Famous standup comedian Gaurav Gupta gave a spectacular performance to a packed hall at Tagore Theatre in Chandigarh on the opening night of the festival on November 24. Dr. Sumita Misra, IAS, Chairperson, Chandigarh Literary Society and Festival Director and famous author Ashwin Sanghi, inaugurated the festival on November 25 and launched the Literati Digest at the Lake Club. The two-day festival was a literary extravaganza and book lover’s delight as renowned speakers, authors, luminaries descended in the city for it, and captivated the audiences with their insightful conversations and panel discussion. This year, the theme of the Chandigarh Literature Festival was 'Navras'.
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Award winning author and bestseller Ashwin Sanghi delivered a thought provoking keynote address on The Dharma of a Writer. The star attraction on day one was a candid conversation between Dr Misra and international star Kabir Bedi, who rose to stardom with Octopussy and Sandokan. His autobiography, Stories I Must Tell is an Amazon bestseller. Open and free for all, people thronged the trilingual festival. This was followed by to an enlightening interaction between Pramath Raj Sinha (Founder and Chairman of Harappa) and Rudrangshu Mukherjee, Chancellor and Professor at Ashoka University in their session Mahatma & Tagore. Geetanjali Shree the International Booker prize winner for her book Ret Samadhi impressed the audience with her eloquence and bestseller author Amish and writer Bhavna Roy discussed the power of idols through their book, Idols: Unearthing the Power of Murti Puja. Both sessions were huge crowd pullers on Day Two.
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From gastronomically powered chat between Turban Tadka Chef Harpal Sokhi and Naan Curry podcast’s Sadaf Hussain, unravelling the contemporary Hindi novel by Mamta Kalia and Gyan Prakash Vivek, understanding the choice of medium of expression through a panel discussion among renowned filmmaker Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari, award winning playwright Mahesh Dattani and Kumaon Literary Fest’s Sumant Batra to exploring Bharat ke raas-rang with santoor maestro Pt Abhay Rustum Sopori, Sufi Kathak danseuse Manjari Chaturvedi, Nandita Puri and Affan Yesvi, the sessions exemplified the Festivals tagline of ‘Converse, Connect, Create.’ From Embarking on a poetic journey between renowned poets Dr. Sumita Misra and President, National Sahitya Akademi Madhav Kaushik, to exposing true crime and crime writing with Maharashtra’s first woman IPS officer, Meeran Chadha Borwankar, and Rajesh Pandey IPS, the fest was an enriching experience.
The Litfest which concluded on November 26, also saw invigorating sessions on Punjabi - the state’s rich and changing literary landscape was explored in Punjab De Safeyan Ton with Sahitya Akademi Awardee Manmohan Singh, Bubbu Tir, Dr Lakhvinder Singh Johal. Celebrated filmmakers Amitoj Maan and Gabbar Sangrur gave an insight into Punjabi cinema in Punjab da Biscope. The lyrical presentation of Ramayan in Urdu by Fouzia Dastango and Ritesh Yadav in 'Dastan-e-Ram’ enraptured all in Dastangoi. There were book launches, and launch of the Hindi magazine Aabhaas by Rhyvers Publishing.
Dr. Sumita Misra said that we have completed a wonderful decade of hosting the best litterateurs of India and abroad in the beautiful city of Chandigarh. She said that our aim and dream has always been to make Chandigarh the favorite destination for literature lovers and for the festival to reflect the modern and vibrant spirit of the city.
