This gathering is all about storytelling, puranas, music,folk dance and spiritual literature. With over 100 speakers, performers, poets, writers, musicians and dancers—the 2019 edition of Mystic Kalinga Festival is said to unfold in Bhubaneswar in February 2020.
Luminaries from the Bollywood and the literary world including Amish Tripathi, Purusottam Agarwal, Arundhathi Subramaniam, Mooralala Marwada, Smita Bellur, Sanjukta Wagh, will be seen addressing attendees on the dais. Fans can also expect performances by established musicians in the folk spectrum like Kailash Kher and Subha Mudgal.
As the central theme for the fourth edition of this event is ‘Bhakti’, there will be several panels on discussing the formless divine inspired by Kabir, Tulsidas, Adi Shankara, Jayadeva, Tukaram, Meerabai and others.
Every year the Mystic Kalinga Festival hosts a variety of sessions focused on literature from India and across the world to offer a deep understanding and appreciation of mysticism. Also, expect two literary awards worth over INR One Lakh. One to a person the committee feels contributed the most to Odia language, literature and culture. The other bestowed upon writers of Indian or global languages. No names have been unveiled as of now.
The festival’s founder Rashmi Ranjan Parida highlighted the need to focus on literature especially on history, mysticism, music, dance, and spiritual literature. The director added, “Mystic Kalinga Festival celebrates the spirit of mystics, philosophers and poet-saints, reflecting on the lyrical and creative aspects of their work and teachings, in a fulfilling two-day programme. The works and philosophies of these mystics are all about inclusiveness – and every year, Mystic Kalinga Festival celebrates this philosophy, bringing to music, dance, poetry-lovers an unforgettable experience of listening to leading exponents. The Festival celebrates the uniqueness of Mystic India”.