Schedule of the 9th edition of Ahmedabad International Festival, which will be held on 5th and 6th October 2024 at Centre for Environment Education Thaltej Tekra, Ahmedabad, was announced by the founder director of the festival Umashanker Yadav in a restaurant in Ahmedabad on 14th October 2024 in a specially curated event during the Hindi Diwas celebrations organized by Ahmedabad Book Club.
Interacting with the reputed poets, literary enthusiasts and the audience as a special guest of the event, Yadav informed that over fifty speakers from India and other countries, will participate in around twenty sessions including cultural activities, performances and book launches. The festival will open with the Kathak performance from noted artist Rachna Yadav also publisher and Managing Director of reputed Hindi literary magazine, Hans. The second day will commence with the performance by a young Odissi dancer, Serene.
The speakers include environmental educator and community builder Kartikeya Sarabhai, renowned screenwriter Niren Bhatt, poet and diplomat Abhay K. lyricist Dr. Sagar, edupreneur and author Dr. Manjula Pooja Shroff, mythological author Kavita Kane, chairman of Gujarat Sahitya Academy Bhagyesh Jha, poet and novelist Mukul Kumar, Hindi blogger, writer and bureaucrat Krishna Kumar Yadav, Dr. Upendranath Raina, Dr. Heera Lal IAS, Ajay Chaudhry IPS, Manoj Aggarwal, IAS ( Retd.), Naishadh Purani and others.
Niren Bhatt will discuss about the content writers in the films in conversation with Naishadh Purani and Umashanker Yadav while Abhay K. will talk about his books and their significance in creating a better world.
Actors from Hindi and Gujarati film industry Karan Oberoi, Vishal Yadav, Netri Trivedi and Hardik Shastri will be talking about their work, films and also the different genres and the mediums. Newly established SERENE FILMS is expected to launch the trailer and poster of their upcoming short film.
In an exclusive session organized by Serene Publishers, the books of the authors Shraddha Ramani, Kumud Verma, Maitridevi Sisodia, Leena Kheria and Khushi Master will be discussed and launched.
In other sessions, youths from Tanzania, Hungary, Bangladesh, Mauritius and India will be discussing about the literature and the future. English poets Mukul Kumar, Dr. Sonali Pattnaik and Gautam Vegda with others will discuss about the significance of poetry in the development of society. Authors Kavita Kane, Sujata Parashar, Shraddha Ramani and Jyoti Jha will talk about women characters in Mythology, fiction and reality. Lyricist Dr. Sagar will be talking about the Hindi songs of the cinema. Bhagyesh Jha with others will be discussing the role of different institutions in enriching and spreading Gujarati language and literature.
The festival will also be paying tribute to its late mentor Dr. SK Nanda IAS by organizing a special session in his memory.
An initiative of Ikon Education Foundation, AILF is powered and managed by Ikon Barcode Solutions Pvt. Ltd. In this season, Kalorex Group is associate sponsor and the cultural partner is ICCR.