The Department of English and Humanities (ENH) held a colourful event celebrating the pleasures provided by the text. The programme “TEXTRAVAGANZA!” was held on Wednesday, 4th Oct, 2017.
The event was arranged very thoughtfully to reflect how books can truly be man’s best friend and provide great and inspiring companionship. Students read out carefully selected passages from James Joyce, Virginia Woolf, William Shakespeare, Haruki Murakami, Jiddu Krishnamurti, Hermann Hesse, Humayun Ahmed and many other authors. The use of musical scores, video clips and dramatic performances made the readings captivating for the audience.
The second half of the literary event was a fun and entertainment one, as there was hip hop rendition of Shakespearean passages, reggae performance from Linton Kwesi Johnson, a graphic film adaptation, demonstration of the sufi dance form and its connection with poetry, a dancing interpretation of modernist paintings and even a magic show revolving around the text!
Using only a projector and the simplest of costumes, students of ENH read, sang and acted out words that were deeply inspiring and thought provoking. The text truly was the hero of the event as pointed out by Rukhsana R. Chowdhury, senior lecturer of the department.
The Chairperson of the department Professor Firdous Azim appreciated the zeal and talent of the ENH students in her closing remarks.
The thunderous applause of the audience which had been cheering the performers on stage throughout the programme was a marker of the success of the event.