Carnival time 2012

Day 1 at the Carnival

At the annual Carnival, Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi organized several on-the-spot competitions in which the public participated. the young and the old with literary leanings tried their hand at penning couplets and verses, captions and slogans.

Prizes were announced every hour or so. Lucky prize winners incleded Aman (for Slogan Writing), Satish Popular (for Hasya Kavita), Monica Bhardwaj (for couplet completion) and Sumedha Bector (for Caption contest).

 

CALLING ALL CHANDIGARH WRITERS:

Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi is also accepting SHORT STORIES (between 1,000 and 2,000 words) and POEMS (not exceeding 2 pages) in English, Hindi and Punjabi for possible publication in a forthcoming anthology. Contributions may be submitted at the CSA stall on the Carnival Grounds (Leisure Valley).

Pics online: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.560831537267258.148344.100000212495273&type=1

CSA at the Carnival - Day 2

"Hamein tumse pyar kitna, yeh hum nahi jaantey, magar jee nahi saktey tumharey bina." This was a quotation given to the public and they were asked to write a parody. A number of enthusiastic visitors to the Carnival participated but the response that tickled the jury the most came from Rohit Gautam of Panjab University who wrote: "Hamein hai bukhaar kitna, tum kyon nahi naaptey? / Kha rahey ho ice-cream tum hamarey bina."

On the second day of the Chandigarh Carnival being held at the leisure Valley, sector 10, there was a continuos stream of visitors at the CSA stall.

Fun games, contests and quizzes were conducted. The response of the public was tremendous. Anil Raina, who conducted the quiz, had a bagful of questions with him. These were based on world literatures, from English, Indian, European and other cultures. Attractive prizes in the form of stationery, files, and diaries were given to the winners. The participants included senior citizens, housewifes, students and very young school-goers too.

Some more stories and poems came in for possible publication for a proposed anthology.

Tomorrow, on 25th Nov, the CSA will continue it literary activites at the carnival. Identify the Writer" whose picture was displayed on the notice-board was a popular contest and will continue tomorrow. Other contests will be added: Slogan writing, Caption, etc.
Photos are being posted on CSA Facebook. They speak for themselves.

CSA at the Carnival -- Day 3

Here's a riddle:

"This is the story of a father and a son after a devastating war. They find the queen and the princess alive in the chaos, and decide to take them home. In due time, the son marries the queen and the father marries the princess. Eventually, the son and the queen have a son, and the father and the princess have a daughter.

NOW

Either tell us what the relation between the two newborn children is.

Or

Tell us which character from a famous collection of stories is asked this question?"

This was one of the questions asked by Anil Raina, the Quiz-Wizard at the Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi Stall at the Carnival today. On the third day of the carnival there was a steady stream of interested participants eager to test their literary skills at the contests organized by the CSA. Thronging the stall were young and old from all walks of lie: engineers, bankers, lawyers, stock-brokers, students and lay readers. The questions focused on well-known classics as well as popular folk tales. For young children there were specially designed easy-to-answer questions.

Parody and couplet writing proved popular, as did the identification of pictures of well-known writers. Several writers, established as well as wannabes, submitted their stories for possible publication in a forthcoming CSA anthology.

Manju Jaidka, Chairperson of the CSA, long with Anil Raina and Madhav Kaushik, Vice-Chairman and Secretary, respectively of CSA, and several young volunteers. remained busy throughout the day, interacting with the literature-lovers of the city.

Photographs of the day have been uploaded on the CSA Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.561759797174432.148528.100000212495273&type=1

Minakshi Chaudhry Kanwar

CSA event 10^th November 2012

Minakshi Chaudhry on Ghost Stories from the Shimla Hills

Imagine snow-capped mountain peaks in the moonlight. Imagine you hear a strong wind swishing through the pine leaves. Or fog and mist intermittently weaving a magic web around imposing, silent buildings which have been mute witnesses to history. Imagine the souls of a hundred thousand people who once lived, loved and lost, who once were part of this mortal world, took birth, struggled with the challenges of life, and then went their way. Imagine all those ghosts and spirits of the ages gone by looking down at you, reaching out to you, communicating with you, telling you stories of their lives and times.

If you can imagine this, if you allow these unseen spirits to communicate with you then, you are blessed indeed. For you there will never be any dearth of stories. And if you are a denizen of the hills, your treasure house of stories will never be depleted.

Minakshi Chaudhry Kanwar is one such exceptional soul who is in tune with the world beyond, who is receptive to ethereal whispers, gives credence to them, and passes them on to us. She is a teller of tales, a disseminator of stories. In the world today we need such story tellers. We need people like Minakshi to keep the magic of the world alive, to remind us that there is more in life than mundane, materialistic fare.

Not only is Minakshi the writer and compiler of ghost stories and love stories from the hills, or travel books that help you explore the difficult terrain of the Himachal, she is one who has waged a battle against a dreaded cancer, survived it, and them risen again like the phoenix to face the challenges of life afresh. She does not allow clouds of gloom to darken her world; she is full of sunshine and inspires all those who come into contact with her.

On an invitation from the Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi today, Minakshi Chaudhry made a scintillating presentation of her work over the last decade or so, keeping the audience enthralled with ghost stories and love stories from the Shimla hills. She disarmed her listeners with her down-to-earth approach to life, her pleasant disposition and her love for the region, regaling them with anecdotes, funny as well as not-so-funny experiences encountered while in search of the material for her books.

Accompanying Minakshi was her husband, Rakesh Kanwar, at present the Director Culture of Himachal Pradesh who, in his own right, contributes to the promotion of literature and culture.

The CSA session was held at the UT Guest House in the conference room which was pack to its fullest capacity. The audience comprised writers, journalists, lay readers and literature enthusiasts.

Pictures of the events may be downloaded from this link:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.554839077866504.147009.100000212495273&type=3

Ghost Stories

The next CSA event will take place on 10th November at 11.30 am, UT Guest House.

The speaker, Minakshi Chaudhry, is a very special person, popular for her stories that revolve around Shimla, and also for the fact that she is a cancer survivor, a brave warrior who has cheerfully battled all health problems and continues to give us stories that regale us. Let us all give her a decent audience on 10th November.

Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi invites you to an exciting session of 

GHOST STORIES AND MORE!

Meet 

MINAKSHI CHAUDHRY KANWAR 

writer from the Shimla Hills

on 10 November 2012

at 11.30 AM  

Venue:

UT Guest House

Sector 6

Chandigarh

African Literature and more

CSA event on 21^st October 2012

Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi held a three-tiered session today at the UT Guest House. The invited speakers were Dr Veena Sharma, independent scholar and Fellow of the Indian Institute of Advanced Studies, Shimla; Shri Gyan Prakas Vivek, celebrated poet and novelist in Hindi; and Ms Neena Sahai, amateur photographer and artist who writes poetry and has also published.

Dr Veena Sharma, who is an independent scholar with expertise on African literature and culture, gave a baroad-based yet incisive talk on African Literature which emerged from the rich oral traditions of the Dark Continent. The literature of the region, according to Dr Sharma who has a PhD from JNU and has been a Fellow at the IIAS, Shimla, is intimately related to the oral traditions on the one hand, and also to humiliation suffered by Africa under the colonial rule. She spoke of racialism and the harsh colonial policies of the French, the British and the Portuguese which led to the first literary movement called Negritude. Which actually was a celebration of black colour.

Dr Sharma invoked African symbols like Sankota (return to the past – ‘go back and get it’), Nwe Mu Dua (measuring stick) and Siamese crocodiles (which symbolize solidarity, the idea of ‘one for many, many for one’). She mentioned the sense of community. That is strong in Africa and comes across prominently in the literature. Dr Sharma, like the traditional African ‘Malimu’ or teacher / leader in African culture, opened up new ground for the CSA audience to explore and appreciate.

Gyan Prakash Vivek, who is an acclaimed poet and novelist, spoke at length about his recent novel, “Chai ka Doosra Cup”. This is a book that revolves around the aftermath and the sad plight of children who, in large numbers, supposedly get lost every year. What happens to these hapless innocents? Aks the author. Some of them get roped into the flesh trade, others are exploited by a heartless society; their body parts are sold for mercenary gains, like organ transplantation.

For the world, however, a lost child is reduced to just another statistical figure in the files of missing people that gather dust in government offices. For their families the trauma is unmitigated. Gyan Prakash’s novel tries to capture the various aspects of the loss and sorrow, the gloom of the families and the utter callousness of an indifferent society.  Devdutt, his protagonist, whose son gets lost, is at his wits’ end and does not know how to reconcile to his loss. Gyan Prakash’s story, revolving around the sad plight of the father, reached out to the audience that responded whole-heartedly to the reading.

Ms NeenaSahai is an enthusiastic photographer. She has spent much of her life accompanying her diplomat husband, Paramjeet Sahai, on various postings all over the world. Her experiences in far-flung places such as Washinton DC, Singapore, Zambia, Malawi, Yemen, Moscow, Switzerland and Malaysia have been captured in her camera. Last year she put these photographs together along with a detailed commentary and brought out a delightful coffee-table illustrated travelogue appropriately entitled “Journeys Diplomatic and Artisitc”.

In today’s session Ms Sahai spoke at length about her lifelong passion for photography, her varied experiences in foreign lands, and her new-found love for poetry. This was followed by a slideshow of her photographs. “With silent eyes I watch the world go by,” says a line in her poem. Ms Sahai has not only watched the world go by but also participated actively in the world and frozen its myriad moods with the lens of her camera. This was an unusual session, a heady mix of creativity and autobiography and the audience much appreciated the visual treat.

Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi has, by now, a more or less regular audience that attends all its events enthusiastically. Events slated in the near future will be announced on the CSA blog and Facebook. Photographs will be uploaded on the Facebook.

Ru-ba-ru with Parminderjeet

Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi this evening organized a Ru-ba-ru with the eminent Punjabi poet, Parminderjeet this evening at the UT Guest House. The event was attended by a large number of prominent writers of the city. Parminderjeet, who has made a name for himself not only in poetry but also in the field of literary journalism, is the celebrated editor of the Punjabi patrika, "Akhar" which he has been publishing since 1975. The magazine can rightly boast of an impressive clientele with subscribers of the highest stature in the field of letters. Some of contributors are well-known names like Gulzar and the late Amrita Pritam.

 This evening, Parminderjeet regaled the audience with an impassioned account of his journey as writer and publisher, the various milestones and hurdles he encountered, and the final satisfaction that is now his. He spoke at length on poetry and what he considers a good poem. In his opinion, every poem must have its own music and rhythm which comes only after the poet undergoes rigorous discipline and practice. Although free verse is popular now, in the poet's opinion it is harder to write because the tools that are available in rhymed poetry are not used and the writer has to depend on his / her own ingenuity to bring in the poetic effect. Parminderjeet concluded the session by reading some of his poems to great applause. In particular, his poem entitled "Shukranama" was much appreciated.

 This evening's session was chaired by Shri KK Rattu, Dairector of Doordarshan, Chandigarh, who commented on the achievements of Parminderjeet at the end of an animated Q & A session. Office-bearers of the Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi who interacted with the audience included the Secretary Shri Madhav Kaushik, Vice-Chairman Anil Raina, and Chairperson Manju Jaidka. It was announced that the next CSA event is likely to be a major one in the third week of October. Link for photos: https://picasaweb.google.com/105464712099114161998/29September2012

Tri-lingual Kavi Darbar

Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi this evening organized a Tri-Lingual Kavi Darbar at Hotel Parkview. Invited poets from outside the city were Amarnath Amar from Delhi, Kumar Vinod from Kurukshetra, Darshan Butar from Nabha, and Jagvinder Jodha from Jalandhar. Among the local poets, Shrimati Taaran Gujral stole the show with her recitation. A senior citizen, Taaran Gujral has been writing poetry in Punjabi for many decades. Gifted with a melodious voice, she sings her poems, the way she did this evening, much to the delight of the audience. She was the first poet to come to the podium and her unhurried recitation of exquisite poetry in her mellifluous voice cast a spell on the audience, setting the tone for the rest of the evening. Ashk Amritsari, another veteran poet from the city who writes in Punjabi and Urdu, held forth with poetry that was a blend of humour, emotion and vigour. His enthusiasm reached out to the audience. Between the two senior poets, Taaran and Ashk, it was clear that old is still gold and that Chandigarh poets have their own place in the world of letters! Jagvinder Jodha from Jalandhar is a young poet whose has been awarded for his Punjabi poetry. It is evident that this young man has a lot of talent and is likely to go far in literary circles. His youthful exuberance, combined with his budding talent, endeared his to all. Kumar Vinod writes in Hindi. He is widely published poet although his formal training is in Mathematics: he teaches maths at Kurukshetra University. Written in a simple style with no pretensions, Vinod’s poetry is the kind that may be appreciated by the young and the old. There is rhythm in his verse, meter presented through catchy images. His are short and sweet poems written in an epigrammatic style. Darshan Butar has brought a new sensibility into Punjabi poetry. A banker by profession, he has been writing poetry of a high order. His poetry is of a serious nature and from the response of the audience it was evident that he is very popular among Punjabi litterateurs. Amarnath Amar works for Doordarshan where he in charge of literary sessions. His is a noted name that has received several awards like the Ganesh Shankar Puruskar and the Mailthli Sharan Gupt Award. His books are prescribed in various syllabi. This evening he recited and also sang some of his poems. This evening’s session was remarkable in that not only do the selected poets have talent, they are all excellent orators. By all standards it was a memorable evening. Present in the gathering were noted critics, academics, poets and writers including N.S. Ratan, Sushil Dosanjh, Rajinder Kaur, Indu Bali, Balvinder Sandhu, Deepak Manmohan, Bhupinder Brar, and Rajiv Lochan. Shri K.K. Sharma, Adviser to the Administrator, Union Territory, presided over the event which was brilliantly compered by Madhav Kaushik, the secretary of the Akademi. Prof Manju Jaidka, Chairperson, addressed the gathering, briefly outlining the aims and objectives of CSA. She exhorted the audience to continue its support of CSA activities. Prof Anil Raina, who has recently taken over as Vice-Chairman of CSA and has been associated with its activities over the last four years, was also present at the Kavi Sammelan and interacted with the poets as well as the audience. Photographs of the event

KATHA GOSHTHI 4 AUG 2012

CHANDIGARH SAH ITYA AKADEMI ORGANIZES KATHA GOSHTHI 4TH August 2012 Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi today organized a Katha Goshthi. Three local writers were invited to read their short fiction and interact with the audience. Subhash Sharma, who retired as a senior audit officer, is a well-known Punjabi short story writer who has published three anthologies of fiction, “Plot Mil Gaya,” “Mallah” and “Ashtiyaan”. He has earlier received an award from the NZCC for his creative writing. He read a story entitled “Bhatti” which effectively recreated a rural scene from the interior of Punjab, showing the changes that take place with the passage of time. Rajinder Kanaujia is a medical doctor by profession. He has published more than half a dozen books of poetry and prose in Hindi. His stories have been published in various leading national journals. He has also been awarded a publication subsidy by the National Sahitya Akademi as well as the Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi. His stories and short plays have been broadcast over the Doordarshan and Akashvani. His story entitled “Jantar Mantar” was well-appreciated by the audience. Based on a very contemporary theme, using irony and a subtle humour, it spoke of the movement spear-headed by Anna Hazare. Renu Behl writes in Urdu and her work has received a lot of appreciation. The Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi recently gave her an award for her unpublished manuscript which has since then been published. Earlier she has published four collections of short stories, two of which have been awarded by the UP Urdu Akademi. The story she read today was called “Kabza”. Today’s event was a continuation of the monthly goshthis that the CSA has been holdin in order to promote literature and creativity in the city. The event was ably compered by Shri Madhav Kaushik. The Chairperson of CSA, Manju Jaidka, invited more such writers from the city to come forward and share their writings with fellow writers.