Kalinga Literary Festival to pay tribute to Mahatma Gandhi

Themed "Gandhi's Idea of India: Truth, Harmony, Non-Violence", the 6th edition of Kalinga Literary Festival (KLF) will open gates for bibliophiles in Bhubaneswar, the temple city of Odisha, starting July 19.

The three-day event, to be attended by over 250 celebrities, will witness speakers deliberating on Gandhi's works and ideas through literature, lived experiences, politics, arts and films.

"The KLF is well known for its socially relevant themes and in a way compels all creative people to think and articulate the contemporary.

Like its past editions the KLF this year also has a hard-hitting theme for writers, poets and artists to ponder on. "The central theme focuses on Gandhian Ideology. Several sessions on different themes will connect to the central theme on Gandhi's Idea of India," the organisers said.

The event will witness sessions and discussions by the likes of Namita Gokhale, Anand Neelakantan, Anu Chaudhary, Rashmi Bansal, Yashwant Sinha and Swanad Kirkire, among others from varying fields of interest.

The key sessions at the literary festival will be on topics including cultural nationalism, Gandhigiri, generation Y, Odisha, media, market, cinema, and sports. "This year the world is celebrating 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

It is only fitting to pay tribute to him, his ideas and reflect upon them in contemporary times. KLF 2019 will pay literary and creative tribute to the immortal spirit of Gandhi ji," Rashmi Ranjan Parida, founder director of KLF, said.

Four awards in literature -- a distinguished writer in Odia, a woman writer, a writer in any global language and a young writer in any global language -- will be conferred during the event.

Also, more than 20 new books and monographs will be released during the three-day festival, the organisers said A dedicated platform, Kalinga Art Festival, will provide a unique platform for artists to showcase their talent and connect their art to the central theme of the festival.

Apart from the literary discussions, the festival will also witness cultural programs to showcase Odisha's art, culture and literature.

Story telling session "Dastan-E-Mantoiyat" by Syed Shadab Hussain and Meera Rizvi, screening of Oscar-nominated director Ashvin Kumar's "No Fathers in Kashmir will be the star attraction of the festival, they said. The festival will come to an end on July 21.