French pavilion at Kolkata book fair shows growing bilateral relations

A massive pavilion at the 42nd International Kolkata Book Fair set up by France, the theme country in this year's edition, depicts the developing bilateral relations between India and the European nation in areas like art and literature. The 14,000-sq ft structure, having separate parts themed on creativity, partnership and innovation, underscores how India and France are working together in the domains of art, cinema, literature, dance, fashion and technology, French Consul Damien Syed said yesterday.

In one part of the pavilion, digital displays highlight the important achievements of Indian and French film industries, providing glimpses from the days of the Lumiere brothers to contemporary collaborations. The section contains digital posters of the Indian entry at Cannes Film Festival, the 1953 film 'Do Bigha Zamin' which had garnered international acclaim.

The pavilion also features singular art work installations using diverse interactive expressions in visual art, digital art and sound art by two artistes working under the name 'Scenocosme'. "The exchange of ideas between India and France spanned centuries - from Lumiere to Lunchbox, from Madame Gres to Manish Arora... between Voltaire and Vedas, Tagore and Alain Danielou, Uday Shankar and Simkie.

The stream of inspiration between the cultures flows deep and strong," read an inscription on the pavilion. The largest theme country pavilions at the Kolkata book fair in past editions have been within the 5,000 sq ft area limit, General Secretary of the Publishers' and Booksellers' Guild, Tridib Chatterjee said. With France being the focal theme country, most of the book fair gates are replicas of French architecture in India like that in Chandernagore and Puducherry, he added.

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