Dimapur-based Susan Waten mulls over the recent Lit Fest in Shillong
BEING THE lone guest from Nagaland, I was honored to participate in Shillong’s first ever literature festival. Though TV journalist Kishalay Bhattacharjee commented on FB that it was more of a rehearsal than a literature festival, I choose to maintain that it was much more than a Lit Fest.
The Creative Arts, Literary & Music (CALM) Festival was organized by East Khasi Hills District Arts & Culture Society, Government of Meghalaya, in collaboration with Sahaki Society from 31 October to 3 November 2012. Despite having had to make space for ‘sarkari’ paraphernalia, ground organizers Sambha Lamar, Hansel and party did manage to pull off the four-day event of its first kind fairly well.
It was especially refreshing to see kids in various school uniforms throng the venue to engage in the events. The ‘Express Yourself Stage’ had these kids reciting poems, narrating stories, belting out songs and dabbling in diverse theatrics. It was open house in the book gallery for children to paint, sketch and model creative objects out of clay. Huge canvases adorned a pathway with their artistic impressions.
Kids were thoroughly inspired. In the session of ‘Meet the Artists’, US-based Photographer David Das opened the floor for Q&A. On the stage with him were Shillong artists Careen Langstieh, Benedict Hynniewta and Raphael Warjri (Riti Academy). A child, barely 4 or 5 years of age eagerly stood up and announced from the heart, “I like art.”
David said, “Yes! And any questions?”
The boy replied, “No questions.” That summed it all up.
Delhi-based novelist Indrajit Hazra was in for a surprise. Seeing a sea of school children in his talk session on ‘Creative Arts’, he had to change his script on the spot and redesign it just for them. Thus assuming the role of a schoolteacher, he saw himself turn into an impromptu actor on the very stage the kids displayed their talents on. At CALM he met head on with the idiom that life is a package of unpredictability, even in an organized platform as a Lit Fest!
While Sudeep Sen’s book launch, “The Harper Collins Book of English Poetry” saw a sparse audience, a lot of interesting ideas were churned out. On stage with him were celebrated poets from Shillong such as Robin Ngangom, Ananya Guha, Desmond Kharmawphlang and also the gracious novelist based in Bangalore, Anjum Hasan. Sudeep’s brilliance shone through even as he attempted to tease the audience with a piece of ‘erotic’ poetry.
Author of the book, ‘A Vote of Confidence’ Aashti Bhartia from Delhi attracted a good audience. In conversation with Babatdor Dkhar, many people came expecting her book to have substantial gravity of the ‘political’ kind. Being a youngster herself, her responses were likewise ‘youngish.’ Nonetheless she is lauded for having thought of attempting a book of this kind. Kishalay on the other hand, with a ‘soft’ launch of his yet to be released book, ‘Che in Paona Bazaar – Tales of Exile and Belonging from India’s North East’, simply held the audience spellbound by his beautiful and weighty narratives from insurgency-torn Manipur. Expecting bouquets and bats alike, his book will be hard to dismiss as just another journalistic venture.
Chirodeep Chaudhuri, the Mumbai-based photojournalist launched his book, ‘A Village in Bengal’. As an outcome of his 14-year romance with an idyllic village, his fine black-n-white photo book weaves an unpretentious tale of the places and people he encountered there. Surely he brought to life the ingredients that make for humane dialogue between those in front of the lens and that behind the lens. So also David Das, whose thematic photo book was inspired by the matriarchs of Meghalaya, said something very poignant, “I don’t take photos. I create pictures.” A glimpse of the Victorian homes in Laban that this CIA (Creative Independent Artist, as he coined) clicked for a lifestyle magazine made one understand what he meant.
Sikkim’s Prajwal Parajuly, 28, who is already gaining popularity both within and outside the country, attracted a rather eclectic audience in his session. His book, ‘The Gurkha’s Daughter’ is expected to hit the market soon, and many already imagine it to be an unputdownable book.
The fest had only one slot for panel discussion. With Guha as moderator, Kishalay, Patricia Mukhim, Anjum Hasan and I were allotted the topic, “Is India the New Cradle of English Literature?” Downplaying this claim, we managed to navigate the discussion quite sensibly. It would have been highly beneficial if at least one panel discussion had centered on Northeast literature and other related issues as well.
The Aroha Choir was a heavenly treat. The atmosphere in the auditorium was electrifying, enthralling, simply leaving us wanting for more! I was impressed that Shillong was ready for a ‘For Adults Only’ comedy show. It’s not every day that one gets to see a female stand-up comedian demonstrate the male ‘M’ act on stage. Kudos to those three incorrigible entertainers from Mumbai!
Chetan Bhagat, who raised the expectancy level when he wrote in support of NE people during the communal riot that broke out in Assam, slightly disappointed Shillong in that he did not engage in a satisfying dialogue with an eager audience; and also that the Governor of Meghalaya had unwittingly lavished praise on this ‘pop writer’ in his inauguration speech. The idealistic and almost utopian sounding MJ Akbar’s motivational talk centered heavily on post-partition India. He took the audience by surprise when he barked at a person whose ideas did not tally with his own. However, off stage he seemed most amicable and charming.
It’s true that Shillong has produced an astounding variety of literary artists and yet in many of the literary events, the bulk of the ‘local literati’ was quite inconspicuous. Also, the participation and presence of the academia (colleges, university) appeared somewhat nominal. Perhaps the reason could be that the selection examinations were going on.
It’s understandable that for any brand new undertaking, the first attempt tends to attract mixed responses from the local populace. However, it would be imprudent to overlook the huge prospects that CALM might have for the future of literature, art and music in the region and country. I for one, tend to be outrageously optimistic because experience has taught me not to underestimate the inherent potential of small beginnings. I must admit I came home enriched, and totally hopeful about the future of CALM Fest. ([email protected])