Member of the erstwhile Mysore royal family Pramoda Devi Wadiyar inaugurated the two-day Mysuru Literature Festival, organised by Mysuru Literary Forum Charitable Trust (MLFCT) and supported by Mysuru Book Clubs-2015, at a private hotel in the city on Saturday.
On the occasion, she said, “The Mysuru Literature Festival connects people, thereby developing a sense of community, among readers, writers and publishers, creating a network of support and collaboration among them.”
Actor, director-author Ramesh Aravind said, “A book of value is a joy forever. It gives new perceptions and new meanings each time a person reads the same book. Books have been a source of my inspiration, knowledge, joy and humour.”
Ramesh, who released a few books, added, “A great book keeps a reader hooked to each page with curiosity. To become a good writer, one should infuse life to every sentence and produce something so profound that it gets published, comes to market and connects a writer with readers… For me, a book is a muse (like in Greek culture), an angel of inspiration… It is like the invisible river Saraswathi, inside us, which changes the course and goals of life”.
Founder chairperson of MLFCT and curator of the literature festival Shubha Sanjay Urs said, “Besides creating a platform for the privileged, MLFCT and Mysuru Book Clubs-2015 are trying to reach out to every strata of Mysuru city and surrounding villages, through our outreach programmes. The 31st book club was inaugurated last week. We have members from five years old to 83 years of age. We have extended our book club activities to orphanages, slums, building construction workers, differently abled, children and senior citizens. We also go to government schools, to read out books and teach English to them.”
Entrepreneur-author Aroon Raman released the newsletter. Actor, director and environmentalist Suresh Heblikar received its first copy.
‘Sunflowers are the First Ones to Know’, a short film directed by Chidananda S Naik from Mysuru, which bagged the first prize at the Cannes film festival-2024, was screened during the inaugural session.
MLFCT vice-president Sam Cherian, joint secretary C R Hanumanth, secretary Thankam Panakal and trustee Suchita Sanjay were present.
Published 07 July 2024, 00:12 IST
