SWEDISH SOUTH ASIAN STUDIES NETWORK

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Successful Rabindranath Tagore Week in Lund, 20–24 March 2011

SASNET successfully organised a Rabindranath Tagore 150th birth anniversary celebration week in Lund 20–24 March 2011. In collaboration with other local institutions and organisations, the week included popular lectures by by Dr. Olavi Hemmilä and P-O Henricson, Swedish experts on Rabindranath’s life and literature, as well as exhibitions, film shows, concerts and poetry reading.
On Tuesday 22 March, SASNET and Lund University organised a well-atttended academic seminar, featuring Professor Wiliam Radice (photo) from SOAS, University of London.
Prof. Radice, who has made new inspiring translations of Tagore’s poetry and prose from Bengali into English – a new volume of Gitanjali was supposed to be published in May 2011, spoke extensively and passionately about the relevance still present in his literature.
More information on Prof. Radice’s lecture.

The seminar programme, prepared by SASNET’s deputy director Lars Eklund, also included lectures by Dr. Claes-Göran Holmberg, Comparative Literature, Centre for Languages and Literature, who talked about ”Tagore in Sweden and the Nobel Prize of 1913”, and Mag. Art Annemette Karpen from Copenhagen who talked about ”Tagore’s Drama Production, and Satyajit Ray’s films based on Tagore works”.
Free-lance journalist Gabrielle Gunneberg talked about Tagore’s Nobel prize medal that were stolen from Santiniketan in 2004.
Prof. Lipi Ghosh from Calcutta University, and currently ICCR guest professor at Lund University, recited poems by Rabindranath Tagore, and Bubu Munshi Eklund (photo) sang some of his songs.

Participants at the March 22nd seminar: Madhumita Bhagat, William Radice, Bubu Munshi Eklund, Lars Eklund, Alia Ahmad, and Annemette Karpen.

Ms. Madhumita Bhagat, First Secretary, Embassy of India, was the chief guest-of -honour.

See Lars Eklund’s photos from the Tagore Week.

Listen (on Youtube) to the Swedish choir Svart på Vitt singing Tagore’s song Ontoro Momo Bikoshito Koro as part of the Tagore Week. Please note a well-known male singer in the choir.

Organisers:

Program för Tagoreveckan i Lund (in Swedish)

Se affischen för Tagore-veckan

Söndag 20 mars 2011:

Söndagskväll i kryptan klockan 19.00. Domkyrkan

Tema: Tagore och Dan Andersson: två moderna mystiker
Medverkande:
– Litteraturvetaren Olavi Hemmilä, Rättvik
– Kören Svart på Vitt
– Tagore-sångerskan Bubu Munshi Eklund

Måndag 21 mars 2011:

Föreläsning på Bibliotek Väster klockan 19.00. Örnvägen 66

– Litteraturforskaren Olavi Hemmilä berättar om Rabindranath Tagore, Nobelpriset och skaldens båda besök i Sverige – 1921 och 1926.

Tisdag 22 mars 2011:

Seminar at Lund University 11.00–16.00. Hörsalen, SOL-Centrum, Helgonavägen 12

11.00      Introduction:
            – Tagore-song by Bubu Munshi Eklund
            – Claes-Göran Holmberg, Comparative Literature, Centre of Languages and Literature, Lund University
            – Lars Eklund, SASNET
11.15   – Professor William Radice, SOAS, University of London,
               Rabindranath Tagore’s Literatue and its Relevance Today. More information.
13.00      Lunch
14.00   – Dr. Claes-Göran Holmberg,
               Tagore in Sweden. His road to the Nobel Prize
14.45   – Freelance journalist Gabrielle Gunneberg
               A detective story in Bengal – Tagore's Nobel prize medal that was stolen.
15.00   – Mag. Art. Annemette Karpen, Köpenhamn, on Tagore’s drama production,
               and the link to the Satyajit Ray’s films   
15.30      Poetry and Music
            – Prof. Lipi Ghosh, University of Calcutta & guest professor at Lund University rads Tagore pems
            – Bubu Munshi Eklund sings Rabindrasangheet, Tagore’s compositions of his own poems.
16.00      End

Onsdag 23 mars 2011:

 Tagore-afton på Skissernas Museum klockan 19.00. Finngatan 2

Rabindranath Tagores liv i ord, bild och sång
      – P O Henricson, Tagore-kännare från Stockholm, och Bubu Munshi Eklund

Visning av Satyajit Rays film The Postmaster (ur filmtrilogin Teen Kanya från 1961),
      baserad på Tagores novell med samma namn. Introduktion av Annemette Karpen

Torsdag 24 mars 2011:

Filmvisning på Bibliotek Väster klockan 19.00. Örnvägen 66

Visning av Satyajit Rays film Charulata från 1964, baserad på Tagores kortroman Nastanirh (The broken Nest).
–  Introduktion av Annemette Karpen

Måndag 21 – Torsdag 24 mars 2011

Hela veckan pågår dessutom en utställning om och kring Rabindranath Tagores litterära och konstnärliga verk
på Bibliotek Väster, Örnvägen 66.
Öppettider:

Måndag 13–17
Tisdag 10–19
Onsdag 11–17
Torsdag 10–19