News Desk, News Nation 360 : Meghna Pant, recipient of the Bharat Nirmaan Award, and renowned climate fiction writer Rajat Chaudhuri discussed "Today's Dystopias" with Niladri Chatterjee. The official book launch of Meghna Pant's "Man Who Lost India," hosted by Indian actress Swastika Mukherjee, kicked off the session. The actress gave a reading of selected passages from the book to the audience after the launch. Niladri Chatterjee, the moderator, opened the discussion by questioning each of the authors about the sources of inspiration for their novels. Their discussion with the panel included the recent exaltation of violence and war in contemporary society. According to Rajat Chaudhuri, the desensitisation to violence is a result of social media. Rajat Chaudhuri hinted that his climate activism was the ultimate source of his creative vision, while
Meghna Pant identified "masochism, curiosity, and patriarchy" as the main forces motivating her. "No female author in India has attempted a war novel before," the author of "Man Who Lost India" was cited as saying. She made it clear that her attempt to write a war novel was a heretical response to the claims made by men that women are incapable of producing serious writing, much less war novels. Meghna Pant held the concurrent belief that "individuals, families, and society as a whole are the starting points for society's molecular changes." Therefore, everyone ought to begin with themselves. The two authors read excerpts from their books as the session came to a close. 'Tablawallah Unplugged,' the final session of AKLF Day 1, featured renowned table players Pandit Kumar Bose and Bickram Ghose in discussion with Rohen Bose. This meeting included a stroll down memory lane, literary analysis, and music. Is the Tabla the most advanced type of drum? was the question that sparked the conversation.
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