The 1st Edition of international Olive Ridley – a multi-lingual poetry festival – got underway in Kendrapara with poets from West Bengal, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Telangana and other states attending the two-day festival.
The festival was organized by Kalpana Foundation. On the second day of the festival, poets recited poems in Bhitarkanika National Park in a boat.
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“A poet is a person who creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author who composes poems. Translation of poems in other languages is the need of the hour,” said Chennai-based Swami Suddhananda.
Dr Rajendra Padhi, poet and a retired English professor, said: “More significantly the internet has given poets a new platform to grow and expand on social media, blogs, author websites, and more for which poets are getting more readers throughout the globe.”
Third Eyes – a collection of poems authored by Kalpana Mallick – was unveiled at the festival.
P Naga Sishila, an English professor at JKC College, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, Manish Wankhede from Maharashtra, Rita De of Kolkata, Biswanath Kundu of West Bengal, Alby Raymond from Kochi, Dr Basudev Das, Dr Sarbeswar Sena, Hemant Rout and others attended the two-day long poetry festival.