Indian, French artistes to come together for a special cultural festival

In a bid to introduce French culture to Indian audience, the Embassy of France and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations will hold a festival Bonjour India featuring artistes from both the countries from January 20-March 31.

In a bid to introduce French culture to Indian audience, the Embassy of France and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations will hold a festival Bonjour India featuring artistes from both the countries from January 20-March 31.

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Last held in 2009-10, this year’s edition of the festival will have more than 150 events, across 15 cities, including Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Pondicherry, Pune and Goa.

Mumbai will host most events, including the curtain raiser ballet performance at the National Centre for Performing Arts on January 20 and 21. Delhi-based artist Subodh Gupta will design the sets for the ballet show.

Sarod player Ustad Amjad Ali Khan will perform with a symphonic electronic orchestra of 50 Indian and French musicians. French artists including Parisian singer Imany and an acoustic electronic band Scratch Bandits Crew will perform at Blue Frog.

For theatre enthusiasts, a play Gates to India Song, set in the 1930’s Kolkata, starring Nandita Das will depict the love stories of the wife of a French ambassador to India.

A student recruitment tour has been organised at the Trident Hotel on February 2 as part of the festival. Students will be able meet academicians from 25 French universities, with 300 scholarships on offer.

Aruna Adiceam, cultural attachee, Institut Francais en Inde, said, “The first edition of Bonjour India was a splash into the Indian cultural scene. This time, we aim to focus on Indo-French collaborations.”