Pondicherry Poets and Brown Critique, in association with Sri Aurobindo Society, present ‘Peace at the Crossroads’ on December 11, 2018, at the Society Hall in Puducherry as part of its ongoing three-day Pondicherry Poetry Festival 2018. Apart from talks by poet, painter and former Chair of English, Pondicherry University – Prof Murali Sivaramakrishnan and Dr. Shruti Bidwaikar on Sri Aurobindo’s poetry, Anu Majumdar, Rathirekha and Gayatri Majumdar will recite some of Sri Aurobindo’s poems and those of contemporary poets of his time. Arjita Chowdhury will accompany the poems with devotional songs. Nineteen poets from across India and one from the USA will participate in the Festival.

This will be followed with songs of Subramania Bharati's poems marking his 137th birth anniversary. Mumbai-based poet, playwright, and translator, Anju Makhija, will present the Vishendevi Centre Award to 7-year-old Vishva and Johti Muninathan, a renowned poet from rural Puducherry. Jothi will also read a few of her poems on the occasion.

Finally, Professor Emeritus of Environmental Studies at the University of Waterloo, Canada, Prof Sehdev Kumar, will present his translation of Kabir’s verses from his book The Vision of Kabir: Live Poems of a 15th-century Weaver-Sage.

Meanwhile, there will also be a couple of poetry workshops conducted at AURA Shoppe on December 10 and 11, 2018. The first one ‘The Mask Speaks’ will be a two-hour long (10:00 am to 12:00 pm) workshop conducted by Joan Dobbie, poet and Yoga instructor from Eugene, Oregon, USA; while the second workshop will be held on ‘Haiku/Haibun’ by Pune-based poet Kala Ramesh, from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm. Prior registration for both is recommended. To register, write to Gayatri at [email protected]

The other Festival venues are Adishakti Theatre at Edayanchavadi Road in Auroville and at Palais de Mahé in Puducherry.