
'Scheherazade' Revives Her Legends in a Majestic Orchestral Performance at IXSIR
Inspired by the enchantment of One Thousand and One Nights, the performance is conceived, designed, and conducted by Lebanese-Armenian Maestro Harout Fazlian. It brings East and West into harmony, blending oriental instruments with Rimsky-Korsakov's iconic Scheherazade (1888)—a masterpiece of the Russian school known for its vivid orchestral storytelling.
Under the summer sky, the all-female Firdaus Orchestra – a pioneering initiative by ExpoCity-Dubai dedicated to empowering women through music – will take the stage with 26 professional musicians. With delicate artistry, they will weave melodies and tales into a singular moment suspended between mountains and vineyards.
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The National
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From public spaces to galleries, where to find street art in the UAE
In this episode of Culture Bites, host Farah Andrews explores the intersection of cities and street art through No Trespassing, an exhibition at the Ishara Art Foundation in Dubai's Alserkal Avenue, running until August 30. Curated by Priyanka Mehra, the show presents six site-specific interventions that brought street materials into the gallery space. Priyanka joins Farah in the studio to share her insights on what street art means in the UAE, common misconceptions about this form of art in the region, how it has evolved in recent years, and which neighbourhoods are becoming creative hotspots. The conversation then moves into the exhibition itself and the meaning behind the title of No Trespassing. Priyanka also talks about the artists behind the exhibition and how their works reflect the relationship between urban art and cities.


Khaleej Times
2 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
Masuma Halai Khawaja weaves South Asian spirit into the UAE art scene
It is very common for artists from Pakistan to visit the UAE and hold exhibitions here. As the country is growing in every field, the UAE is also becoming a regional hub for art and culture. It is the diversity of its expatriate community that encourages artists from all over the world to display their art throughout the UAE. Masuma's journey as an artist started in Pakistan, and she has exhibited her work in Singapore, Dubai, China, the USA, Germany, Qatar and Colombia. Masuma's artworks were awarded the Excellence Award in 2016 and in 2020 at the Fiber Art Biennale in China. 'My initial language of expression was oil paints and at times watercolours and acrylics, but I have now started creating textile collages and embroidering garments and also moved onto moving images and short films,' she explains. Masuma has exhibited her work twice in Dubai. She exhibited her work at the prestigious Dubai International Art Centre (DIAC), which was a three-person show. As there was a lot of interest in the narrative and the process behind her work, Masuma found it very encouraging to display her work in the ever-growing art world of the UAE. 'I loved the very cosmopolitan audience that came to the opening, where I had to explain the entire history and context to some, while others who shared the same or similar histories were more interested in the process,' she shares. Masuma's art practice explores pivotal points in recent history with a focus on South Asia. Informed by recounts and life experiences, Masuma counters state-fed narratives and unilateral textbook versions of history by addressing the psychological and sociological undercurrents of strife and forced migrations and their impact on languages, dress codes, religion, and mindsets. Masuma has created many textile collages by purchasing tapestries and kilims from flea markets, which have been transformed into art pieces by the use of embroidery from Pakistan. 'Carefully cutting the embroidery into little pieces, I reconstitute the fragments to create an entirely different narrative. The ensuing account, while pertinent to the present, is detached from their individual truths, altering the original identity of the fabric by imposition of an account it is unfamiliar to. In this way, new histories and new memories have been created which have their place in the present,' she explains. Masuma believes that the way art, curation, and artistic research have started taking centre stage in the Middle East, the UAE is already in the league with the other art capitals of the world. Especially the fact that the Mena region, which, due to political and cultural histories, has artists that are constantly pushing boundaries and finding new and exciting forms of expression. Masuma was one of the Visiting Artist Fellows at the Lakshmi Mittal and Family South Asia Institute at Harvard University for the 2025 spring semester. This was an impressive opportunity for Masuma to have one-on-one meetings with scholars, professors, and curators. 'I loved exploring the library collections with help from the extremely well-informed librarians and going through old documents and artist books,' she recalls. Masuma continues to explore the possibilities of displaying more of her artwork in the ever-evolving cultural hub of the UAE.


Khaleej Times
2 hours ago
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Sold-out shows, frenzied celebrations: ‘Coolie' mania grips UAE
If it's a Rajinikanth movie, then milling crowds outside theatres and celebrations are the order of the day, in India. Dubai wasn't immune to the superstar's craze, fondly referred to as the Thalaivar by fans, with moviegoers queueing up in theatres way before the crack of dawn. But first, a primer for the uninitiated. Superstar Rajinikanth, 74, is one of India's biggest movie stars, with fans across cities, towns and villages. He is known for his roles full of swag, style and substance — and escapist fare. His films often notch up robust box-office openings and collections. In Coolie, his 171st movie that also marked his 50th year in Indian cinema, he plays an ageing gold smuggler looking to revive his past glory. The slow-drip release of promos for the movie, comprising a galaxy of stars such as Nagarjuna Akkineni, Upendra Rao, Soubin Shahir, Sathyaraj, Aamir Khan and Shruti Haasan, amped up the excitement by several notches. It was no surprise that movie halls in Dubai and Abu Dhabi turned into a show of celebration, with the frenzied atmosphere echoing Chennai, Madurai or Bengaluru. At least 15 screens at one Dubai multiplex, Vox Cinemas at Deira City Centre, ran the movie at 2.30 AM on August 14 and every screen was packed to the rafters, according to Rafeez Ahmed, an expat from the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu and a content creator in Dubai. Ahmed, a Tamil cinema buff, is no newbie to the FDFS (first day, first show) phenomenon, having watched movies by many Indian stars from the word go. Even for him, the Coolie FDFS was a revelation. "Everyone was shook," he told City Times. "There was barely space to move around (in the multiplex). People were going crazy. From kids to adults to senior citizens, there were everyone enjoying." Video credit: Rafeez Ahmed Santha Balaji, CTO of Numerique360, a digital tech agency based in Dubai, concurred. A die-hard Rajini fan, he was witness to similar scenes when he went to watch the movie early on August 14. "The atmosphere was celebratory and I revelled in it. Watching Coolie in such a setting is an out-of-the-world experience," he said. Balaji also watched Rajinikanth's previous flicks, the action-comedy Jailer (2023) and the action-drama Vettaiyan (2024), on the first day of release. "There were a group of traditional Indian drummers and dancers as well going crazy outside the hall," Ahmed said with a chuckle. The Tamil film, which also released in Telugu, Hindi, Kannada and Malayalam, is bankrolled by media baron Kalanithi Maran's Sun Pictures, and reportedly cost Rs 3,500 million-Rs 4,000 million (Dh150 million to Dh172 million approximately). Lokesh Kanagaraj, who has delivered blockbusters such as Vikram, with Kamal Haasan, Vijay Sethupathi and Fahadh Faasil, and Master and Leo with Vijay, is Coolie 's director. Festival begins in #Dubai ð�¤¯ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ Thalaivar crazeð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ð��¥ Less than 30 mins for madnessð�¤¯ð��¥ð��¥ #Coolie #Thalaivar #CoolieFDFS — The Flicks (@Flicks_rithick) August 13, 2025 The movie, which released alongside the Hrithik Roshan, NT Rama Rao Junior and Kiara Advani spy thriller War 2, had a flying start in advance bookings. According to The Times of India, Coolie netted in nearly Rs 1 billion in global advance sales. But that may not weigh on the minds of fans like Ahmed. There is the reality that age is catching up with their superstar, and every movie of his that we get to see on the big screen could possibly the last, he said. "That's why everyone comes to celebrate him even if the movie is good or bad."