9th edition of Mysuru Literature Festival to be held on July 5 and 6; to dish out food for thought, ideas for reflection
The annual festival is organised by the Mysuru Literary Forum Charitable Trust and Mysuru Book Clubs Charitable Trust, and will be held at Hoel Southern Star.
Shubha Sanjay Urs, founder and director of the Mysuru Literature Festival, said on Tuesday that the event will be inaugurated by Pramoda Devi Wadiyar of the erstwhile royal family of Mysore.
International Booker Prize winner Banu Mushtaq and former scientist at the Defence Research and Development Organisation Prahalada Rama Rao will be the guests of honour.
The inauguration will be followed by panel discussions and sessions featuring a veritable 'Who's Who' from the field of arts, culture, media, etc., and the programme will open with 'Lighting the Way: Kannada, Women, and the Booker's International State', featuring Ms. Banu Mushtaq and translator Deepa Bhasthi in conversation with Bharath Diwakar.
Gopalkrishna Gandhi, former Governor of West Bengal and grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, will speak on legacy in 'A Name Inherited, A Voice Earned', while Ranjit Hoskote, Arundhathi Nath, and Deepti Navaratna will discuss translation and global reach in 'Transcending the Barriers of the Dialect and Reaching Out to the World'.
Anita Nair and Mark Abott will explore crime fiction, while Romulus Whitaker, Janaki Lenin, and Ishan Shanavas will discuss issues related to conservation.
On the first day, there will be a session on 'Battles and Bloodbaths of Yore', which will feature Anirudh Kanisetti and Arun Krishnan who will discuss historical storytelling.
On the second day, Mani Shankar Aiyar of the Congress will be in discussion with Aroon Raman on 'Decades of Diplomacy, Democracy, and Political Developments', while the environmental themes will continue with Stephen Alter, Susheel Gyanchad, and Priya Davidar.
Ms. Urs said the two-day event features both Kannada and English panels, and it will have almost 20 conferences or discussions in English and as many in Kananda, including engagement with publishers and literary agents. There will also be book releases by new and upcoming authors among others. The poster for the literary festival was released.
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