Lit for Life underlines freedom of expression

The fifth edition of The Hindu Lit for Life 2015 drew to a close on Sunday evening, after a three-day celebration of literature and the arts. The literature festival, which has been a yearly treat for book lovers, also proved to be a platform for addressing the importance of freedom of expression, this year. At a time of stress for this freedom, the fest, punctuated by talks, discussions and a resolution, made its stance clear on the subject.

According to Nirmala Lakshman, Curator, Lit for Life, and Director of

Kasturi and Sons Limited , the resolution passed at the fest condemning the protests against Tamil author Perumal Murugan’s book Mathorubagan came about as a register of natural anger among the writing community. “It happened organically and in a manner where speakers and guests felt the urge to register protest against the silencing of the author,” she said, adding that the fest was bigger and better this year, exploring unchartered territory.

Prasanna Ramaswamy, theatre director and documentary filmmaker, said: “The fest included, for the first time, three sessions in Tamil, notably ‘New Narratives or New Ways of Narrations?’ which saw filmmakers Vetrimaran, Vasanthabalan and actor/director R. Rohini, in conversation with culture writer A. Ramaswamy, on the nuances of narration in films.” The session was a hit, bringing in an unprecedented turnout.

The fest, which embraced other art forms, also had plays enacted by college students of the shortlisted works. Dushyanth Gunashekar of theatre group Crea-Shakthi said, “The most popular play with the crowds was the one by Anna University students on Shovon Chowdhury’s The Competent Authority.”

Also popular among the young and the old were sessions with author Chetan Bhagat and Amish Tripathi of the Shiva Trilogy fame, as well as the analysis of the term ‘Good Governance’ by television journalist Rajdeep Sardesai, the former press adviser to Manmohan Singh, Sanjaya Baru, and former Comptroller and Auditor-General Vinod Rai.

Around 8,000 registrations were made at the fest, which hosted 15 sessions and over 110 speakers. All three days had more than 5,000 visitors each.

The sponsors for the fest are — Title Sponsor: Aircel; Powered By: Hindustan University; Associate sponsor: VBJ; Bookstore partner: Starmark; Travel and Logistics partner: NTL Taxi; Hospitality Partner: Taj Coromandel; Event Partner: Aura.