Photo Blog: CM Ms. Vasundhara Raje Hosts A Dinner At The Mountain Echoes Literary Festival In Bhutan
- JWB Post
- August 29, 2016
The seventh edition of the Mountain Echoes Literary Festival was held from August 26-28, 2016 in Thimphu, Bhutan. The festival is a brainchild of the India-Bhutan Foundation, in association with Siyahi.
Dinner at Hotel Taj Tashi
Tabu
It enjoys the presence of writers, biographers, historians, environmentalists, scholars, photographers, poets, musicians, artists, and film-makers who engage in cultural dialogue, share stories, create memories over the course of three days in the relaxing mountains.
Piyush Pandey and Tabu
Her Majesty, the Royal Queen Mother Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck, supports Mountain Echoes. JWB is proud to mention that Hon’ble Chief Minister of Rajasthan Vasundhara Raje ji was a guest speaker at the seventh edition of the festival.
Pavan K Varma and Namita Gokhale
Following the traditional lighting of the lamp, His Excellency Ambassador Jaideep Sarkar thanked Her Majesty the Royal Queen Mother Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck and also welcomed Hon’ble Chief Minister of Rajasthan Vasundhara Raje ji, herself a patron of the arts.
His Excellency Ambassador Jaideep Sarkar with Edwin Thumboo
As an avid reader, The Hon’ble Chief Minister mentioned her enthusiasm about finally attending Mountain Echoes. She confessed being a nervous air traveller and how it had taken her two years to get here. The Chief Minister noted that while Rajasthan and Bhutan are geographically different, they share respect for nature, a simple lifestyle and a commitment to the happiness of the people.
Jairaj-Singh(L) and Odd Harald Hauge(R)
Vasundhara Raje ji mentioned her excitement at the prospect of meeting and listening to authors like Chador Wangmo and Pico Iyer and stated that it was relieving to disappear into different worlds through books, escaping from the humdrum, on the treadmill life.
(LtoR) Witi Ihimaera, Siok Sian Dorji, Edwin Thumboo, Kunzang Choden and Renuka Narayan
Personally, I liked Amitav Ghosh’s session on climate change. He said that the lack of literature on climate change was not only due to indifference but about finding ways to tell these difficult stories, often with no human protagonists. His session had captivated the audience including the Royal Queen Mother.
Amitav Ghosh
After the inauguration ceremony, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Rajasthan Smt. Vasundhara Raje hosted a dinner on August 26 at Hotel Taj Tashi, Thimpu Bhutan.
Rahul Kapur and Tabu
The dinner saw the presence of members of the Royal Family of Bhutan, festival directors, speakers and other dignitaries including Her Majesty the Royal Queen Mother, Ambassador of lndia to the Royal Government of Bhutan His Excellency Ambassador Jaideep Sarkar, Pavan K Varma, Namita Gokhale, Pramod Kumar KG, Siok Sian Dorji, Amitav Ghosh, Witi Ihimaera, Edwin Thumboo, Kunzang Choden, Renuka Narayan, Piyush Pandey, Tabu and Indian fusion rock band, Indian Ocean who performed at the festival.
Indian Ocean
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