Justice for Prisoners, NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad.

The History-Sheeter has just been published by Juggernaut. It is a sequel to my earlier book, The Gorakhpur Hospital Tragedy, which documented the BRD Medical College tragedy and what followed.

The History-Sheeter is my searing account of that third arrest, from incarceration through the COVID-19 pandemic to the fictionalization of my story in Shah Rukh Khan’s film Jawan. It reveals what I believe is the darkest side of the Indian state, and how dissent is punished, criminalized, and crushed.

Author Profile – Dr Kafeel Khan

Dr Kafeel Khan is a Professor of Paediatrics, author, social activist and public-health advocate. He is the author of The Gorakhpur Hospital Tragedy, published by Pan Macmillan India, which was shortlisted at the Mumbai and Bengaluru Literature Festivals and later became part of the story fictionalised in Shah Rukh Khan’s film Jawan. His latest book, The History-Sheeter, published by Juggernaut, is a sequel to that memoir and chronicles his subsequent experiences with imprisonment, the justice system and life after release.

He is also the author of the widely used Manipal Manual of Clinical Paediatrics, now in its fifth edition, and MAA, which led to Project MAA, an AI-powered voice assistant providing accessible health information from pregnancy through adolescence.

Through the Dr Kafeel Khan Mission Smile Foundation, he has conducted over 350 free medical camps, reaching more than 100,000 children across India. He is also the founder of Doctors on Road and the Health for All campaign, advocating the right to healthcare.

All are Welcome!
Jhumka Making Workshop
Sat Oct 31, 12:00 PM
Gathergram
JHUMKA MAKING WORKSHOP

Join us for a fun, hands-on Jhumka Making Workshop where you’ll learn to design and create your very own pair of jhumkas from scratch.
What’s included?
• All jhumka-making materials
• Step-by-step guidance
• Create your own pair of jhumkas
• A fun, creative afternoon with new people!

👫Open to everyone, regardless of gender.

12 PM Onwards
599/- per person

🎟️RSVP here: https://forms.gle/rVr3Sx5rj2rgfWbA9

Hosted by GatherGram
Sahityam tho Sayantralu -Jashuva
Sat Oct 31, 3:30 PM
Aditya Annavajjhala
Sahityam tho Sayantralu

A Discussion on Gurram Jashuva’s Literary Journey & Gabbilam

Telugu Collective presents the next edition of Sahityam tho Sayantralu, a three-hour literary discussion exploring the life, literary journey, and enduring relevance of Gurram Jashuva—one of Telugu literature’s most powerful and distinctive voices.

At the heart of the discussion is Gabbilam, Jashuva’s landmark work that uses the voice of a marginalised individual to question caste, social inequality, exclusion, and the structures of privilege. Through a close engagement with the text, we will explore its literary form, language, historical context, and the questions it continues to raise today.

The session is an opportunity to read Gabbilam beyond its familiar interpretations and understand Jashuva’s place in the broader history of Telugu literature.

📅 Date: 31 October
⏰ Time: 3:30 PM – 6:00 PM
🎟️ Entry: Free
🏛️ Hosted by: Telugu Collective
Power of UncertAInity
Sat Oct 31, 7:30 PM
Srinivas Kodali
Power of UncertAInty: The Battle for Privacy, Identity and Sovereignty

In conversation with Anand V.

India's digital public infrastructures Aadhaar, UPI and a booming software industry have changed how a billion people live, pay and prove who they are. But does using technology at scale make a nation technologically sovereign? Who really controls the hardware, the cloud, the data and the identities that our digital lives run on?

In Power of UncertAInty (Rupa Publications, 2026), Anand V. and Srinath Sridharan argue that digital sovereignty cannot be declared through slogans. The book looks at:

- how India's digital success still rests on foreign hardware, cloud networks and global supply chains
- how imported regulations, such as heavy KYC mandates, can end up burdening ordinary citizens instead of protecting them
- why treating AI as a human-like entity, rather than the statistical tool it is, leads to bad policy
- why responsibility for protecting our data and identity lies with the institutions and people who build, deploy and regulate these systems

In place of slogans, the authors propose a "Digital Panchsheel": a framework built on open-source development, export-led innovation and grassroots economic freedom.

Join Anand V. for an evening on privacy, identity and who holds power in the age of AI, followed by an open Q&A with the audience.

About the speaker:

Anand V. (Anand Venkatanarayanan) is a cybersecurity and privacy researcher, and co-founder and CTO of DeepStrat. He has spent two decades in the technology industry, including at AT&T, Intel and NetApp. He has appeared as an expert witness before the Supreme Court of India in the Aadhaar case and before the Supreme Court–appointed technical committee on Pegasus spyware, and he writes regularly on technology, security and public policy.
Hyd Indian-SF Reading Circle
Sun Nov 1, 2:00 PM
Karthik Prasad
Book club meeting of the Hyderabad Indian-SF Reading Circle to discuss the book Half of What I Say by Anil Menon. Founded with the aim of spotlighting the richness and diversity of speculative writing from India, the reading circle brings together readers interested in exploring how Indian authors imagine science, technology, history and the future.
Sherlock Holmes Chichcha
Sun Nov 1, 8:00 PM
ActEra India Private Limited
Title: Sherlock Holmes Chichcha
A complete family entertainer (hyderabadi hindi comedy play)

This is the story of a man from a village called Pareshanpur who acts as he knows everything about every mystery in the world. Everyone calls him *Sherlock Holmes Chichcha*—though his detective skills are often more dramatic than accurate.

His partner is Constable Paandu, a local policeman who supports Chichcha mainly because he hopes there will be some money, snacks, or a reward involved.

In the same village lives Chichcha’s biggest fan, a curious and overconfident girl known to everyone as *Google Jasoos*. She believes she can solve any crime by searching random clues, asking unnecessary questions, and giving advice that nobody asked for. Sometimes her ideas are brilliant—but most of the time, they make the investigation even more confusing.


The big question is: what kind of case will Pandu give Sherlock Holmes Chichcha, and how will Chichcha solve it? Will Google Jasoos become the unexpected hero of the investigation, or will her endless “Google knowledge” ruin the case completely?

What follows is a hilarious comedy village mystery full of misunderstandings, dramatic detective speeches, fake clues, and a final twist that no one in Pareshanpur sees coming.
HOWZAT! 150 GLORIOUS YEARS
Tue Nov 3, 6:00 PM
Lamakaan
HOWZAT!150 GLORIOUS YEARS

This book is curated into 56 chapters. It looks at the game through every lens, featuring insights from umpires, commentators, and beyond. Spanning 150 glorious years of Test cricket, this work traces the sport from its 1876–77 origins to its culmination in the Sesquicentennial Pink-Ball Test at the MCG in March 2027.


Over this long journey, these backstories, anecdotes, and nuggets together capture the true spirit of the game alongside its most defining events. The scope of this book is limited to men's Test and first-class cricket—white-ball and women's cricket being far too expansive to cover adequately here. First-class cricket, being the forerunner to Tests and a crucial journey in a cricketer's career path, also forms part of this work.


Designed for non-linear reading, the book allows readers to dive into any chapter at random and freely jump to whatever catches their interest next. Printed in a large 165 × 245 mm format, the book is set in classic Garamond to enhance readability, with rich illustrations providing a thoughtful visual balance throughout. Through engaging stories and statistics, it offers readers a comprehensive perspective on the evolution of Test cricket’s laws and its most defining historical moments—up to date as of September 30, 2026.
DCUBE
Thu Nov 5, 7:00 PM
SN Entertainments
D CUBE — Dark, Darker, Darkest

Vikram, an introverted man, has spent years being labelled “unlucky” by the people around him. As life's setbacks begin to shape his perception of himself, the line between reality and his inner world starts to blur. One night, he finds himself confronting a dead body and an unsettling version of himself. What follows is a psychological battle that takes him into the darkest corners of his own mind, where a single thought could change everything.
Short Film Screening - Kidnapped
Sat Nov 7, 4:30 PM
Sarath Chandra
Kidnapped is a 15 min Telugu short film with english subtitles. The film is about a 9 year kid who's kidnapped by three teenagers for ransom. It is a fun film which can be watched by any one from 6-60
Childrens Films Screening
Tue Nov 10, 6:00 PM
K.MOHAN
Screening children movies short films and documentaries on November 13th,2026 on the occasion of childrens day November 14th.
Discussion and Book Launch
Sat Nov 14, 4:00 PM
Azhar Maqsusi
Sani Welfare Foundation hoisting a discussion and Book Launch - Game Changers: Lessons on Resilience and Success from Everyday Heroes by Uday Shankar presents a transformative framework of leadership grounded in grassroots grit rather than corporate privilege. Moving past conventional boardrooms and institutional case studies, the book examines how genuine societal and professional transformation is driven from the ground up. By documenting the real-life journeys of ordinary individuals—from national icons like "Metro Man" E. Sreedharan and "Missile Woman" Tessy Thomas to unheralded changemakers like Dashrath Manjhi, rural innovator Meenakshi Gadge, and humanitarian Azhar Maqsusi—the work dissects how relentless perseverance, purpose, and resourcefulness can overcome systemic adversity and resource scarcity.
Panchatantra Uncensored
Sat Nov 14, 7:00 PM
Lamakaan
The Panchatantra is a collection of stories in the Sanskrit Neetishastra tradition—teachings on wise conduct in life. Created by Pandit Vishnu Sharma to educate princes in the art of governance, its tales explore human behaviour through the themes of friendship, deception, wisdom, courage, compassion and problem solving through wit and wisdom. Through its ingenious story-within-a-story structure, humans and animals constantly change roles as narrators and protagonists, revealing timeless truths about life and society.
This performance presents a curated selection of lesser-known Panchatantra stories, strictly for adults. Surprising, entertaining and thought-provoking, they invite us to reflect on the wisdom of an ancient literary tradition—and its striking resonance with our times.

Valentina Trivedi

A published author and a TEDx speaker, Valentina has engaged with stories in numerous ways: writing, editing, translating, adapting, performing, directing and podcasting. She has performed at premiere literature festivals in India and abroad and enjoys adapting and expanding folk tales for performative storytelling.

Nitin Sukhija

Nitin brings 25 years of experience in storytelling across different formats of media. From Journalism to Televison to promos to radio to films and Branded content .He has authored a Hindi e-novel and a ten-episode audiobook, and performes on stage, adapting mythology, folklore and literature for live audiences.

Duration
60 minutes + 15 minutes of audience interaction

Language
Hindi
Quiz - Everything is Diabetes
Sun Nov 15, 3:00 PM
Divya Keerthana
From family history to daily choices, diabetes shapes millions of lives every day. This Diabetes day, to mark this critical health topic the Mobius Quiz Club invites you to Everything is Diabetes. Hyderabad is frequently referred to as the diabetes capital of the world, Are we doing something wrong or is it an inevitable doom for us? Is there such a thing as reversal?

Through dynamic quiz rounds and expert-backed explanations, we aim to bridge the gap between clinical medicine and public awareness. Come join us and let’s explore the science behind this modern epidemic!
KATHASTU! - Myth. Folk. Life
Sun Nov 15, 7:00 PM
Lamakaan
KATHASTU! - Myth. Folk. Life.

Mythological and Folk Tales are an integral part of any culture. We have been blessed with a specially large treasure trove of it. Their appeal lies in their succinct and engaging narrative reflecting human emotions and foibles. While providing a universal framework for understanding human nature, they are living repositories of our generational wisdom and connect us to our collective identity and roots.

In this performance we bring you a curated bouquet of 3 such eternally relevant and engrossing tales which will regale the audience with their wit, humour and thought provoking narrative. ‘Gunehgaar Kaun’, ‘Kuchh Nahi Badla Hai, Kuchh Nahi Badlega’ and ‘Bhagya se Takkar’.

Valentina Trivedi

A published author and a TEDx speaker, Valentina has engaged with stories in numerous ways: writing, editing, translating, adapting, performing, directing and podcasting. She has performed at premiere literature festivals in India and abroad and enjoys adapting and expanding folk tales for performative storytelling.

Nitin Sukhija

Nitin brings 25 years of experience in storytelling across different formats of media. From Journalism to Televison to promos to radio to films and Branded content .He has authored a Hindi e-novel and a ten-episode audiobook, and performes on stage, adapting mythology, folklore and literature for live audiences.

Duration
55 minutes

Language
Hindi

The Canvas Art Workshop
Sun Nov 22, 3:00 PM
Hola Amigo
Discover your inner artist and dive into a vibrant day of pure creativity, color, and self-expression! Whether you are a seasoned painter or holding a brush for the very first time, this high-energy workshop is designed to spark your imagination and let your ideas flow freely onto the canvas.
Expect an inspiring, hands-on environment filled with great music, dynamic guided activities, and an enthusiastic community of fellow art lovers. Leave your everyday routine at the door and get ready to create something truly unique to take home!

Event Highlights
• All-Inclusive Materials: Premium canvases, paints, and brushes provided - just bring your enthusiasm.
• Guided Step-by-Step Experience: Expert tips and active guidance to help you master new techniques effortlessly.
• Engaging Atmosphere: Upbeat tunes, creative prompts, and interactive group activities.
• Take-Home Masterpiece: Walk away with your very own completed custom artwork.
• Networking & Fun: Connect with local artists and art enthusiasts in Hyderabad's vibrant creative community.

Event Details
Venue: Lamakaan, Hyderabad
Duration: 2 Hours
Skill Level: All levels welcome (No prior experience required!)
Age Limit: 16+ years and above