Bengaluru Poetry Festival 2024: A celebration of prose, verse and music

The Bengaluru Poetry Festival is back with its eighth edition. Presented by Atta Galatta, the two-day event will feature poetry performances that transcend language barriers.  It will delve into the connection between music and poetry, interactive workshops, and a storytelling festival for children.

The Bengaluru Poetry Festival is back with its eighth edition. Presented by Atta Galatta, the two-day event will feature poetry performances that transcend language barriers.  It will delve into the connection between music and poetry, interactive workshops, and a storytelling festival for children.

The seven years of the festival have seen over 450 poets from across the country with a rich tapestry of regional and ethnic flavours, that celebrates India’s literary diversity. This year too, over 50 invited poets, artistes, and musicians are confirmed to participate.

From conversations with music maverick Shankar Mahadevan to interpretation of poetry through dance by the Bendre Project, the two-day event is a celebration of music and poetry in every form.

Subodh Sankar, co-founder of Bengaluru Poetry Festival and Atta Galatta said, “This year we are going to look at poetry through the eyes of singers, songwriters, musicians and lyricists.”

“We are also seeing poetry through other associated art forms, one of them is on the life of Kannada lyric poet Da Ra Bendre, which will be portrayed through a Bharatnatyam dance performance by the Bendre Project.”

The eighth edition will see an academic exploration of the poetry of music through Sadhana Rao, a research-led writer and art curator who will look into the ethos of poetry in a Hindi film song.

Preeti Das, a storyteller, theatre person and a stand-up comic, will be moderating a session with Gujarati singer and poet Saumya Joshi, whose song Khalasi stirred a significant buzz on social media last year. “He is the reason most of us entered theatre. As a contemporary poet and lyricist, he has been a major voice in the theatre space, addressing wide range of issues from gender to caste politics,” says Preeti.