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6:00 PM - 7:00 PM (UTC+5.5)
An Introduction to Kannada Literature
SPEAKERS
INDICA’s Center for Bharatiya Languages welcomes you to a conversation with Professor K.S. Kannan, Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj Chair in IIT-Madras, on the topic An Introduction to Kannada Literature on the 28th of January 2023 at IST 1800 hrs. This conversation, in English, intends to serve as an introduction to some facets of Kannada literature. Kannada, as some might know, is one of the six languages indigenous to India recognised by the Government of India as a ‘Classical’ language. As per this press release found on the Press Information Bureau website (https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=103014), the criteria to determine the declaration of a language as a Classical language have been: i) High antiquity of its early texts/recorded history over a period of 1500-2000 years; (ii) A body of ancient literature/texts, which is considered a valuable heritage by generations of speakers; (iii) The literary tradition be original and not borrowed from another speech community; (iv) The classical language and literature being distinct from modern, there may also be a discontinuity between the classical language and its later forms or its offshoots.
Speakers
Dr. K.S. Kannan
Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj Chair Professor at IIT Madras
Prof. K S Kannan, D. Litt, Academic Director of the Swadeshi Indology Conference Series (organised by Infinity Foundation India), is a renowned scholar of Sanskrit. Formerly the Director of Karnataka Samskrit University, Bangalore, he has a rich teaching experience of over 40 years. He is a Member (nominated by HRD, Govt. of India) of the Indian Institute of Advanced Studies, Shimla. Amongst the various recognitions, he was conferred the title "Vidyānidhi" by HH Rangapriya Swamiji (Bangalore), and the International Merit Award for a paper on Machine Translation. He is a Member of the Academic Council, Veda Vijnana Shodha Samsthanam, Channenahalli. Dr. Kannan currently occupies the prestigious Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj Chair at IIT-Madras.
Megh Kalyanasundaram
Host, Director – Special Projects, INDICA
Megh Kalyanasundaram is an Indian citizen with close to nine years of lived experience in China, an alumnus of ISB and is currently Director Special Projects at INDICA. His post-graduate specialization in Strategy, Leadership and Marketing included a study of research methods. His professional experience includes stints as a Market Leader at a Global Fortune 50 firm, as Head of Business Development at a leading Indian talent development multinational and he has served a term on the Board of a Shanghai-based not-for-profit. His academic research interests and 20+ papers span some aspects of ancient Indian chronology, Indian Knowledge Systems, Landscape in Indic texts, Ancient Indian Jurisprudence, Ideas of India and Philosophy. For his creative contribution to the first edition of the International Day of Yoga, he was invited by the Permanent Mission of India in the United Nations to attend the inaugural event at the UN. Other professional and pro-bono pursuits have included building differentiated digital platforms for Indic texts targeted at specific learning and research needs and music. His research-based compositional Sanskrit album 'Bhārata and her Kāśmīra' has been listed by the Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts (IGNCA) while his subsequent album 'Indian Knowledge Systems and Yāskācārya's Nirukta' has recently been accepted for listing by the Vedic Heritage Portal. In 2022, Megh was invited by the National Museum Institute (NMI) to contribute content for multiple projects currently underway at NMI, including ones on Jammu Kashmir & Ladakh and Kedarnath.