Acclaimed writer Swapnil Pandey, author of ‘Force Behind The Forces’ was part of a heartwarming panel discussion with Veer Naris wherein the latter shared their inspiring and touching stories.      

She said that these are important stories which each Indian should know.

Lt Command DS Chauhan inspired me to write this book. She was married to him for one and half months; her husband sacrificed his life saving INS Vikramaditya which is pride of india.

“When she received the news of supreme sacrifice of her husband, she was in trauma and did not know how to cope up with situation. She was Googling how Veer naris controlled their agony. No one talks of women, Write so that Veer Naris can cope up with their trauma.    

 At ‘Rangayan’ auditorium, the morning session of ‘Naghma – E – Zindagi’ brought forth awe evoking poems to the audience while at ‘Madhyavarti’ auditorium, the session ‘Safarnama – Kaagaz Se Kitab Tak’ was about the writers, editors and publishers sharing their literary journeys. 

The next two sessions at Rangayan were ‘Role of Army Wives as Role Models – Chhotey Kadam’ and ‘Kavyadhara-The Universe In Verse’.

‘Chhotey Kadam’ was an absorbing panel discussion with brave women officers of the Indian Army who have set high benchmarks in their respective fields. These officers included first gallantry awardee    Lt Col Madhumita, first War Widow to join Indian Army, Lt Col R J Randhawa, first Lady Instructor at Officers Training Academy, Capt Reenu Khurana and first woman paratrooper of the Indian Army, Capt Ruchi Sharma. ‘Kavyadhara’ was another mesmerising session at Rangayan which witnessed poets sharing their composition with the audience.   

A very warm interaction with Army officers and their roles impressed audience in the Rangayan theatre. The panellists as well as moderator shared an extraordinary life experience through their conversation. The first panelist was former paratrooper Captain Ruchi Sharma; she highlighted a positive aspect of male counterparts and said that  acceptance as women officer by their male counterparts is quite large and added “Our boys And men’s have very very large heart.”

The next guest panellist was Colonel Randhawa who she shared her story that how she got attracted towards the Army’s uniform and duty. She decided to join Army in her later stage and said opportunities open doors for many like her.

Captain Renu Sharma shared her experience in 1994 when she was posted at Udhampur district of Jammu. She was part of cycling.

The final and well known personality Lt Col Mitali Madhumita, shared her story behind this when she was deployed in Kabul in 2009. She spoke on how she saved people.

The post lunch events were equally absorbing. Veena Naravane launched the books ‘Nal To Theek Hai’ and ‘Kab Tak’ written by Meenu Tripathi. At Rangayan, the session ‘Meri Kahani Meri Zubani – Walk Through The Wall’ covered the stories of Army wives who emerged as successful entrepreneurs against all odds. At ‘Madhyavarti’, the session ‘Roobaroo Part I – Meet Your Author’ was an interactive session wherein the authors discussed their work with the book lovers.      

The day also included few workshops on varied subjects of interest. ‘Build Your Own Bussiness’ was a workshop for budding entrepreneurs by Mrs Usha Goswami. Another interesting workshop on ‘Social Influencing’ was conducted by Sapna Agrawal & Sonia Handa.    

As the day progressed, the cultural shows and musical performances added colour to the event .Stand up comedy by celebrated artists Harpriya Bains and Lt Col Ankita Srivastava had the audience in splits. A musical performance by the famous Army Symphony Band ended the day on a high. Going by the adage ‘morning shows the day’ one can only expect greater fun and excitement as the fest progresses.