M.I.A with Akil Kumarasamy: Border Crosser

Mathangi “Maya” Arulpragasam, the musician known as M.I.A., straddles multiple worlds—Tamil woman, Sri Lankan refugee, mega pop-star, activist, artist. She comes to LIVE to mark the release of the documentary MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A., a portrait of the artist’s life and trajectory told through intimate footage captured over the past two decades. M.I.A. will speak with writer Akil Kumarasamy, whose debut book, Half Gods, chronicles in fiction the reverberations of the Sri Lankan civil war. Together they’ll explore M.I.A.’s story and work, delving into the interplay between her different identities and how she navigates between spaces of resistance and mainstream success.

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LIVE from the NYPL offers conversations with notable writers, artists, and leaders, hosted by Paul Holdengräber at The New York Public Library. Learn more about LIVE and our other upcoming events.

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ASL interpretation and real-time (CART) captioning available upon request. Please submit your request at least two weeks in advance by emailing accessibility@nypl.org.