SHILLONG, Dec 1: The recently concluded three-day Cherry Blossom Festival witnessed a footfall of as many as 50,000 attendees.
According to a statement from Meghalaya Tourism on Wednesday, the festival, which was organised by the Tourism department as part of Meghalaya’s 50th statehood celebrations, included a wide range of perspectives through the lens of language, literature, words, stories and the many intersections with living cultures and the environment.
The first edition of the Shillong Literature Festival, on the other hand, witnessed a footfall of 10,000 people in three days.
The three-day event was also partaken by eminent authors, poets, journalists, scholars, artists, musicians, designers, filmmakers, and literary enthusiasts like Amitav Ghosh, Naseeruddin Shah, Shekhar Gupta, Namita Gokhale, Ritu Menon, Devdutt Pattanaik, Kynpham Singh Nongkynrih, Patricia Mukhim, Arak Sangma, Khasi Bloodz, Iba Mallai, Careen J Langstieh, Ramona Sangma, Bijal Vaccharajani, Daisy Hasan, et al.
“The sessions varied from conversations on climate change to lyrics, fashion to publishing industry insights, film scripting to language and literature, mythology to art practice, and much more. A few books were also launched including by Devdutt Pattanaik, Daribha Lyndem and by Balaji Vittal. There were also sessions around food which highlighted busting myths of our local cuisine, talks on archaeological sites found in Meghalaya, and sustainable eco-tourism. The programme ended with Naseeruddin Shah in conversation with Lapdiang Syiem, leaving us all inspired,” the statement said.
From fashion shows, band performances, graffiti artwork to games and local food the festival left citizens, travel enthusiasts and nature lovers mesmerised. The festival also included the Reading Hub — a bookshop, library, storytelling and book donation space. (With PTI inputs)