Continued from page 01 THE event is being organised by a group of citizens under the umbrella platform, India My Valentine. This includes people from the film fraternity Swara Bhasker, Vikas Katyal, Aditi Anand, activist Fahad Ahmad, Kabeer Palshikar and entrepreneur Richard Jacob, among others. The celebratory and collaborative programme aims at celebrating the February 14 weekend with music and spoken word. So far, the event is to take place in ten cities including New Delhi, Kolkata, Indore, Jaipur, Kochi, and Hyderabad. The opening ceremony will be held in New Delhi on February 14 and the closing concert on February 16 will be held in Mumbai. u201c The event will reaffirm our faith in our fraternity; in our unity; in our Constitution u2014 as Indians u2014 no matter what our political differences may be,u201d reads the concept note. u201c We will help you curate the line- up of talent and artists and help coordinate the event in your city. Logistical and financial responsibility will belong to the local groups.u201d The note further read: u201c We gather to celebrate the India we know and love u2014 the India of tolerance, the India of acceptance, the India that strove to be a better place for even her most oppressed children, the India that was a dream. We celebrate the India of Tagore and Gandhi, the India of Ashfaqullah, Bismil, Savitribai Phule, Fatima. The India of Bhagat Singh and Ambedkar.u201d Facilitating hosts, artists The organisers will act as facilitators between potential venue sites and the artists themselves. Those interested in bringing the event to their city can contact them at Indiamyvalentine@ gmail. com. u201c It is a sort of callout,u201d said Bhaskar, who is one of the organisers. u201c We realised that there are people who arenu2019t into aggressive politics or harsh messaging. They might not come for a protest but they will come to attend an evening of cultural performances such as spoken word, poetry, and music. The name u2018 India, My Valentineu2019 represents the fact that no matter how many differences the electorate might have over political views, we love India.u201d India, My Valentine will also act as a liaison between artists and the venue. The city- based venues will have the freedom to choose the content for the event. For instance, whether or not to mention the Citizenship ( Amendment) Act, the National Register of Citizens ( NRC), and the National Population Register ( NPR) will be up to the individual venues. u201c On the other hand, some venues are hardcore protest sites themselves. So it is open to interpretation,u201d Bhaskar said. The organisers have also received requests from smaller towns of Uttar Pradesh. u201c We are concerned about the artistsu2019 safety. We wonu2019t compromise on security,u201d Bhaskar said. u201c Most of the current protests are taking place in echo chambers. The Right wing has successfully polarised them. Whether we have been able to reach across this echo chamber is unclear,u201d she added. u201c It is heartening to see the response. People from all across the country have offered their spaces to host the event or participate as performers. It goes to show how deeply the events of the past months have captured the imagination of the youth,u201d she said. Ahmad, on the other hand, said, u201c The idea is to celebrate an India that gives equal rights to everyone without any discrimination. We will restore that India for which our freedom fighters fought. India is my first love because it gives us everything today that we have in our life.u201d u2018 We may be different, but we all love Indiau2019 With India, My Valentine acting as a liaison between artistes and hosts, individual city venues will have the freedom to choose their content and decide on mentioning CAA, NRC during event And India, My Valentine poster Activist Fahad Ahmad with actor- activist Swara Bhaskar Participating artistes Vishal Dadlani ( music/ vocals), Rekha Bhardwaj ( music/ vocals), Swanand Kirkire ( poetry/ vocals), Aditi Mittal ( stand- up), Kaneez Surka ( stand- up), Sanjay Rajoura ( stand- up), Ankur Tewari ( music/ vocals), Saba Azad ( music/ vocals), Madara ( rap), Aamir Aziz ( spoken word), Sabika Naqvi ( spoken word), Himanshu Bajpai ( dastangoi u2014 Urdu storytelling), Dolly Singh ( YouTube sketches) u2018 We gather to celebrate the India we know and love u2014 the India of tolerance, the India of acceptance, the India that strove to be a better place for even her most oppressed children, the India that was a dream. We celebrate the India of Tagore and Gandhi, the India of Ashfaqullah, Bismil, Savitribai Phule, Fatima. The India of Bhagat Singh and Ambedkaru2019 A note by India, My Valentine

u2018 We may be different, but we all love Indiau2019

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