The Other City, a project as part of the four-month Indo-French voyage Bonjour India 2017, includes debates, lectures, meetings and interactions with authors, innovators, and policy makers. The project brought to Coimbatore 35-year-old French writer and actor Pierre Ducrozet for five days and he took part in a meeting on “Smart and Sustainable - Values of Living” here recently.
On a second visit to India and this time to three cities - Coimbatore, Chennai, and Puducherry, Mr. Ducrozet says he is “really passionate with this country as it offers intense experience.”
There are many places in India where one can feel the energy and power. “I went to the Perur temple. I felt so much strong emotions that somehow it will get into my next book,” he says. Following his first visit to India eight years ago, the last scene of his first book was in India, there was a whole part of India in the second book, and in the last book also India has a part.
“For me, India is like...this place is different from others, it is very unique. That is why I was looking to come back here,” he says. He is meeting people, and interacting with writers during the current visit. Talking about strengthening Indo-French relationship in areas such as literature, he says that as a writer he wants to welcome more Indian writers to France, help them to be published there. “We should strengthen this relationship in literature. We don’t read enough of Indian writers. We have to strengthen relationship in literature. I want to read more Indian literature to understand more...Arts make me understand more. I want to see Indian movies, listen to Indian music. Bonjour India is to have more (such) exchange,” he says.
Though English is a common language, translations during interactions can be avoided if more Indians, even those in smaller cities, learnt French and those in France learnt Indian languages.Then, it will be easier to promote literature and art of the two countries in the smaller towns too.
On issues related to sustainability, he says France too faces similar problems. The two countries can co-operate and support each other for solutions. He suggested that Indian cities look at tapping technology and internet so that people travel less for work.
