Bhubaneswar poetry fest dwells on popularising Odia cinema, theatre

Bhubaneswar: Second edition of Bhubaneswar Poetry Festival concluded at Hotel Mayfair here on Sunday.

Eminent poets Sitakanta Mohapatra, Ramakanta Rath and Income Tax Commissioner Sarat Kumar Dash graced the inaugural session of the festival on Saturday, which saw discussion on poetry, fiction, and lyrics.

As many as 10 young writers of Odisha received PEN IN Young Author Award.

‘Mahanadi issue’ dominated the second day of the festival. One session was dedicated to ‘Odia cinema’. Senior artiste-director Bijaya Jena aka Dolly, script writer Rajani Ranjan and director Sushant Mani shared their views on how Odia cinema can attract more audience. The session was moderated by young writer-journalist Ashish Gadnayak.

There was also a session on Odia theatre moderated by theatre artiste Debadutta Pati with theatre personalities Choudhury jay Prakash Das, Abhinna Routray and Pabitra Mohanty and journalist Prachitara as panelists.