Dialogue of Cultures | Intercultural Dialogue
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Mohsin Hamid's "The Last White Man"
The (familiar) stranger in the mirror
In his latest novel, award-winning Pakistani-British author Mohsin Hamid asks what would happen if a white man woke up one morning to find he was dark-skinned. A masterfully written Kafkaesque parable about everyday racism and discrimination. Volker Kaminski read the book
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Culture funding in Israel
Filmmakers fear censorship
In recent weeks, Israel has seen hundreds of thousands take to the streets to protest against the new ultra-right government's political agenda. Filmmakers tackling sensitive issues such as Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories are likely to be first affected by proposed cuts in cultural funding. By Joseph Croitoru
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Berlin Museum of Islamic Art
"Islamic Art” goes digital
The Berlin Museum of Islamic Art’s new online portal is the first digital platform in the German-speaking world to present Islamic cultures in an innovative and entertaining way. By Ceyda Nurtsch
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Pandit Debashish Bhattacharya's tribute
Ali Akbar Khan – sound of the soul
Pandit Debashish Bhattacharya's latest release pays tribute to late virtuoso of the sarod, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. With both men having been instrumental in bridging the gap between classical Indian and European music, it is fitting Bhattacharya should put together this album. Richard Marcus had a listen
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Iraq's art and literature scene
Culture boom in Baghdad
Frustrated with their politicians, young Iraqis are turning their backs on politics and throwing themselves into cultural life. Birgit Svensson reports from Baghdad
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Iranian film "Holy Spider"
Killing women in the name of Allah
Ali Abbasi’s film "Holy Spider" tells the true story of a serial killer in the Iranian pilgrimage city of Mashhad. The fact that it gets bogged down at the end does not make it any less interesting. By Andreas Kilb
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Sabah Sanhouri's "Paradise"
The last resort
Sabah Sanhouri is a fresh, new literary voice from Sudan. Her novel "Paradise" revolves around an agency of the same name, an organisation that assists desperate people in ending their lives. By Volker Kaminski
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Eye-witness on Iran protests
Exiled artist Forouhar: 'A country in turmoil'
Visiting the country of her parents, murdered by the Iranian regime in 1998, German-Iranian artist Parastou Forouhar finds a changed society: hopeful, strong and courageous, despite all the repression
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Gaziantep Academy of Culinary Arts
Baklava, but not for beginners
Gaziantep in south-eastern Turkey boasts a rich culinary history. Keen to preserve ancestral recipes for posterity, local chef Ugur Acioglu has founded an academy for the culinary arts. Rainer Hermann reports
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Best of Qantara.de 2022
Our readers' favourite articles this year
At the end of every year, the team at Qantara.de gives you a run-down of the ten most-read articles on the site over the past 12 months. Here is a quick overview of the stories that attracted the most attention in 2022. Happy New Year to all our readers!
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Hieroglyphs exhibition at the British Museum
Museums with guilt complexes
To celebrate the bicentenary of the deciphering of the Rosetta Stone, the British Museum is running an exhibition entitled "Hieroglyphs: unlocking ancient Egypt" until February 2023. While Shady Lewis Botros welcomes the museum's effort to broaden the Eurocentric focus of the exhibition, he says that it "lays bare a critical approach and a potential for revisionism" and remains largely decorative
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Iranian literature in exile
"A great demand for Persian books"
Cologne-based publisher Anahita Redisiu sells Persian books that have been banned or censored in Iran. She regards the situation in Iran with concern and has harsh words for Germany's stance towards the Iranian regime. Gerrit Wustmann spoke to her about politics and literature