What: Kobitay Kathalap Utsav in association with The Telegraph
Where: Gyan Manch, 11 Pretoria Street
When: September 9 and 10; 6pm-9pm
What to expect: Chandrima Roy is organising a two-day cultural festival to mark 10 years of Kobitay Kathalap, an independent poetry performance initiative. As part of its mission to ‘break the bias’ against the pursuit of the arts, the first Kobitay Kathalap Samman award will be given to singer and music composer Anupam Roy. The festival will also witness the release of a special calendar featuring 16 famous characters of Bengali poetry. Eleven veteran elocutionists will be felicitated for their contribution to the field of poetry performance. Srabani Sen and Anindya Chatterjee will present songs. There will also be poetry-reading by Barun Chanda, Srijato and Joy Goswami and group recitation by other artistes. Also on the cards are classical music recitals and a performance by 10 dhaakis. Anchors of the evening will be Mir Afsar Ali and Sharmistha Goswami Chatterjee. Organiser speak: “Kobitay Kathalap Utsav is the celebration of a journey. When I started it 10 years ago I could hardly dream that one day I would organise a festival with so many of the city’s top-tier artistes. From Indian classical music to Bangla’r dhaak, from Chhau to modern urban music and poetry, one will get to enjoy a wide variety of performances. This festival aims to engage the youth, as the cultural character of a society majorly depends on them. Teaching engineering students for years has made me realise that an artiste also has the responsibility to introduce and help carry forward cultural legacy among the youth,” said Kobitay Kathalap founder-director Chandrima Roy.
Tickets available at: Dey’s Publishing (22412330) and Saptarshi Prakashan (9830371467) in College Street; Calcutta 64 (4064 3464) and TRIBE (7596026313) in Salt Lake; Deshaj Store & Cafe (9073990661) and TRIBE (7044159121) in Ballygunge; Wabi Sabi (9163010416) in Southern Avenue; The Melody (9831687533) in Rashbehari; and Cafe Kolkata 32 (6289778082) in Jadavpur.
