Imtiaz Ali narrates his life experiences on Day 3 of Kathakar 2022

New Delhi: The third day of Kathakar 2022, which celebrates India's rich oral storytelling tradition, commenced with storytellers and performers from around the world with their captivating storytelling. The storytelling session was followed by folk music from Rajasthan which enthralled the crowd with a rendition of classical folk songs on tales from the past. Kathakar is partnering with the Ministry of Culture under Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav this year. Famous Bollywood director Imtiaz Ali and Mohit Chauhan, during the in conversation with Prarthana Gahilote spoke on the rich history of India and how so much folklore has been passed on from generation to generation. He also inspired the young generation to explore stories from various aspects of life and get inspired by them. The patron of the festival Sushila Devi, Mohit Chauhan and Imtiaz Ali, felicitated the storytellers with a memento as a token of appreciation for their contribution to the art of storytelling. The evening session of Kathakar 2022 concluded on the 27th of November.

Kathakar was started under the umbrella of Ghummakkad Narain Travelling Literature Festival in 2010 with an intent to revive the age-old tradition of oral storytelling in India. The National Capital has been a witness to a warm welcome of Storytellers from all across the globe over the years by audiences of all ages.

Imtiaz Ali the multi-faceted Bollywood director during his one-on-one interaction at the event said, there is no country in the world where storytelling holds such importance, as India. The values, ethics, beliefs and way of life have been passed on from generations in the form of stories. The history of Delhi and the stories associated with it is a good example. So, events that happened in the past and the relics give us the essence of vast stories related to them. The stories of the past are intriguing and give us the inspiration to create good stories for the future. The format of storytelling might have changed but storytelling is still relevant and people are still attracted to hearing stories in various forms. Towards the end of his interaction, he addressed the young people to spend more time on reading or listening to good stories.

The four-day marquee started on 25th November and will conclude on November 28, 2022. The festival will showcase in its pristine physical form, amazing stories, and music by Indian and International storytellers from seven countries: the United Kingdom; Australia; Mongolia; Israel; Sierra Leonne; Korea; and India.
 

Day three of the event, Nov. 27, hosted a feature Kissey, Kahani our Mausiki with Prarthana Gahilote in conversation with Imtiaz Ali and Mohit Chauhan, and Kabir Vani by Prahlad Singh Tipanniya.

Padma Bhushan awardee art Rajeev Sethi, a noted Indian designer, scenographer, art curator and Chairman & Founder at Asian Heritage Foundation present at the festival said, “The energy which is created here at the festival I have not seen it in Delhi like this ever for very many years. A new energy is getting developed here of the audience and the storytellers through a combination of this synergy is such a good feeling that I think, it is rare for Delhi, rare for the art and rare for the future. I am a fan and will remain so and have discovered a treasure.”

Among International artists this year, Kathakar is hosting Niall Moorjani (United Kingdom), Lilian Rodrigues Pang (Australia), Baatarjav Erdenetsogt (Mongolia), Alim Kamara (Sierra Leonne), Sarah Rundle (United Kingdom), Seung Ah Kim (South Korea) and Yossi Alfi (Israel).

The morning sessions on Saturday and Monday specifically meant for young learners were attended by over 3,000 school children across the NCR. The floor for thrown open for school children to showcase their latent talent and a few of them took to the stage and spoke on important environmental and social issues.  

Kathakar 2022—a marquee event to revive the traditional style of storytelling in a world dominated by hi-tech gizmos and gadgets—will thus feature professional and passionate storytellers from the country and abroad who will showcase their mesmerizing craft to underscore the fact that storytelling transcends all boundaries of language and culture.