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Weekend events not to miss in Kolkata (Jan 16-18)
Abish Mathew & His Many Talents Part 2 is the latest iteration of Mathew’s comedy format, which mixes stand-up with music, improv and alternative comedy
Stand-up comedy
* Humour in hairy situations
This stand-up show by Alok Vaid-Menon, a comedian, poet and performance artiste, is built around a series of personal and often-awkward encounters, including being mistaken for a famous Brazilian DJ and attempting online makeup tutorials. Drawing on lived experience, the comedian uses humour to reflect on everyday misadventures and the social assumptions around appearance and identity. The show blends observational comedy with candid storytelling, presenting a tightly structured set that moves between anecdote, self-reflection and punchline-driven humour.
Where: Kala Kunj
When: January 17, 7 pm
Entry: Prices start at ₹499
* A comic multitasker
Abish Mathew & His Many Talents Part 2 is the latest iteration of Mathew’s comedy format, which mixes stand-up with music, improv and alternative comedy. The show is designed for a live audience, blending Hindi and English, humour and observation, musical interludes and improvised segments, across 75 minutes. Expect shifts in tone and texture, showcasing Mathew’s range beyond traditional comedy.
Where: The Satire Club
When: January 17, 7 pm
Entry: ₹499
* From screen to stage
Vipul Goyal’s live stand-up show draws directly from the world of Humorously Yours, his semi-autobiographical series about a comedian negotiating work, ambition and everyday disappointments. On stage, Goyal expands on similar themes: creative insecurity, career plateaus, relationships the quiet absurdities of middle-class urban life. His set is built around extended anecdotes rather than quick punchlines, using a conversational tone and observational humour to reflect on performance, failure and persistence.
Where: Kala Kunj
When: January 16, 8 pm
Entry: ₹1,099
Art
* Thinking across creative ecologies
Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam VII, the seventh edition of the Kolkata Centre for Creativity’s annual symposium, is a platform for cross-disciplinary conversations across art, craft, design, architecture and ecology, under the theme The Earth Remembers: A Creative Living Archive. The programme brings together architects, designers, curators, historians, ecologists and traditional practitioners to examine how knowledge systems are made, transmitted and sustained. Through talks, panels, screenings and workshops, the symposium centres practices rooted in lived experience, with a particular emphasis on voices and traditions from east and north-east India.
Where: Kolkata Centre for Creativity
When: January 16 and 17, 11 am to 7 pm
Entry: Free; prior registration is mandatory
* A tale of two cities
Shahrashob: Letters between Lucknow and Calcutta is Soumyadeep Roy’s nine-year-long, research-driven exhibition tracing centuries of movement between the two cities.
Spanning the mid-18th century to the present, it follows poets, courtiers, artists and everyday lives shaped by the Nawab of Awadh Wajid Ali Shah’s exile. The exhibition is anchored by Huzn, a central installation on loss and continuity; Gilauri (a two-channel paan-shop video installation rooted in the present); and Ishqnama (a segment that examines the futures of both cities). Expect to encounter archival photographs, sound, letters — including Satyajit Ray’s — paintings and installations.
Where: Studio Bari Kolkata
When: Until January 20
Entry: Free
* Art on contested ground
Zameen is a group exhibition curated by artist-writer Ina Puri, bringing together contemporary artists including Riyas Komu, Mithu Sen, Ratheesh T, Zarina Hashmi and Debasish Mukherjee. Part of the Birla Academy’s 59th annual celebrations, the exhibition examines land as inheritance, resource and contested terrain, shaped by histories of labour, displacement, ecology and politics. Across painting, sculpture, photography and mixed media, Zameen foregrounds how land is lived, remembered and fought over in contemporary India.
Where: Birla Academy of Art & Culture
When: Until February 8
Entry: Free
Theatre
* A collective at 50
Rangakarmee is hosting a five-day festival to celebrate turning 50, with inaugurations, screenings and plays such as Lok Katha, Chhanda Bedni, Abhi Raat Baaki Hai, Aadhe Adhure and Pashmina, as well as mime and Baul performances. Founded in 1976 by the late Usha Ganguli, Rangakarmee carved out a distinctive Hindi-theatre space in Bengali Kolkata, known for socially rooted productions such as Rudali and Mahabhoj, rigorous training of actors, and regular touring shows. The festival showcases an ensemble repertory while showcasing Kolkata’s pluralistic musical traditions.
Where: Sujata Sadan, Academy of Fine Arts and Rangakarmee Studio Theatre
When: January 16 to 20
Entry: Prices start at ₹200
Music
* A quiet Burman evening
Candlelight: Tribute to RD Burman presents a piano-led reimagining of the composer’s Hindi film repertoire in an immersive setting. Performed by composer and pianist Avik Ganguly, the concert features arrangements of enduring favourites, including Yeh Sham Mastani, Yeh Dosti, O Mere Dil Ke Chain, Chura Liya, Ek Ladki Ko Dekha and Gulabi Ankhen. Part of the international Candlelight Concerts series, the hour-long programme is a blend of melody and atmosphere, offering a distilled listening experience.
Where: Hyatt Centric Ballygunge
When: January 18, 5 pm and 7 pm
Entry: Prices start at ₹1,399
