VoW|Shabdavali ‘Hindi Sahitya Sammelan 2023’
By Dr Tania Saili Bakshi
Haridwar, 14 Sep: Valley of Words|Shabdavali celebrated the nuances of Hindi by spreading the magic of the written word beginning with a two-day ‘Hindi Sahitya Sammelan, 2023’ held at Dev Sanskriti Vishwasvidyalaya, here, on Hindi Diwas.
Day one of the Valley of Words Hindi Vertical Shabdavali commenced with Chief Guests Vinay Prabhakar Sahasrabuddhe, President, Indian Council for Cultural Relations, Dr Vivek Sharma Bharti, Judge, Nainital High Court, Dr Chinmaya Pandeya, Pro Vice Chancellor, Dev Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya, Dr Sanjeev Chopra, Festival Director, and Head of Hindi Vertical of Valley of Words|Shabdavali Dr Laxmi Shankar Vayjpayee being escorted by NCC cadets starting at the Wall of Heroes to the Mrityunjay Auditorium. The event began with lighting of the ceremonial lamp.
Dr Sanjeev Chopra and Poet LS Vajpayee spoke from the dais about the journey of Vow|Shabdavali over the past seven years. Vivek Bharti Sharma spoke with passion about promotion and conservation of the rich heritage. Dr Chinmaya Pandeya, Pro Vice Chancellor, Dev Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya, spoke with conviction about the richness of India’s heritage and culture. He cited anecdotes and incidents from his personal life and the past. He encouraged the youngsters to be the flag-bearers of India’s rich cultural heritage and reiterated how it was a privilege to be born in the country of the Himalayas, Ganga and Haridwar.
The first session of the ‘Hindi Sahitya Sammelan’ revolved around “Bhawar Ek Prem Katha” by former DGP of Uttarakhand, Anil Raturi. The author was in conversation with Hindi litterateur Dr Sushil Upadhyay. Amongst the latest best-selling Hindi Fiction books,now in its 3rd edition, the author and the discussant discussed the many layers of writing and also ‘Phoolwari,’ celebrated every 2nd Saturday of the month at his residence, a platform to interact with authors and poets associated with Hindi literature.
The second session celebrated Hindi poetess Mamta Kiran with Head of Department, Hindi CSIR, Someshwar Pandeya. Acclaimed poetess Mamta Kiran recited Haikus, poems, ghazals ‘Khamiyaaza’,‘Hazrat’, ‘Ma Kya Chahti hai’, ‘Thaap’, among her first poems printed in Rashtriya Sahara.
Author Vyas Misra discussed his work, ‘Kaun Taar Say Bini Chunariya’, with Prof Sukhnandan, Head of Department, Journalism and Mass Communication, Dev Sanskriti Vishwavidyalay. The book covers three decades and brings alive the main character’s association with the heroes of the freedom struggle such as Gandhi, JP and others.
Author Shubhra Upadhaya, fluent in Bangla and Hindi, spoke with passion about her book, ‘Kadambari Devi ka Suicide note’, translated from Bangla into Hindi. The book is one of the five shortlisted books of VoW|Shabdavali under the Translations from Bhashas of India.
Journalist Priyadarshan’s Hindi-fiction book ‘Bharat ki Ghadi’ was discussed at length with moderator Dr Ajay Bharadwaj, Assistant Professor, Department of Mass Communication, Dev Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya, Haridwar. The author explained the bleak reality of present-day India. Priyadarshan began the session highlighting the new definition of ‘patriotism’, ‘love jihaad’, and such like 42 articles related to present day India, citing contemporary instances.
An online session was moderated by VoW|Shabdavali Hindi Intern Sachin Chauhan with shortlisted author Ushakiran Khan, whose book ‘Dinank Kay Bina’ has been nominated under the Hindi non-fiction category.
The literary evening came to a fitting end with the students of the university putting together a cultural evening for the dignitaries.
