Among the highlights of the next IAAC Literary Festival are the history of India’s indigenous COVID-19 vaccine and early Buddhist art
This month, more than sixty distinguished poets and writers will assemble in this location for a literary festival that will highlight innovative creative and intellectual works spanning from the history of India’s innovative COVID-19 vaccine to the works of early Buddhist artists.
The Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC), a preeminent cultural organization, will organize the 2023 Literary Festival on November 18 and 19.
“In our opinion, the IAAC Literary Festival is a meeting place for worlds rather than only a collection of words. IAAC Vice Chairman Rakesh Kaul described it as a celebration of the diversity of perspectives and cultures that span continents and accurately capture the essence of the Indo-American experience.
The event this year is expected to be a “extraordinary Renaissance Weekend, a celebration of literature, culture, and intellectual discourse,” according to a statement released by IAAC on Thursday.
This year’s festival has an esteemed roster of writers and thought leaders, including Grammy-nominated performer, philanthropist, and businesswoman Chandrika Tandon; National Book Award finalist Sarah Thankam Mathews; and Pulitzer Prize winner Vijay Seshadri. Tandon’s most recent release is “Ammu’s Treasures,” her sixth full-length album. It has 21 chants and 35 songs, including classics, folk favorites, and traditional peaceful chants.
The book “Going Viral: Making of Covaxin – The Inside Story” and its author, renowned cardiologist Dr. Balram Bhargava, who has held positions as Director-General of the Indian Council of Medical Research and Secretary in the Department of Health Research, will be among the festival’s highlights.
Bhargava will talk about his book, which follows the development of India’s own COVID-19 vaccine, Covaxin. Bhargava is presently the Chief of the Cardiothoracic Center at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). The book also discusses the complexities of science and difficulties that Indian scientists had when combating COVID-19. These difficulties included building a strong laboratory network, diagnosing, treating, and conducting serosurveys, as well as developing new technologies and vaccines.
Bhargava’s book served as the basis for the 2023 film “The Vaccine War,” which was produced and directed by Pallavi Joshi and Vivek Agnihotri.
Director of the Literary Festival Preethi Urs said that her goal is to showcase the vast tapestry of human experiences and to encourage people via tales and dialogues.
IAAC 2023 Trail Blazer Award winner Jose Thomas, a business magnate, entrepreneur, and educator, will speak about his biography “By Choice,” and renowned Indian artist Usha Uthup will discuss her authorized biography “The Queen of Indian Pop.”
Padma Shri recipient and author of “The Idea of India: Bharat as a Civilization,” Subhash Kak; curator John Guy of South and Southeast Asian art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, who will talk about his book “Tree & Serpent: Early Buddhist Art in India”; Anu Singh Choudhary, author of “Bhali Ladkiyan, Buri Ladkiyan”; Meena Kandasamy, author of “The Book Of Desire,” and Neerja Chowdhury, author of “How Prime Ministers Decide.”
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is now hosting the exhibition “Tree & Serpent: Early Buddhist Art in India, 200 BCE–400 CE.”
The exhibition “presents a series of evocative and interlocking themes to reveal both the pre-Buddhist origins of figurative sculpture in India and the early narrative traditions that were central to this formative moment in early Indian art,” with over 140 objects ranging in age from 200 BCE to 400 CE.
About 62 of these 140 items are from India and are part of the “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav” exhibition, which honors 75 years of Indian independence.
