Socrates, Harry Bellafonte ('She's smarter dan de man in every way") and the ilk in general will turn in all relevant places if told that women had problems expressing themselves, and men all over the world will cluck at it as one of "those lib things", but apparently several ladies consider it a serious impediment. And here's where you get to see some of the most expressive of them all under one roof.
To represent the culmination of the first phase of the Women's WORLD/Asmita project on gender and censorship, "The Guarded Tongue", a national colloquium, will be held for three days at the TU. For the first time in the country, as many as 65 women creative writers are coming together to participate in this three-day national colloquium, to be held at Indo-American Study Center, OU Campus, on the first day.
The first phase comprised a series of workshops for female creative writers in ten Indian languages over two years (1999-2001). Under this project 10 women writers' workshops were conducted in different states, through which several women writers shared experiences in their lives and works.
The Asmita Resource Center is organizing this colloquium along with the Women's World Organization for Rights. Women writers across the world associated with Women's World, a spin-off from the International PEN (Poets, Essayists and Novelists), believe gender-based censorship was a major threat to their free expression, and the writers here will speak on the need to express themselves through their writings, and of the obstacles faced and the taboos placed on them that hamper their freedom of expression.
The colloquium will culminate in a meeting at the Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University. Prominent women writers like Mrudula Garg, C S Lakshmi, Volga, Sashi Deshpande, Himanshi Shelat, Vidya Bal, Sara Abubakar, O V Usha, P Sivakami and Jameela Nishat Ritu Menon, Gouri Salvi and Ammu Joseph are expected to participate in this.
Please contact Dr. Beena at 773-3251/773-3229 for further details.