I have failed SM readers in Los Angeles. I should have blogged this a couple of days ago to give you some more notice, but it’s better late than never. The Artwallah organization has two more performances of it’s Youthwallah program “Desi Factor,” Saturday at 8:30p.m. and Sunday afternoon at 2:30p.m. YouthWallah is an arts mentorship program supporting emerging South Asian artists in the pursuit and creation of powerful artistic work. It’s an incubator for young talent that could potentially breakout into the mainstream. The performance last night in an intimate little theater in Santa Monica was a perfect blend of music, dance, comedy, literature, and film. Here are some of the highlights from my attendance last night:

• Ashwini Srikantiah sang a jazz song at the piano while particular scenes from the Bollywood classic Sil Sila played on a screen in the background. It was a giggle inducing crowd pleaser.
• Young filmmaker Sabina Shamdasani previewed a film she is working on with a potentially hilarious concept: imagine the Bad News Bears meets the Bhangra Blowout competition. The laughter went on even after the trailer ended.
• There were two sisters with the name Vivekaanandamorthy. One sang and the other read a piece about traveling through rebel-controlled Sri Lanka. When else are you going to get to see a performance where the MC has to introduce two Vivekaanandamorthys?
• Shalini Rehil of Blu Soul sang while Aditya Rao from Lovely played the guitar for her.

The cost of the performance is only $16 (or $14 if you are a student) and the parking is plentiful around this Westside location. Here are the directions to the Highways Performance Space. The program lasted for about two hours. Info at: 310-315-1459. Be sure to call ahead for reservations as Artwallah events are usually well attended.