National capital New Delhi is all set to host a unique, yet traditional kind of literary festival that will see one man taking on over 200 giants from the literary world in a fine arts poetic question and answer exchange.
World-renowned DwiSahasravadhani Brahma Dr. Madugula Nagaphani Sarma will spend the November 2 to November 9 week displaying his oratorical and poetical prowess in a programme called "AvadhaanaRaajadhanee". Sarma said that a salient feature of the event will be the highlighting of the "people-oriented policies" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi titled "Modaavadhaanam".
Avadhaanam is a skill in which poems of various meters and prosodies are composed instantly before the audience on various topics chosen by the latter. It is a show of literary knowledge with a thorough command over memory by a scholar or "Avadhaani. Those who pose the questions are called "Prucchakas", and in terms of numbers, can range anywhere from 100 to 2000.
Sarma, who is a polymath well-versed in both Sanskrit and Telugu languages and literature, besides ancient Indian scriptures, culture, music, dance and drawing, said that he was visiting the national capital for the second time in a decade to make people from all walks of life, particularly the younger generation, aware of India's ancient and traditional culture.
When asked how he hoped to make an impact in the northern parts of the country, and especially with a heavily anglicized audience of adults and youngsters, he said that the Goddess of Learning, Saraswati, would come to his assistance as she had always when faced with challenging situations.
Between November 2 and 9, Dr. Sarma will face about 225 litterateurs who will pose diverse literary questions and teasers, qualified again by several riders, stipulations and restrictions.
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Dr. Sarma said that his job will be to negotiate these hurdles and give spontaneous answers through extemporized couplets and stanzas. This, he informed media, would require erudition, wide knowledge, keen intellect, imaginative and creative fecundity, felicity of poetic flow, common sense, quick wit and repartee, besides photographic memory, stupendous energy and patience.
All of this memorization and retrieval will be done without the use of pen, paper or any other external aid.
Born in 1959, Dr. Sarma received his doctorate from the Central Sanskrit University at Tirupathi after completing his doctoral thesis titled "Dharma Swaroopam in the Kavyas of Kalidasa".
He has acquired worldwide fame for his scholarly discourses, which have drawn thousands of numerous admirers. The central government conferred the honour of "Tarun Tapaswi on him in 2003. Former Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao used to refer to him as the "Human Computer".