Prominent litterateur and Jnanpith awardee, Amitav Ghosh Friday inaugurated the three-day Tata Steel Bhubaneswar Literary Festival here and stressed on the need to arrest the effects of climate change. The author of The Nutmeg’s Curse, Jungle Nama, The Living Mountain and other well-known books, Ghosh, shared his concerns on the impact of climate change on the fragile eco-system of the region.
Among others, Soumya Ranjan Patnaik, Founder-Editor, Sambad, Chanakya Chaudhary, Vice President, Corporate Services, Tata Steel and Malavika Banerjee, Director of Bhubaneswar Literary Meet, were present in the inaugural session here.
The inauguration was followed by a discussion on the impact of climate change, where Ghosh shared his concerns about carbon emission. Former British Museum director and noted anthropologist Richard Blurton presented his book on the history of India through objects, which was followed by an interactive session with eminent dancer Mallika Sarabhai and Bachi Karkaria on her latest novel – In Free Fall.
The day ended with a discussion over the resurgence of Odia theatre where noted theatre and film personalities – Sofia Alam, Panchami Manoo Ukil, grand-daughter of eminent Odia poetess Nirmala Devi and Tanaya Patnaik, Executive Director, Eastern Media Limited discussed the stupendous success of plays like `Aahe Nila Saila' (Hail Blue Mountain).
