New Delhi, July 14 (IANS) As the curtain raiser of the sixth edition of the Indian Languages Festival (ILF) got underway Wednesday, it promises to be a game changer for such events across the country.
With the theme 'Language as Public Action', ILF this year looks to interpret Indian Languages beyond literary terms, exploring the trans literary, even trans verbal, possibilities of human expression and communication.
Moving beyond the regular format, this edition will see an array of cultural programmes spanning over the next few months and leading up to the three-day main event in November.
According to Rizio Yohannan Raj, creative director, the festival will feature verticals such as theme panels, arts and performances, apart from the No-Tongues Barred conversations (#ntb series), a discourse on languages.
ILF Samanvay is moving beyond the boundaries of being just an event in time into a cultural phenomenon. Each year, we toil to devise ways to depict the question of expression and communication through thought provoking themes and topics, inspiring performances and unique exhibitions. This year we are taking a closer look at the voice of the creative individual in the public space and how her/his language is forged, Raj said.
No-Tongues Barred conversations are aimed at creating a relevant discourse on languages in our times. Additionally, it will feature verticals such as theme panels, arts and performances, awards and talents search, book releases, food festival amongst others, she added.
The even also saw the launch of a documentation project which draws the route map of languages used across Delhi. The project led by writer Prof Apoorvanand, will be an audio visual representation of Delhi as a confluence of languages. The first preview of the project will be showcased during the main event of ILF Samanvay in November.
The festival will also focus on Urdu, Santali, Telugu, Khasi and Gujarati as focal languages, in addition to English, Hindi and Punjabi.
The second leg of #notonguesbarred (#ntb) saw invigorating discussions and readings from the panel led by culture commentator Alok Rai, heritage activist Sohail Hashmi and educationist Syeda Hameed.
The audience was treated to literary fare with the recitation of prose from legendary authors like Yogeshwar Dayal, Intizar Hussain and Ashraf Subuhi Delhvi. With her exemplary story telling style, Fouzia Dastango took the audience down the lanes of history.
Delhites can look forward to an exciting line-up of events every month, the organisers said.
