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It was November 03, 1995 [Friday] when an auspicious number 11 of Indian writers, poets, thinkers & literati of different languages, from different social & cultural backgrounds and from different religions got together at the residence of Umesh Sharma to form a platform where they can exchange literary views, convictions & ideologies in order to enrich their exposure and experience and also to get motivation, inspiration, and guidance. These eleven founder members included;
Mr. Noor Parkar (Urdu)
Mr. Jasbir Singh Dhiman(Punjabi)
Dr. Arvind Raina ( Dogri)
Mr. Abdulla Sajid (Urdu)
Mr. Varghese Paradayil (Malayalam)
Mr. Varkey Mathew (Malayalam)
Mr. Umesh Sharma (Hindustani)
Mr. Gurbakash Singh Dogra ( Punjabi)
Mr. Bhagwant Singh Dogra (Punjabi)
Mr. Saeed Roshan (Urdu)
Mr. Hitesh N. Jani (Gujrati)
Following ground rules/principles were framed in this meeting;
1. This platform will be known as Writers Forum, Kuwait.
2. Only Indian nationals will be eligible to become members.
3. Monthly meetings will be held on the last Friday of each month at 5 PM.
4. Mr. Jasbir Singh Dhiman will be the convener to organize meetings and other activities whereas Mr. Abdulla Sajid will assist him.
5. Each meeting will comprise of two sessions. First session will be devoted to the presentation of literary works followed by critical discussions whereas the second session was earmarked for poetry recital in the original language. English translation will be provided for those who may not understand the language.
Based on above five basic principles, writers Forum started exploring new horizons, new dimensions and new destinations. During this journey, Writers Forum kept on adding feathers to its cap by;
1· Individual Publications
2· Felicitating renowned visiting Indian Literary personalities.
A brief account of those who brought laurels to the Writers Forum by the publication of their book(s) is as follows;
Noor Parkar ‘Safak ka Ek Aur Rang’ & ‘Doosara Bhuru Khan’ in 1995.
Lancy Pinto Nayak ‘Rambarut’ 1996
Jasbir Singh Dhiman ‘Khoj Ek Kavita Dee’1998
Maimuna Chougle ‘Kuch Zikr Kuch Fikr’ 1998
Lancy Pinto Nayak ‘Khil’ 1998
Sayed Qamar Minto ‘Sehra Kee Goonj’ 1998
Parminder Kaur Kalsi ‘Emotions’ 1998
Umesh Sharma ‘Ye Aashiyan’ 1999
Jasbir Singh Dhaiman ‘Dard Mitti Da’ 1999
Tahira Shahid ‘A casket unreceived’ 1999
Verghese Paradayil ‘two books’ 2000/2001
Some of the writers received literary awards from institutions of state and national standing.
Writer Forum had the opportunity to welcome and felicitate renowned Indian Literary and cultural personalities during its journey so far. Following are some of the names;
Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpai - Hindi poet
Dr. Ayappa Panicker - Malayalam scholar, writer and poet
Mr. Ishwar Singh Arshi - Punjabi poet.
Mr. M.T. Vasudevan Nayar- Malayalam writer, scholar and artist.
Mr. Kedar Nath Kedar - Punjabi Poet.
Ms. Sivasankari - Tamil Writer, Thinker and social activist.
Mr. Soorya Krishnamoorthy - Malayalam writer, Poet, thinker And artist.
Mr. Javed Akhtar - Urdu/Hindi poet, lyricist and writer
Mr. Khem Raj Chadha - Punjabi and English Writer
Mr. Babu Lal Babu - Punjabi and Hindi Poet.
During the eight years period of Writers Forum, there had been sad occasions too when its highly experienced, talented, dedicated, motivated and inspiring members left Kuwait for good. These members were in Kuwait on designated assignments and tenure. Writers Forum will always remain indebted of the following personalities;
Dr. Harminder Nair Mr. V. Harsha Vardhan
Mr. Azizuddin Ahmed Usmani Ms. K. Yashoda
Mr. B. Rama Naidu Dr. Subba Rao
Dr. C.V. Nageshwara Rao Ms. Parminder Kaur
Mr. V. Panchapkesan (Panju) Ms. Lakshmi Rajappa
In its literary pursuit, the Writers Forum encourages dramatists, playwrights, essayists, poets living in Kuwait from any part or any language of India. As a result, Writers Forum is able to take out its first volume/publication, Navratna (Nine Gems) which comprises of 21 writers from nine different languages of India and encompasses poems, short stories and critical analysis in their original languages. We have followed alphabetic order for languages and writers. Writers are pooled in their respective languages. Writer’s profile is followed by his/her compositions. Original language/script are printed on the left pages of the book whereas English translation of each page is printed on the right pages for convenience ready reference.
Publication of such a unique book was an old dream which came true under the guidance of its senior members such as Mr. Noor Parkar, Mr. Jasbir Singh Dhiman, Dr. Arvind Raina, Mr. Abdulla
Sajid and with the relentless efforts of each and every member of the present Executive Committee of the Writers Forum. I, on behalf of the Executive Committee members, assure you that this kind of the literary effort and approach will not only prove to be a landmark in the literary circles but will also work as a catalyst to bring about the strong bondage among our highly diversified society . I am confident that this will commence an era of joint approach, eventually, making the world lot more peaceful.
Jai Hind,
Umesh Sharma
[General Secretary]
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