Culture heals where politics divides: Cour

By A Staff Reporter,New Delhi, Nov. 18: Culture heals where politics divides, said renowned Punjabi writer and president of FOSWAL Ajeet Cour while addressing the 66th edition of SAARC Literature Festival that concluded in New Delhi recently.

Cour, 91, has been instrumental in uniting writers, poets, scholars and artists from across the SAARC region, thereby enhancing the people-to-people bond. This year, the literary gala was held under the slogan of 'cultural connectivity in South Asia.' The theme aptly serves the purpose of mitigating tensions at the geopolitical and diplomatic levels.

In her inaugural address, Cour, also the Padma Shree Award recipient, said, "We are the writers and dreamers of the SAARC region, the Festival is more than a gathering of words - it is a reaffirmation of our shared humanity, a celebration of friendship that crosses borders and generations.

The writers and poets from seven of the eight SAARC countries, including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Maldives, Sri Lanka, and India, recited their works at the festival organised by the Foundation of SAARC Writers and Literature (FOSWAL).

Noted scholar Ashis Nandy and Sahitya Akademi president Madhav Kaushik also highlighted the roles of literary figures in bridging the people of diverse nationalities and faiths. Diplomats Mahishini Colonne (Sri Lanka), M Riaz Hamidullah (Bangladesh) and Aishath Azeema (Maldives) also put forth their views at the function, where Prof. Abhi Subedi from Nepal and Madhav Kaushik and Ashis Nandi, both from India, received the SAARC Lifetime Achievement Award for the year 2025.

Similarly, poet Laxmi Mali from Nepal, Faridur Rahman and Kamrul Hassan from Bangladesh, Ramakrishna Perugu of India, Ibrahim Waheed  of the Maldives) and Anurasiri Hettige of Sri Lanka were hounoured with the SAARC Literature Award.

A host of Nepali poets and writers, including Prof. Abhi Subedi, Bhisma Upreti, Bidhan Acharya, Ritu Raj Subedi, Sneh Sayami, Abhay Shrestha, Laxmi Mali, Anita Lama, Dr. Deenbandhu Sharma, Bishwa Ram Sigdel, Janu Dhital and Dhir Kumar Shrestha, read out their creations. 

"The festival carries unifying forces, bringing together the collective wisdom of South Asia's creative minds," said Prof. Subedi, adding that it provided a rare forum for fraternity and solidarity in the region.