Director of Literature Across Frontiers speaks at India Global Forum
Director of Literature Across Frontiers, Alexandra Büchler, attended the India Global Forum 2023 this week where she spoke about creating lasting connections between the Indian and Welsh literary scenes.
The culture segment of the Forum, the Creative Industries and Cultural Economy Summit, co-organized in partnership with the British Council, convened key leaders and stakeholders to continue the dialogue on a new vision of bilateral cultural exchange between the UK and India, following last year’s successful first edition.
Alexandra Büchler spoke about the work of Literature Across Frontiers (LAF), a programme based at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David, alongside Wales Literature Exchange, and its long-standing collaboration with India’s thriving literary and translation scene. LAF has initiated numerous projects since 2009 in cooperation with festivals, book fairs and higher education institutions aiming at literary exchange and giving Welsh literature in both Welsh and English high visibility.
“Our cooperation has resulted in lasting and productive connections with India’s vibrant cultural landscape, presenting Welsh authors to large, mainly young audiences, and bringing their work into Indian languages. Our landmark project with ten Indian and Welsh poets celebrated the 70th anniversary of India’s independence in 2017–18 during the UK–India Season with exchange residencies and a tour of six festivals. In 2019, we organized the ‘Wales Guest Country’ programme at the Kerala Literature Festival and the ‘Cymru in the City!’ micro festival in Mumbai. We returned to India with a literary tour earlier this year, thanks to support from Wales Arts International,” said Alexandra Büchler.
“We are delighted to see Welsh authors translated into Indian languages with funding from Wales Literature Exchange’s Translation Grants Programme. Two successful recent titles, The Blue Book of Nebo by Manon Steffan Ros and Drift by Caryl Lewis, will appear soon from the leading Malayalam publisher DC Books, while Paul Henry’s poetry is being translated by the well-known poet Anwar Ali,” said Professor Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones, Director of the Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies and Strategic Co-Director of Wales Literature Exchange.
Other UK speakers at the Summit included author, historian and broadcaster Bettany Hughes; Alison Barret, Country Director India at the British Council; Amish Tripathi, Director of The Nehru Centre; and Dr Jaideep, Gupte, Director of Research, Strategy, and Innovation, AHRC.
Note to Editor
Contact: Alexandra Büchler: alexandra@lit-across-frontiers.org
Background
Literature Across Frontiers (LAF) is the European Platform for Literary Exchange, Translation and Policy Debate established in Wales with support from the European Union in 2001.
LAF is based at the University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies, adjacent to the National Library, and is part of University of Wales Trinity Saint David, alongside Wales Literature Exchange, the programme promoting Welsh books and providing support for their translation. Their activities are supported by the Arts Council of Wales and other funders.
The Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies (CAWCS) was established by the University of Wales in 1985 as a dedicated research centre conducting team-based projects on the languages, literatures, culture and history of Wales and the other Celtic countries. It is located in Aberystwyth, adjacent to the National Library of Wales, which is an internationally renowned copyright library with excellent research facilities.
CAWCS offers unique opportunities for postgraduate students to work alongside specialists in a dynamic and supportive environment. We welcome enquiries about MPhil/PhD topics in any of our research areas. For more information about research opportunities, or for an informal chat about possible topics, contact our Head of Graduate Studies, Dr Elizabeth Edwards: e.edwards@wales.ac.uk.
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