News & Media 2019
- Author Satyarth Nayak on Sridevi, the numero uno superstar!Sridevi was a screen idol and belongs to the world now, literally. Her movies and her roles were well-chronicled through her living years but not many knew Sridevi, the daughter, wife, friend, colleague, mother. Her premature end left her fans in a nagging blindness.
- Authors’ tips to get off the writer’s blockTwo of India’s young authors, Preeti Shenoy and Ravinder Singh, shared their success stories and tips on writing at a session, titled ‘Write India: Nurturing New Talent’. Known for her excellent storytelling skills, Shenoy said writing had always been her passion.
- Food for thought: Indian youth’s discovery of ‘pan-nation’ palateFood, a basic for human existence, has also become one of the booming industries in the country and across the world. Given that young Indians are now exploring, they’re developing a pan-India taste, becoming aware of dishes of other cultures and regions, of street food that were earlier confined to only their part of the country, said Pushpesh Pant, former JNU professor and food critic.
- Voice of a rebel? Sounds like UshaIf rebellion had a voice it would sound like Usha Uthup’s, feels Vikas Jha, who has penned her biography, ‘Ullas Ki Nao’. “She has defied stereotypes and social constructs at every stage of her life. We have heard the wonderful songs she has sung but very few know of her struggle to reach the pinnacle,” said Jha during a discussion on the life and works of Usha Uthup at Raash Manch I.
- 1947: A story of loss, and why it continues to hurtCorrecting historical wrongs and reversing Partition dominated the discussion between author Kishwar Desai and historian Tapati Sengupta at the session ‘Inheritance of Loss: Trauma Lives On’. From the chair, moderator Rishabh Kothari prodded the speakers to suggest ways to bring about ‘closure’ on Partition.
- ‘All conspiracy theories about Netaji are wrong’Noted novelist Vishwas Patil set to rest all controversies surrounding the death of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. The former IAS officer-turned-novelist was speaking at the session ‘Bose and the Revolution for Freedom’. “Netaji was not someone to don the robes of a sanyasi.
- To the City of Joy, with love and laughsThe vibrant Papa CJ, the global face of Indian stand-up comedy, ran up to the stage and regaled the audience with his experiences across the world and his take on life. He ended his routine quickly but continued to have “A Friendly Banter” with senior journalist and author Vir Sanghvi for the next hour.
- ‘To even worry the BJP, opposition must realize that politics is a 24x7 game’Danger Of India Being A Hindu Pakistan In Gandhi’s 150th Birth Anniversary Year: Sardesai
- Mixing science with myth? It’s ‘ridiculous’ “The idea that an elephant’s head could be transplanted onto a person’s body, or that the internet existed during the age of Mahabharata is simply ridiculous,” Neelakantan said during his session at Rang Darbar. “These are merely symbolisms, and to reduce them to a mere parade of pseudo-scientific war is an insult to symbolism and faith.
- An author’s tale of struggle, coming out and choosing humanity over his sexual identityA discussion on ‘Beyond Sexual Identities’ featured dancer-choreographer Sudarshan Chakravorty and Afghani author Nemat Sadat, moderated by interdisciplinary artiste Sujoy Prosad Chatterjee.
- An engaging discussion on sleuths in Bengali cinemaAbir Chatterjee along with ‘Mitin Mashi’ Koel Mallick and National Award-winning director Sagnik Chatterjee at the Times Kolkata Litfest 2019 on Sunday.
- Authors take a hard look at the bias against women writersIn an afternoon session of the litfest, author Shobhaa De and Sharbari Zohra Ahmed of ‘Quantico’ fame deliberated on pertinent issues that women authors face.
- ‘Society never treated me as human, so how can I reciprocate love?’For award-winning author Manoranjan Byapari, it is the survival of the stubborn. He does not claim to be courteous or sympathetic towards anybody because he never got it from society.
- A story about girls in film industry in the 1930sThe book ‘Menoka Has Hanged Herself' by Sharmistha Gooptu was launched at a star-studded ceremony attended by actor Prosenjit Chatterjee, director Srijit Mukherjee and industrialist Sanjiv Goenka.
- Spending on research and academics is more important than spending on statuesSpending on research and academics is more important than spending on statues, felt panellists at a session at the Times Litfest on Sunday.
- Fusion tales: Indian history through Western eyesTwo sessions at the Times Litfest Kolkata, titled ‘The Outsider’s view: Foreigners writing on India’ and ‘Empire of the Moghul: Epic Rise & Fall of a Dynasty’, were such refreshing eye-openers to several in the audience.
- From poetry to stage, Bengal stars steal showA series of high-voltage Bengali sessions were lined up at the Times Litfest on Sunday and senior authors were the centre of attraction.
- Sirshendu, Nonte-Fonte creator honoured for a lifetime of excellenceLifetime achievement awards should inspire writers to carry on putting pen to paper rather than look at them as a signal to stop, said author Sirshendu Mukhopadhyay at the inauguration of Times Litfest Kolkata 2019 at Rang Manch in Swabhumi on Sunday.
- To Calcutta, with love and laughsPapa CJ, the global face of Indian stand-up comedy had “A Friendly Banter” with journalist and author Vir Sanghvi.
- Studying history is actually the study of the sameness or universalness of the lived human experienceSpeaking of characters in a historical fiction narrative, where does history end and fiction begin?