The Pondicherry Literature Festival was held at Sri Aurobindo Society, Puducherry on the theme ‘Bharat of New Age’ from 20-22 September. Thiru. R.N. Ravi – Hon’ble Governor of Tamil Nadu, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman – Hon’ble Finance Minister of India, Prof. Anand Ranganathan – Scientist SCMM, Author, Political Commentator, Prof. Shamika Ravi – Economist, Professor, Member – Economic Advisory Committee to PM, Shri Pradeep Bhandari – National Spokesperson, BJP, Ms. Alo Sud, Director, PLF and other important personalities joined the festival and shared their views for the development of Bharat. Dr Kishor Kumar Tripathy, Member Secretary, AuroBharati, Sri Aurobindo Society, Puducherry attended the event. Many institutions and individuals contributed for the successful implementation of the festival.

The culture of Bharat is unique in the world. It represents vast history from thousands of years of its existence including diverse influences and rich traditions. Depicting the glory of Bharat, Maharshi Aurobindo has written ‘Each nation is a Shakti or power of the evolving spirit in humanity and lives by the principle which it embodies. India is the Bhārata Shakti, the living energy of a great spiritual conception, and fidelity to it is the very principle of her existence. For by its virtue alone she has been one of the immortal nations; this alone has been the secret of her amazing persistence and perpetual force of survival and revival.’ Bharat is known for its immense cultural diversity, which manifests in various forms. The cultural complexity and richness of Bharat make it a subject of endless fascination and study.

The three-days festival included significant discussions on the topics, i.e. Sri Aurobindo and the Renaissance In India, Dharmic Social History of India, Panschakosha Pathway -Essential Indic Guide to Self-Discovery, The Economics and Politics of Welfarism, Demography is Destiny, Elimination of Extreme Poverty and India’s Growth Trajectory, The Future with AI and India’s Potential, Transformation of Modern India, Reclaiming Sacred Spaces: Legal Challenges, The Implications of China’s Emergence in the Global Order, Itihasas – Tackling the Cult of False Heroes, Evolution of Ramayana Narratives – Across Time & Space and many other issues of socio-cultural significances.