The Ramayana Research Foundation in Bangalore is organising a three-day World Ramayana Conference from January 23 to 25 at the National College Grounds. “There would be 50 scholars from across India presenting their papers on various subjects,” S.N. Varadaraj, founder & chairman, Ramayana Research Foundation said. “There would be an interesting National Debate on Ramayana on January 24. The participants in the debate includes Dr. Satya Vrat Shastri, the first Sanskrit scholar who was awarded the Jnana Peeth Award; former Cabinet Minister Dr. Subramaniam Swamy and renowned Vedic scholars Dr. Bannanje Govindacharya and Dr. Mani Dravid.”
“We wanted to provide a scholastic platform for the studies and research on the Ramayana available in India. We also wanted to take forward my father, S.V. Narayanaswamy Rao’s ideals. All aspects of the epic will be discussed threadbare including its relevance in contemporary society.”
Ramanyana in arts will feature a ballet by Shobana on January 23, and Nirupama & Rajendra on January 25. Malagi Jayatheerthacharya’s “Is Ramayana witness to continental drift theory?”, V.V. Jaddipal on the architecture of Ramayana and Jayanthi Manohar’s “Ramayana’s impact on South-east Asia” are some of the interesting lectures.
Abhijith Varadaraj who has been working on the project for the last two years said: “Our mission is to come up with a Rama Grama Thematic Park project on a 30-acre plot near Malavalli belt. We are trying to re-create Dashratha’s palace and Sarayu River using LED and 3D technology.”
The conference is the fruition of six-year old dream. “This is a world conference as we are gathering a global perspective on the Ramayana,” says Abhijith, adding the biennial conference would be conducted at different place including Washington DC.
