“Diversity: the art of thinking independently together
-Malcolm Forbes.
Our Independence Day is undoubtedly as much a day to celebrate as it is to reminiscence and to reflect. The fact that we are a sovereign nation is to be celebrated; our journey so far to be remembered and where we stand and are headed, reflected upon. The Embassy of India in Kuwait as well as the Writers’ Forum, Kuwait precisely decided to do all of the three. The two collaborated and decided to commemorate this Day not just by celebrations but also by engaging in musings and reflections.
On the evening of August 15, 2016, the Writers’ Forum, Kuwait (WFK) organised an evening of diversity, creativity and unity. The platform was one, poets were many; their expressions were in diverse languages and the audience represented all of India. The Kavi Sammelan and Mushaira held in the Embassy Auditorium received the whole-hearted support of the Indian Embassy, and particularly of H.E. Shri Sunil Jain, the Ambassador of India in Kuwait, who also graciously accepted to be the Chief Guest on the occasion.
From about 6pm, Indian citizens from all regions and strata of society began to arrive in the Auditorium, anticipating to be immersed in the nectar of literary diversity. H.E. Shri Sunil Jain arrived sharp at 6.30 pm, flanked by the President of WFK Umesh Sharma and the Vice-President of WFK- Dr. Waseem Siddiqi. The General Secretary of the WFK, Tajwer Sultana welcomed the audience and the guests, while also speaking eloquently on the true meaning of Independence in our lives. She exhorted all those present to look within and seek independence from one’s weaknesses as well.
A well-known personality in the literary circuit and the former President of WFK--Mrs Maimuna Chogule who was to preside over the Kavi Sammelan and Mushaira was invited to come on to the stage to light the lamp, preceded by H.E. Shri Sunil Jain, and along with the President Umesh Sharma, the General Secretary Tajwer Sultana and the Joint Secretary Sunil Sonsi. The audience stood in reverence for the National Anthem. Floral bouquets were presented to the Honourable Ambassador and to Maimuna Chogule, following which the H.E. Shri Sunil Jain spoke on the importance of Independence Day in the lives of us all and on the need to celebrate the diversity of India. He congratulated the WFK for its unique identity and for bringing together the literary heavyweights in various Indian languages on one platform. The President of WFK then presented his speech, echoing the sentiments of patriotism and the contributions each one can possibly make towards the enriched nation that we are.
As is customary in the WFK, the preceding President and the General Secretary are honoured too for their services during their tenure, and accordingly H.E. Shri Sunil Jain presented mementoes to Dr. M. U. Beg and Rajesh Verlekar respectively. A much admired Punjabi poet and one of the leading torchbearers of the Forum- S. Gurbakash Singh Dogra, who is planning to relocate to India shortly, was also honoured on the occasion by the H.E. Shri Sunil Jain.
The most remarkable feature of the evening was not just the presence of 25 poets on the stage but the fact that their creative and original expressions were going to be in ten different languages of India. It is not very often that we find poetry flowing in diverse Indian languages from one platform. The onus of steering the program from the beginning till its zenith was on Afroz Alam—an Urdu poet regarded in high esteem and a member of WFK himself. The mantle of making the poetry in various regional languages, understood to the audience, by offering a translation in English, rested with Dr. Navniit Gandhi who herself writes poetry in Hindi and is a member of WFK.
The program began on a melodious note, with Swathi Shaker- a music teacher, presenting a patriotic song.
The eagerly awaiting audience was rewarded for its patience as the Kavi Sammelan and Mushaira began with gutso, and the following poets were invited to recite their original works: Rajesh Verlekar (English); Rajiv Athavle (Gujarati); Aamir Diwan, Navniit Gandhi, Nazneen Ali, Syed Qamar Minto, Umesh Sharma, and Vijay Dhillon (Hindi); Ameer Uddin Ameer (Kannada); Jyothi Das, Reshmy Krishnakumar and Vibheesh Tikkodi (Malyalam); Chhaya Athavle (Marathi); Gurbakash Singh Dogra (Punjabi); Preeti Rajgolikar (Sanskrit); Satya Narayanan (Tamil); Aamir Kidwai, Kamaal Ansari, Sayeed Nazar Kadpawwi, Shahjahan Jaffery, Shakeel Jamshedpuri, Tajwer Sultana and Afroz Alam (Urdu).
As is again a custom, the President for the evening – Maimuna Chogule was invited towards the culmination of the program to present her poetry (in Urdu) and the Presidential remarks on the evening.
The Joint Secretary of WFK –Sunil Sonsi conveyed sincere gratitude towards all those who had extended their sincere support and co-operation for the evening to become a memorable one.
The audience left enriched and elated, and also enjoyed tea and refreshments before they left the Embassy premises.