Arunachal: Northeast Literary Festival kicked off at Dorjee Khandu Convention Centre in Itanagar

The two-day Northeast Literary Festival (NELF) 2022 kicked off on Monday at the Dorjee Khandu Convention Centre. The festival organised by the department of information and public relations (IPR) in partnership with the Arunachal Pradesh Literary Society (APLS).

The festival, themed 'Building Bridges Through Literature,' aims to encourage the state's aspiring poets and writers to polish their talents in creative writing, as well as provide them with an opportunity to express themselves and meet leading poets and writers in person.

The event includes prominent authors and poets from outside the state, including Anuradha Sarma Pujari (Assam), Dr Upen Rabha Hakacham (Assam), Munish Singh (Manipur), and Bipul Region (Assam), alongside a host  of local writers.

The festival was inaugurated by Agriculture Minister Tage Taki, who encouraged the writers and poets to be "pathfinders and good social observers, working towards bringing genuine change in the society through their writing."

He also emphasised "the importance of literature in preserving society's culture and tradition, as well as fostering human values among the people."

Taki praised the state's eminent authors, including Padmashri and Sahitya Akademi awardee YD Thongchi and Padmashri awardee Mamang Dai, "for their enormous contributions in literary works," and urged them to "guide and motivate the younger generations to upgrade their skill and work for promoting literature through creative writings."

MLA Laisam Simai, who also serves as an adviser to the IPR and printing minister, stated that the state government is "working on serious preservation and development of arts and literature for the greater interest of the state."

"Our state, with its diverse culture and customs, gives enormous possibilities for progress of tribal literature ," he said, urging young talents and aspiring writers to "break the barrier and work towards creating a pan-Arunachal."

Simai expressed Chief Minister Pema Khandu's wishes to the organisers, saying that local dialects would be introduced into the school curriculum under the new education system.

He also urged the Arunachal Pradesh Literary Society  to "play a critical role in the long-term preservation of local dialects, cultures, and traditions."

"As the state is endowed with immense natural scenic beauty with various cultures and customs, there are abundant scopes for creative works," said Anuradha Sarma Pujari, a Sahitya Akademi awardee.

She remarked on the great bond that exists between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh through literature and music, stating that novels written in the Assamese language by late Lummer Dai and YD Thongchi were published in Assam periodicals and became popular among Assamese people.

She also presented some of the highlights of her book Mereng, a biographical fiction about Indira Miri, the state's first education officer of the then NEFA , who worked tirelessly to promote education in the state.

On attending the festival Anuradha Sarma Pujari requested of the attending writers and poets, "Work towards translating the new generation poems in Assamese, so that they can be made known in Assam.

" He also urged the APLS to "play a critical role in the long-term preservation of local dialects, cultures, and traditions."

"As the state is endowed with immense natural scenic beauty with various cultures and customs, there are abundant scopes for creative works," said Anuradha Sarma Pujari, a Sahitya Akademi awardee.

Dasher Tashi, the IPR director, and Mukul Pathak, the APLS general secretary, also spoke at the festival.

On the first day, Upen Rabha Hakacham chaired a session on 'Language and Script,' which included Banwang Losu, N Changmi, and two others, as well as Sokhep Kri as a panellist. During the meeting, the languages and scripts of the state were discussed. Thongchi also moderated a panel discussion on the same topic, which included Lisa Lomdak, Gyati Rana, Kalingna Mannoi, and Lardik Kare.

Miranda Pertin, Subi Taba, and Chatung Lowang took part in the short story reading session, which was chaired by Munish Singh. The poetry reading session, moderated by Anuradha Sarma Pujari, featured thirteen poets.