Art, literature, cinema, education, sports, fashion, architecture, photography and performing arts are the focus of 'Bonjour India' that continues till April next year.
"Cultural liberalism is what binds India and France and this festival will be a celebration of friendship between the two countries," Ambassador of France to India, Francois Richier said at a press conference here to announce the event.
A contemporary ballet in collaboration with the Russian Bolshoi theatre and leading Indian artist Subodh Gupta inaugurates the mega-festival. Gupta has designed the stage for the ballet 'And then one thousand years of peace,' that will be staged in Delhi and Mumbai.
Indo-French play 'India Song', which sees actor Nandita Das in the lead and introduces French author Marguerite Duras to Indian audience, is scheduled for a debut at the NCPA theatre in Mumbai. It will be also staged in Delhi and Kolkata.
Among the highlights of 'Bonjour India' is a food-art project called Deguste. This will feature a French power dinner, interventions by a French chef working or living in India, a food art exhibition as well as a French picnic.
The first edition of 'Bonjour India' was held in 2009-10 and this time the festival will be held across Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Chandernagor, Chandigarh, Chennai, Goa, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Pondicherry, Pune, and Thrivunanthapuram. (More)
