Preston Merchant

Asian American Writers Workshop Honors Sonny Mehta

As part of its PageTurner Literary Festival, the Asian American Writers Workshop  honored Sonny Mehta, Knopf Publisher & Editor-in-Chief with a Lifetime Achievement Award. The special guest was Michael Ondaatje, author of "The English Patient."  The event was held at the restaurant called At Vermilion in Manhattan. (Hover over the images for captions; click to go the image archive.)

Ishaara Rocks the NRI Global Summit

"America's Got Talent" stars, Ishaara, the Berkeley-based Bollywood dance troupe, performed at the NRI Global Summit 2009 in Milpitas, California.

Jigar & Annika Get Engaged

Jigar Mehta and Annika Dubrall threw themselves an engagement party at the Leela Lounge in New York -- just before Annika flew to England to get an MBA at Oxford.  Jigar shoots and edits video for the New York Times, Twitters, and serves on the board of the South Asian Journalists Association. 

Here are pictures of Jigar and Annika celebrating their engagement with their friends:

Jigar & Annika at the Leela Lounge - Images by Preston Merchant

At the Sewanee Writers' Conference

I had a lovely time at the Sewanee Writers' Conference in Tennessee -- and IndiaWorld looked really good on the walls of the main lecture hall.  Here is a composite picture of the space, with the poet Debora Greger reading from her work (click for larger).

The 2009 South Asian Journalists Association (SAJA) Convention in Pictures

SAJA Convention 2009 (Highlights) - Images by Preston Merchant

IndiaWorld at the Sewanee Writers' Conference

A press release about an upcoming show -- I will be in Sewanee from Jul 17-19.


The Sewanee Writers’ Conference will present work from “IndiaWorld: Images of the Global Indian Diaspora” by Preston Merchant from July 14-26 at the Bairnwick Women’s Center, 114 Mississippi Avenue, in Sewanee, Tennessee.

Merchant is a graduate of Sewanee:the University of the South and a former faculty member at St. Andrew’s – Sewanee School.  “IndiaWorld” is his ongoing project, now in its seventh year, to document the people and culture of Indians living outside the subcontinent.  Working in ten countries, Merchant has photographed Indians in all walks of life from the Lord Mayor of Leicester in the United Kingdom to contestants in the Miss Teen India Georgia Pageant in Atlanta and scenes from South Africa, Malaysia, and Guyana.

“Large scale Indian migration began in the late nineteenth century when the British turned to India for labor after the abolition of slavery in their colonies in 1834,” Merchant says.  “Subsequent waves of businesspeople, shopkeepers, and traders in the twentieth century have built strong and vibrant Indian communities in dozens of countries around the world.”

“IndiaWorld” is a story of both the forces of globalization and the struggle of families to build new communities far from India.

Quoting novelist Salman Rushdie, Merchant observes that the immigrant must invent the earth beneath his feet.  “I have tried to photograph families affected by immigration and the ways in which they have forged a new culture in a new land,” he says.

Merchant graduated from Sewanee in 1990 and taught English and Spanish at St. Andrew’s – Sewanee School from 1992-94.  He also worked on the staff of the Sewanee Writers’ Conference from 1990-1999.  He lives in New York and works as a freelance photographer.

“It’s an honor to come back to the Mountain and be part of the Sewanee Writers’ Conference again, as it celebrates its twentieth year,” Merchant says.

“IndiaWorld” will be on display for the duration of the conference.  Bairnwick Women’s Center is open daily from 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM.

Image above: Hari Radhakrishnan weds Marguerite Cauble at the Meenakshi Temple. Pearland, Texas

Rupa & the April Fishes at Joe's Pub

Rupa Marya and her gypsy caravan of April Fishes rolled into Joe's Pub for an eclectic evening, with the sounds of Paris cabaret, Tijuana border blues, and a braying elephant -- all performed in the boom-chick madcap style that makes Rupa and the April Fishes a great live show.

My Pet Dragon at Cameo

My friends Todd Michaelsen and Reena Shah of My Pet Dragon played at Cameo in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, with the full band -- great high-energy songs and spirited performance.

Anthony Rizzo, Todd Michaelsen & Reena Shah

Todd Michaelsen

Reena Shah

Anthony Rizzo, Todd Michaelsen, Reena Shah, Rajeev Maddela (behind cymbal), and Mario Padron

Todd Michaelsen & Reena Shah

Rajeeva Maddela

Delhi Noir at the Rubin Museum

The Rubin Museum of Art in Manhattan played host for the launch of Delhi Noir, a collection of stories by various Indian authors about murder, sex, and intrigue in India's capital.  Edited by Hirsh Sawhney, the book presents fourteen authors, including Meera Nair, Siddharth Chowdhury, and Tabish Khair. 

The event at the Rubin featured readings by actors Rita Wolf (My Beautiful Laundrette, Homebody Kabul) and Ajay Naidu (subUrbia, The Guru, Loins of Punjab Presents), as well as a conversation among Sawhney, Meera Nair, and journalist/novelist Pete Hamill, a contributor to Brooklyn Noir, the first installment of the series.

Ajay Naidu (right) reads from Delhi Noir during a break in the conversation with Hirsh Sawhney and Pete Hamill

Meera Nair, Hirsh Sawhney, and Pete Hamill

Meera Nair

Love Letters to Mumbai: From the Asian American Writers Workshop

On May 14, the Asian American Writers Workshop in New York presented a forum called "Love Letters to Mumbai," featuring some prominent artists and writers who have a personal connection to the city.

Author and journalist Amitava Kumar

Author and filmmaker Sadia Shepard

Visual artist Jaishri Abichandani

Author and professor Vijay Prashad

See more pictures.