Am back attending the Jaipur Lit Fest for the fifth time in a row...each year I leave saying this will be my last time, only to find myself back a year later.
Day 1 was a bitterly cold day, but that did not deter enthusiasts like me from attending the festival. What proved tougher than dealing with the weather was having to choose which session to attend as there were so many interesting sessions being held simultaneously...a problem that will continue for the entire fest.
I was very excited to hear Gloria Steinem talk in real time, but perhaps my high expectations were responsible for feeling a bit disappointed that this session failed to make an impression on me. So, in true JLF style I moved to another session--Ved Mehta's. Ved Mehta's statement that living in India was very difficult as it is so anarchic brought a smile to my lips, specially when I thought of the AAP in Delhi. Given that I had entered this session mid-way, I felt I had missed out on the focus on the conversation and so I moved on to another venue. This third session proved to be a real find, even though I caught the tail end of the discussion. It was delightful to listen to Ananda Devi talk about how writing as a mother is not so easy in that one cannot go off to a study and write undisturbed due to family demands---how I can relate to that predicament! I so agree with her statement that it is crucial for boys to be taught to respect women--a lesson that unfortunately a majority of men just don't seem to learn. Her comment that French has a lyricism that English does not brought a smile to my lips...I can't wait to recount this to my girls, who keep groaning every time I point out the pros about the French language. I definitely want to pick up her books to read.
The next session saw me firmly ensconced in the Baithak listening to Oscar Guardiola-Rivera explain how the US was involved in Allende's overthrow as they found him even more dangerous than Castro for being both a democrat and a Marxist! Guess that should not be too surprising, however, it does have one wondering what other events the US has been involved in.
The session on Litcrit was good fun to attend. It was chaired by Homi Bhabha--a number of moderators should learn from him how to conduct a session in terms of how to stay on the topic and give the panelists ample opportunity to air their views. One of the points to emerge from the discussion was the distinction between criticism and reviews--specially pertinent to me given that this blog will primarily be a place for me to share reviews of various books. Carsten Jensen was particularly impressive with his dry observations, so his book We, the Drowned was promptly put down on my reading list. I do hope that I can do what Philip Hensher said is a reviewer's obligation to the reader, of introducing the public to things they may not haven known of; wish me luck in this endeavour!
Save the best for last--that seems to have been the motto of the day with Anthony Beevor's session being held in the last time slot. I was riveted listening to him talk about the horrors of WWII and the atrocities committed by all parties involved. He ended by stating that WWII defies generalisation.
Thus ended Day 1, leaving one with a lot of food for thought and an ever-expanding reading list!
Day 1 was a bitterly cold day, but that did not deter enthusiasts like me from attending the festival. What proved tougher than dealing with the weather was having to choose which session to attend as there were so many interesting sessions being held simultaneously...a problem that will continue for the entire fest.
I was very excited to hear Gloria Steinem talk in real time, but perhaps my high expectations were responsible for feeling a bit disappointed that this session failed to make an impression on me. So, in true JLF style I moved to another session--Ved Mehta's. Ved Mehta's statement that living in India was very difficult as it is so anarchic brought a smile to my lips, specially when I thought of the AAP in Delhi. Given that I had entered this session mid-way, I felt I had missed out on the focus on the conversation and so I moved on to another venue. This third session proved to be a real find, even though I caught the tail end of the discussion. It was delightful to listen to Ananda Devi talk about how writing as a mother is not so easy in that one cannot go off to a study and write undisturbed due to family demands---how I can relate to that predicament! I so agree with her statement that it is crucial for boys to be taught to respect women--a lesson that unfortunately a majority of men just don't seem to learn. Her comment that French has a lyricism that English does not brought a smile to my lips...I can't wait to recount this to my girls, who keep groaning every time I point out the pros about the French language. I definitely want to pick up her books to read.
The next session saw me firmly ensconced in the Baithak listening to Oscar Guardiola-Rivera explain how the US was involved in Allende's overthrow as they found him even more dangerous than Castro for being both a democrat and a Marxist! Guess that should not be too surprising, however, it does have one wondering what other events the US has been involved in.
The session on Litcrit was good fun to attend. It was chaired by Homi Bhabha--a number of moderators should learn from him how to conduct a session in terms of how to stay on the topic and give the panelists ample opportunity to air their views. One of the points to emerge from the discussion was the distinction between criticism and reviews--specially pertinent to me given that this blog will primarily be a place for me to share reviews of various books. Carsten Jensen was particularly impressive with his dry observations, so his book We, the Drowned was promptly put down on my reading list. I do hope that I can do what Philip Hensher said is a reviewer's obligation to the reader, of introducing the public to things they may not haven known of; wish me luck in this endeavour!
Save the best for last--that seems to have been the motto of the day with Anthony Beevor's session being held in the last time slot. I was riveted listening to him talk about the horrors of WWII and the atrocities committed by all parties involved. He ended by stating that WWII defies generalisation.
Thus ended Day 1, leaving one with a lot of food for thought and an ever-expanding reading list!
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