Ahmedabad : An enlightening event of ‘Kalam’ by Prabha Khaitan Foundation(PKF), as promised to be inspiring, offered compelling insights into the renowned Writer, theatre artist and academician, playwright and actor Dr. Sachidanand Joshi’s life journey as a writer and shared the creation process behind his literary advent – ‘Zindagi ka Bonus’ and gave us a breakdown conversation about the same.

Held on 28th September 2023, the Foundation organized the event in association with the venue and hospitality partner The House of MG with the support of Ehsaas Women of Ahmedabad.

Kalam is the seed germinated by PKF, dedicated to the promotion and enrichment of Hindi literature and language. The event brings together esteemed authors, poets, and scholars in a vibrant and interactive platform, fostering a deeper understanding and appreciation for Hindi literature. It adopts an inclusive approach, as is evident from the list of guests invited to its events, which includes reputed names as well as young talents who are helping strengthen the Hindi language.

The evening commenced with a formal Welcome Note by Mrs. Mallika Mukherjee, a renowned multilingual writer, followed by a captivating rendezvous with conversationalist Shaneel Parekh, Ehsaas woman of Ahmedabad. Dr Joshi shared how female writers are also excellent satire writers and how women were confined to certain topics for satire but times have changed, and women are proving their capabilities in various forms of writing, including satire.

Discussing the need for changes in the Education system, he mentioned that there was a time when education was an integral part of culture. Today, there is a need to incorporate cultural values into education. Sharing brief information about some plays, he stated that a successful play challenges our way of thinking and encourages us to imagine a world we aspire to live in. Meeting the expectations of the audience is a challenging task. They have experimented with various new ideas in plays, many of which have been very successful.

Today’s Younger Generation seems to be distanced from happiness. They take humour seriously. Dr. Joshi shared a harsh truth. He mentioned that parents are responsible, not the children. Parents impose their unfulfilled dreams on their children. If a child loves painting and parents force them to become a chartered accountant, how can they be happy? The pursuit of grand ambitions often overshadows the small joys of the younger generation.

At the wrap of this successful conversation, there was a Q&A session with the audience. Mr. Prakash Purohit expressed gratitude, and Mr. Abhay Mangaldas, Founder and Director of The House of MG felicitated Dr. Joshi.

Prabha Khaitan Foundation (PKF) is a non-profit organization based in Kolkata, committed to promoting, performing arts, culture, education, literature, gender equality, and women’s empowerment through author’s meets, book launches, literature fests, panel discussions, boutique festivals, and performing artists. It has conducted over 550 Kalam sessions in India and overseas. Over a span of 40 years, it has hosted luminaries like Vinod Bharadwaj, Aalok Shrivastav, Amish Tripathi, Shashi Tharoor, Ruskin Bond, Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia, Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Usha Uthup, Ricky Kej, Shubha Mudgal and many more.