A Sneek Peak by Tashi Narula
- Leading French authors travelled and met Indian readers
- Visitors saw what it takes to make cities more inclusive
- Events were held at the prestigious Bikaner House
As part of Bonjour India, the French LitFest 2022 and the City for All? exhibition were recently held in Delhi. During the French LitFest 2022 held on 7th May, eminent French authors, graphic novelists, and children’s writers brought forth a French literary weekend filled with round tables and debates on contemporary French literature and poetry at the prestigious Bikaner House. These were followed by interactions with children and book signings at some of Delhi’s most popular bookstores. The event proved a real treat for book enthusiasts! Notably, the French LitFest comes on the heels of the Paris Book Festival – France’s main literary event – which was held in Paris from 22nd – 24th April with India as the guest of honour. On 7th and 8th May, the City for All? exhibition was held at Bikaner House. During the exhibition, visitors took a curated walk, took part in an inauguration, participated in an open mic session, interacted with the City for All? exhibition, and took part in an Astro Night Sky Tourism session. Both events – French LitFest 2022 and City for All? – were part of the Bonjour India initiative, an artistic, cultural, educational, and literary initiative by the Embassy of France and its cultural service Institut Français en Inde, the Alliance Française Network, and the Consulates of France.
As part of the French LitFest 2022, French authors are travelling across India to meet their readers and exchange with Indian authors and publishers. People meet the authors touring in Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Chennai, Pondicherry, Pune, Mumbai, Jaipur, Hyderabad, and Chandigarh. The authors included: Tiffany Tavernier, François-Henri Désérable, Patricia Loison, Marie Darrieussecq, Patrick Weil, Marie Desplechin, Simon Lamouret, Anaïs Depommier, Cyril Nguyen Dinh, Christine Jordis, and Jul Berjeaut
The French LitFest 2022 was inaugurated by Ms. Eva Nguyen Binh, President of Institut Français, France, and Ms. Mugdha Sinha, Secretary of Science and Technology, Government of Rajasthan on 7 May, at Bikaner House. The LitFest started with a round table discussion around Trends of Contemporary French Literature with three famous French authors who discussed what it means to be a woman, an author, and “vagabonds” of the world. The three authors were Christine Jordis who was born in Algiers, Patricia Loison in Delhi, and Marie Darrieussecq in Bayonne. Three countries, three identities, one love: literature! During the round table, the three authors conversed with Arunima Mazumdar.
The invigorating discussion was followed by the Romain Rolland Book Prize ceremony, that awards the best translation of a francophone title into any Indian language, including English. The winning publisher and translator were selected by an Indo-French jury. The winner of the 5th edition of the Romain Rolland Prize 2022 is Meursault, contre-enquête by Kamel Daoud published in Bengali by Patra Bharati and translated by Mr. Trinanajan Chakraborty. Subsequently, the audience were treated to a literature, poetry, and visual writing round table. During the round table, the three authors, François-Henri Désérable, Tiffany Tavernier, and Shumona Sinha, conversed with Kaveree Bamzai.
Interesting literary talks at bookstores were also organised as part of the French LitFest 2022. During one such talk titled Conversation: Oh! Wonderful Childhood whichtook place at the Eurêka Bookstore in GK-2, visitorsimagined the childhood of well-known personalities such as Santa Claus or the Fairy Queen, with Marie Desplechin, the author of Enfances. Simultaneously, at the Alcazar book signing at Bahrisons Bookstore at DLF Phase IV in Gurgaon, visitors met Simon Lamouret and grabbed the opportunity to buy a signed copy of his award-winning French graphic novel The Alcazar.
On 7th and 8th May, Battle BD was held at DLF Mall of India, Noida. Battle BD is a show that promotes comics through live drawing, combining music, humour, and interaction with the audience. Much like an improvisation match, the authors competed on stage through drawing, guided by the audience’s suggestions and the rhythm of a DJ’s playlist. Competing authors created, in only three minutes, a piece of art that was poetic, funny, offbeat, and even provocative.
The Night of Film and Literature was held on the evening of 8th May with author and screenwriter Tiffany Tavernier. A debate on Secularism in France and India will be held on 10th May, from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm. Both these events take place at Alliance Française of Delhi in Lodhi Estate. During the debate, Patrick Weil, Gurpreet Mahajan, Neera Chandhoke, and Hilal Ahmed conversed with Laurence Gautier (CSH Delhi) & Gilles Verniers (Ashoka University).
The inauguration of the City for All? exhibition was held at Bikaner House, in the presence of Mme Dana Purcarescu, Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of France in India. The City for All? exhibition endeavors to make public spaces in Indian cities more accessible to women and transgender people by engaging the masses in public art projects. The exhibition was the climax of a week-long series of walks in different neighborhoods of Delhi and a 6-week-long pan Indian tour, with included Jaipur, Chandigarh, Ahmedabad, Pune, and Bangalore.
Visitors discovered novel solutions that can make public spaces more accessible to women and transgender people. They enjoyed a curated walk with artist and architect Swati Janu, an open mic session with poets as well as an Astro Night Sky tourism session.
Among the poets present for the open mic session were Ms. Aditi Angiras, a poet and artist based in New Delhi. She is the co-editor of The World That Belongs To Us: An Anthology of Queer Poetry from South Asia (HarperCollins India, 2020) and is also the founder of Bring Back The Poets, a queer collective of poets and performers from South Asia. Also present were Ms. Bhumika Dwivedi, Mr. Vikramaditya Sahai, Ms. Ajanta Deo, and more.
Five days before the exhibition, 6 pin-up maps of Delhi were created across 6 Delhi neighborhoods: CR Park, Sundernagari, Lajat Nagar, Janakpuri, Badarpur, and Khirkee. The chosen neighborhoods are diverse to allow people from different backgrounds to partake in an activity. People were asked where they like to go with family and friends. They pinned color bindis on these locations on the map. Through this activity emerged discussions around what makes a public space inclusive for different groups of people.
Participants are asked a pressing question, “who are our cities designed for?”. They were also asked: “who has the right to leisure in their cities? How can women and transgender people feel welcome, comfortable, and secure in public spaces? What barriers do transgender people encounter when they try to occupy public spaces? How can access to public spaces be increased for people of all ages, genders, sexual preferences, classes, and abilities? and what is needed, in their opinion to compose an ideal public space?”
On the 7th and 8th of May, the 6 maps created in this project were exhibited alongside the 30 maps that had been created in the five other cities where the project was held. Accompanying these were dialogues and stories that emerged from the 36 neighborhoods across 6 cities. The maps revealed a treasure trove of information, not the least of which is that different cities consider different kinds of public spaces to be the most popular. While Bangalore’s most prized public spaces were lakes, New Delhi’s most prized public spaces were monuments. In Jaipur Amar Fort was considered the most popular public space. An interactive public wall allowed visitors to engage with the exhibition. As a result, more discussions around public spaces and how to make them more accessible to women and transgender people took place. Also at the exhibition was a photo booth that displayed popular local and French landmarks in the background. Visitors clicked lifelike selfies with such landmarks as the backdrop.
Speaking about the French LitFest 2022, Mrs Eva Nguyen Binh, President of Institut Français, France said, “The French LitFest 2022 was a tremendous success thanks to the increasing presence of French literature in Indian languages (including English). Since 2020, 90 titles have been translated from French and published in India with the support of Institut Français, through PAP Tagore – Publication Assistance Programme. I am delighted to meet with today’s audience who are readers of these books.”
Architect and artist Swati Janu stated on the City for All? project and exhibition, “Over the past week, by interacting with thousands of people in the 6 cities, we have learned what spaces are truly inclusive and open-to-all in each city. Surprisingly, these differ from city to city. While Pune has its local hills ‘tekdis’, Bangalore has its lakes as important public spaces which are unfortunately fast disappearing. Delhi is a city of monuments which are emerging as the most popular spots for people from diverse backgrounds. India Gate is everyone’s favorite public space here in Delhi. It was very popular because women could access it even at night because it had street vendors. However its popularity has sunk because it is closed for the construction of the Central Vista. While Sukhna lake in Chandigarh is a similar kind of a public space in Chandigarh, in Jaipur it turned out to be Amer Fort.
However, we found that some public spaces in every city exclude some people. Transgender people spoke about how most beauty parlors don’t entertain them and often malls deny them entry due to their gender. However there are actionable solutions. For instance, basic facilities such as toilets and reserved space in buses, trains can go a long way in including transgender people in our public spaces. Such facilities will also support representation and identity. Several women opened up about how temples are the only public space where they feel they are “allowed” to go. By bringing these conversations to the fore, we hope we can create more public awareness on gender inclusion in cities.”
At the end of the exhibit in Delhi, The City for All? will travel to Lyon, France.
Bonjour India’s events are open to all and often located in public places to maximize accessibility. The initiative celebrates the partnership between India and France by providing easy access to French and Indian cultural experiences. Bonjour India’s events are meant to entertain audiences of all ages and backgrounds and to lead to lively and friendly discussions.
For further information on the program, visit
