Literature Festival ” Shabdotsav” : Breaking Barriers

“Shabdotsav” a celebration of words in prose and poetry was organized by the FICCI FLO Pune Chapter on January 14th and 15th. National FLO President Vinita Bimbhet inaugurated the 2 day event and launched the “Swayam” initiative by giving away a cheque of Rs.2,27,000/- to Kesariya Papad Udyog, Ahmednagar to support their small scale business of a Papad Vending Machine.

Celebrities, authors and journalists attended the event which covered panel discussions, debates and interactive talks with authors across a varied spectrum of topics. Some of the authors were Aparna Piramal Raje, Vikram Sampath, Ratna Vira, Apurv Nagpal , Shantanu Guha Ray , Bhaavna Arora, Shilpa Gupta, Tulika Maheshwari amongst others.

Sabina Sanghvi Chairperson FLO Pune, said that the highlight of the fest was the guest of honour Mr. Shatrughan Sinha who talked with Puneites on his book “Anything but Khamosh” written by Bharathi Pradhan. Hardeep Singh Puri’s session moderated by (Retd) Vice Admiral Suresh Bangara on “Flawed Policies that led to the rise of the ISIS” was well received by the discerning audience.Media heavyweights Vir Sanghvi, Barkha Dutt and Paranjoy Guha Thakurta were also in attendance at the fest who willingly answered all the questions posed to them on diverse topics by the eager guests. Recent Filmfare award lyricist Amitabh Bhattacharya regaled the audience with his musical journey and even sang a few noteworthy songs on popular demand.
All in all the 2 day fest held at a city hotel concluded on an enriching note.