Festival dedicated to Indian classical music
The Saptak Music Festival is one of India's most well regarded classical events. Dozens of artists participate in the festival, from established performers to emerging talent, and it will feature Rajasthani folk music, sitar recitals and percussion recitals on the tabla, pakhawaj and mridangam. It was founded in 1980, with the approval of Indian sitar legend Ravi Shankar, and is run by the Saptak School of Music. About 450 students attend the school, which is devoted to teaching the principles of Hindustani classical music. The festival runs in Ahmedabad until January 13. For more information visit www.saptak.org
Archives of influential regional magazine go online
Bidoun was founded in 2004 and has been a vibrant forum for writers, artists and designers to share their thoughts on the Middle East and wider region. Publication of Bidoun, Arabic for "without", has been erratic – while it is sometimes published several times a year, its last print edition appeared in 2013. Now the entire archive has been put online for free and editors have asked prominent writers such as Orhan Pamuk to record their favourite pieces. Over 10 years, the magazine has tackled such issues as the end of Hosni Mubarak's rule in Egypt, Pakistani horror film, and the influence of Star Wars on Saddam Hussein's despotic son, Uday. For more information visit www.bidoun.org
Andy Warhol and Ai Weiwei in context
This exhibition in Melbourne looks at the work of pop art legend Andy Warhol, alongside that of Ai Weiwei. The show attempts to examine contemporary art, politics and life through both artists – with some arguing Warhol represents the "American" 20th century and Ai Weiwei the Chinese century to come. More than 300 works from both artists are on display, including immersive installations, paintings, sculpture, film, photography, social media and several new commissions from Ai Weiwei. Andy Warhol – Ai Weiwei runs at the National Gallery of Victoria in Australia until April 24. For more information visit www.ngv.vic.gov.au
Race%20card
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Our Time Has Come
Alyssa Ayres, Oxford University Press
Profile of Hala Insurance
Date Started: September 2018
Founders: Walid and Karim Dib
Based: Abu Dhabi
Employees: Nine
Amount raised: $1.2 million
Funders: Oman Technology Fund, AB Accelerator, 500 Startups, private backers
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Honeymoonish
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FA Cup quarter-final draw
The matches will be played across the weekend of 21 and 22 March
Sheffield United v Arsenal
Newcastle v Manchester City
Norwich v Derby/Manchester United
Leicester City v Chelsea
More on Quran memorisation:
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
Company%20Profile
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
