Bengaluru :

Karnataka Lekhakiyara Sangha (KLS), a collective of women writers started in 1979, has released documentaries on eight remarkable women who have steered the organisation since its inception.

The documentaries have been made by D.S. Suresh. He had earlier made films on 15 Kannada women writers who have received the prestigious Anupama Award. KLS made use of grants given by the Department of Kannada and Culture for this project.

The documentaries cover T. Sunandamma, H.S. Parvathy, Hemalatha Mahishi, Nagamani S. Rao, Shashikala Veeraiahswamy, Usha P. Rai, Sandhya Reddy and Vasundhara Bhoopathi. It was released by S.G. Siddaramaiah, chairperson of the Kannada Development Authority, on Monday.

Mr. Suresh worked on this ambitious project for more than 18 months. He had interviewed over 125 people, including writers. “These documentaries can reach out to people who have little knowledge about literature. It will help them to know about women writers and their contribution to literature and the Sangha,” he added.

Women writers in Kannada, who felt they were being excluded from the mainstream, decided to join hands to form KLS. “Initially, it was an informal group. It grew slowly and T. Sunandamma, popular humour writer, became the first president of the Sangha, which had only 20 members in 1979.

Dr. Vasundhara Bhoopathi, president of the Sangha, said they are now planning to record the contribution of women Kannada writers in and outside Karnataka under the title ‘Nanna Kavithe Nanna Haadu’ (my poetry, my songs).

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Special Correspondent / December 12th, 2016