Arunachal literary festival enters second day

A CORRESPONDENT

NAMSAI: Day-2 of the 4th edition of Arunachal Literature festival that got underway here on Thursday witnessed a series of events from poetry recitation and short-story reading sessions to intellectually stimulating deliberations on various socio-cultural topics.

Moderated by Meethesh Nirmohi and Rati Saxena, over 20 poets recited their poems over two sessions, while in the short-story reading session, moderated by novelist and publisher David Davidar, six participants read out their stories of which one of the participants, Bondi Tao gave visual animation of his story on tribal culture and social-distancing practices prevalent among various tribes of the State. Dedicated to his late wife, the story was based on mythological folklore in the Nyishi society.

Simultaneously, in a discussion session on 'Crossing boundaries through translation' moderated by Dr Santosh Patel, participants Dr Santosh Kumar and Jyotirmoy Prodhani highlighted the importance of how translation is both a science and an art and is a medium of breaking barriers, making it global, going beyond culture. They spoke about how all of us are unconsciously master translators depending on the context and the people we are surrounded in day-to-day life. They also highlighted how translation is an art of storytelling and to be mindful to understand the cultural nuances and be a good negotiator while doing justice to the work.

During another session on 'Environment for preservation of Arunachal Language', participants Dr Arti Pathak, Sengkum Mossang, Dr Kusum Madhuri Toppo and Er Lardik Kare spoke on the significance of certain key social agents in creating an environment to sustain a culture for the preservation of Arunachalee languages, emphasizing more on the key stakeholders joining hands mainly - the parents, government, village heads, local political parties, schools as well the individuals themselves.

Moderated by Dr Wanglit Mongchan, the panelists through their discussion highlighted the dire need to preserve one's roots and at the same time embrace change in today's world as man being mortal, keeps behind the culture, language and tradition proving the testimony of time, beginning with one's early years of transformation.

Later in the afternoon session on 'Writing for children: the joys and difficulties', moderated by Divik Ramesh, participants Geeta Dharmarajan, Devendra Mewari, Satyanarayan Mundayur - fondly known as Uncle Moosa - emphasized that the challenge is not only to write for children, but also accessibility of those who write books to reach every child across the country through large movement of volunteerism in the absence of the schools contribution. They gave the message of how one as an adult be a writer, parents or teachers should never murder the curiosity of a child for that is how they learn, unlearn and relearn about life themselves.

The second day of ALit fest also witnessed a 'A meet the author session', 'Mitra Phukan in conversation with David Davidar' in which the life experiences of David Davidar as an editor, author and publisher, a career spanning 35 years, was discussed. Talking to the audience present specially the students, the author advised them to take up reading to develop an inclination towards writing.

In yet another session on 'Book discussion on Padmashri Mamang Dai's book 'Legends of Pensam', the panelists - namely Jyotirmoy Prodhani and Ravi Singh - were appreciative of the book, terming it as a lyrical and moving tribute to the human spirit, adding, the author has beautifully painted a memorable portrait of a land that is particular and universal.

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