What are your plans for January 11-13, 2014? Just drop whatever you’re doing, because the The Hindu ’s Lit for Life is back, and it’s bigger than ever. Featuring three days of lectures, panel discussions and workshops by distinguished national and international authors, this is one event you don’t want to miss.
There’s something for everyone: For music lovers, Carnatic vocalist T.M. Krishna and Gopal Gandhi, former Governor of West Bengal, talk about the evolution of Carnatic music and the musician while musician Vidya Shah takes us on a journey through the oral traditions of the past and the recording of early voices.
Interested in nature and wildlife? Conservationist Valmik Thapar explores 500 years of the tiger’s presence in India. For film buffs, actor Kamal Haasan, film critic Baradwaj Rangan and filmmaker K. Hariharan discuss the issue of moral policing in cinema today, while filmmaker Kumar Shahani and culture critic Sadanand Menon talk about the challenges that independent filmmakers face. Documentary filmmaker Anwar explores the contribution of Islamic culture to Tamil Nadu, and what it means to be a Tamil Muslim today.
Photography enthusiasts will not want to miss Pablo Bartholomew’s session on his award-winning documentation of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy. Fans of history can look forward to William Dalrymple’s session on his latest book, Return of a King , as well as listen to readings about the flora and fauna of the South — from Sangam poetry to modern-day literature — by Anita Ratnam, P.C. Ramakrishna, Rohini, Sushila Ravindranath and K.R. Arumugam.
For those interested in current affairs, Rahul Pandita, Basharat Peer, Barkha Dutt and Easterine Kire trade their experiences of being at the heart of conflict zones.
Want to listen to a good story? Ashwin Sanghi, Anita Nair and Ravi Subramaniam talk about bestselling novels, while India’s favourite storyteller, Ruskin Bond, discusses his career of six decades. Other novelists include international bestselling author Samantha Shannon, and three of Granta ’s Best of Young British Novelists, Helen Oyeyemi, Taiye Selasi and Xiaolu Guo.
Workshops include celebrity instructor Payal Gidwani’s yoga session, screenwriter Sabrina Dhawan’s script-writing session, a session on movement by dancer Anita Ratnam, one on the art of writing biographies by A.R. Venkatachalapathy and on adapting books for plays by Nikhila Kesavan. For children, there will be a storytelling workshop by Vikram Sridhar and an exciting interaction with Ruskin Bond.
When the sessions are done, stay on for a jazz performance by UNK: The Radha Thomas Band, for a relaxing end to an exciting day!
Bookstore partner: Starmark
Hospitality partner: The Leela Palace, Chennai
Event partner: Aura
To reserve your complimentary invite SMS: LFL<space>Name, Age to 53030
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