Qatar Indian Authors Forum to foster cultural exchange and discussion

Dignitaries at the official launch of the forum on Friday. PICTURES: Thajudheen

The Qatar Indian Authors Forum (QIAF) was officially launched at a ceremony held at the Integrated Indian Community Centre in Doha on Friday.

During the event, QIAF president Dr K C Sabu stressed that he forum’s official launch will reflect positively on enhancing the creativity of Indian authors in Qatar and also give them a platform to exercise their writing skills in different areas such as poetry, novels and other literary categories. He also noted that there is active co-operation with the Qatari Forum for Authors, which comes under the Ministry of Culture. This co-operation will help both Indian and Qatari authors to exchange views, experiences and discuss related issues, in addition to enriching the literary experiences of both through cross-cultural interaction. Further, translations of works from both sides will be arranged in a much easier way.

The QIAF website was also launched on the occasion. Dr Sabu said QIAF has around 75 registered members, with the youngest being a 10-year-old aspiring Indian writer named Joachim. On his part, Joachim expressed happiness to be a part of the forum and said he is excited to further explore his creative skills through writing novels.

Indian poet Ansari Arimbra said the official launch of the forum will enable all Indian authors living in Qatar to further explore different areas of literary expressions. He also stressed that living in Qatar gives authors an unique opportunity to explore different cultures, as Doha has become a global hub for arts and culture.