Bringing something new to the old: GLF set for 12th edition
With the 12th Galle Literary Festival on the cards from February 6-9 we meet festival curator Saskia Walker and festival manager Amreeya Mowlana, in Colombo for a breather from Galle where the stage is being set for a rendezvous of books and minds, against the sunrises and sunsets of a timeless ‘port of stories’. Excerpts from the interview:
- Curating the 12th edition of the Galle Literary Festival seems a daunting task. Though a blueprint is there, there are high standards to maintain.
Saskia Walker- What we are trying to do is build on previous editions of the festival which has been running since 2007. It has been fantastic; we’ve had speakers from all over the world. I think what we are trying to do is not to make the festival bigger- we are still working within the sense of having four days- but to create programmes that feel fresh and exciting- and is a combination of showcasing Sri Lankan writing and also international writers and creating compositions that wouldn’t be heard elsewhere…
- What kind of experience do you bring in to the festival?
What is your background?
Saskia- I have lived in Sri Lanka for seven years- I’m half-British and half-Mauritian… I grew up internationally moving countries every couple of years- mostly in Asia. I would hope that having an international perspective is a good thing when trying to curate a festival that aims to showcase the best of the island but also bringing in an international perspective.
That’s why we are having speakers from the five continents- something we are really proud of. I hope that I can use my own experience along with the very experienced team…
I have a history degree so I try to create a balance of having pretty great history content in the programme… My background is also in writing and editing.
- How did you try to let in a breath of fresh air, or break the mould?
Saskia- I think it’s about trying to read as much as possible in the course of the year, and to bring in lots of ideas. We worked in three themes this year. One is Legacy; another is Belonging and Identity; the third is cross-cultural connection. And so you’ll see that across our talks, panels, workshops and tours. Through that we are trying to address what are very current topics, and I suppose ask questions that are relatable for… the audience.
Amreeya Mowlana- What’s different this year is we are bringing in quite a few free events not directly focused on literature but on the arts as a whole. We have some really interesting vendors, entertainment acts- from open mics to dance performances- so it’s going to be interesting- not only for those interested in literature.
- There is an emphasis this time on translated works of literature. How does that play out?
Saskia- We are are really thrilled to have Rashmika Mandawala who translated into Sinhala Romesh Gunesekera’s Reef, a book that celebrates 30 years. We also have a tea and poetry event which is centred on tea estate lines, featuring the works of 12 Tamil hill country poets who will speak and read their poetry. We have got the writer and translator of Kairos, which won the 2024 International Booker Prize: we have Jenny Erpenbeck who was the original author in German and Michael Hoffman who was the translator into English. That year Romesh Gunesekera was one of the judges…
- What’s new in the fringe festivals?
Saskia- The children’s festival is taking place on Saturday February 8 at the Martin Wickremesinghe Museum- an amazing setting. Last year Tracy Holsinger and her team put together an amazing set of events for different age groups, 2 -5, 6-8, 9-11 and 12+. There are workshops, literary events, art classes- so that’s fantastic.
Gourmet Galle is running from the end of this month. So we have an overlap on the weekend of the festival. We’ve got Ravinder Bhogal of Jikoni, London, joining us, also Andi and Miquita Oliver and Ryan Chetiyawardana…
And we also have the Art Trail. We have artists joining us, and also exhibitions, tours. And you can meet artists and experience exhibitions through their eyes.
- How are students facilitated this year?
Saskia- We have partnered with five universities across Sri Lanka and we’ve offered them complimentary tickets for students and we have a programme where any student who would like to come to the festival can write to our team and have a 50% discount. So we would really encourage students to come. They are a huge part of the festival; lots of them are also in our team of volunteers, and they are so much of the amazing energy of the festival.
- What would be highlights?
Saskia- Two conversations we will be having would be sustainable wildlife tourism with Saba Douglas-Hamilton, Manori Gunawardena and Anushka Wijesinha and you can also go and see writers talk about how Sri Lankan identity is reflected through novels. We also have a conversation called Repatriation: Objects of Empire, with lawyer Naazima Kamardeen and Nicholas Thomas, Australian museum director.
- How does the traditional Galle community get involved?
Amreeya- 60% of our volunteers come from Galle and surrounding areas. GLF was started to highlight Galle. We’ve been able to do that quite successfully in the past. If we didn’t get their support this will not be possible. Our suppliers are also from Galle.
Saskia- We shall have walking tours by local residents who are experts. We have a cookery demonstration by the Fort Ladies’ Community. Some of (the youth) would be like their mothers in a cookery demonstration, and they themselves would be showing people around the fort…
Find out more on galleliteraryfestival.com
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