JAYANT MAMMEN MATHEW
EXECUTIVE EDITOR MALAYALA MANORAMA

We are delighted to announce the inaugural edition of Manorama Hortus: A Celebration of Art & Literature, a vibrant festival to be held at the Kozhikode beach from November 1 to 3, 2024.

A historic city, Kozhikode has recently been designated the City of Literature by UNESCO and is thus a perfect setting for this lively festival.

Malayala Manorama has for more than a century influenced literary and artistic sensibilities in Kerala. Its literary magazine Bhashaposhini, launched in 1892, continues to command respect among discerning readers.

Over the course of three days, nearly 400 national and international writers and artists will engage in more than 130 sessions.

The Aksharaprayanam, journey of alphabets, has already sparked interest in every major town and is leading the way to the festival venue.

Manorama Hortus is a treat for everyone. Experiences and activities that that will enrich us: book launches, author interaction, conceptual art by Kerala artists, Korean cooking studio, board games, quiz and musical performances.

We look forward to welcoming you to enjoy these immersive experiences at the historic Kozhikode beach.

N S MADHAVAN
FESTIVAL DIRECTOR'S NOTE

Welcome to Hortus, an immersive festival set against the vastness of the sea. This festival invites visitors to reflect on the delicate balance between human expression and the surroundings. Giant backdrop of the sea itself is a telling image of thematic strands that we had striven to weave around in the making of Hortus.

Where do oceans acquire such grandeur? This celebrated couplet by the 18th century Chinese philosopher and politician, Lin Zexu, probably has the answer:

“The sea accepts the waters of a hundred rivers, Its tolerance results in its grandeur.”

By welcoming rivers from all directions the sea doesn’t diminish. At Hortus, we have tried to keep an open door to different, at times conflicting, perspectives, ideas and experiences. As Gandhiji had emphasised many times, tolerance is not a passive quality but an active force that strengthens and enlarges.

The word ‘Hortus’ comes with a bit of history - of conflict and eventual synthesis. The night of the 7th January, 1663, the date on which kingdom of Cochin was captured by the Dutch from the Portuguese, was probably the bloodiest in its history. The Dutch Presbyterians took out their European sectarian wrath on the vanquished Portuguese Catholics. In the following days, many Portuguese, Cochinites of Portuguese descent and natives who were suspected to be cohorts of the Portuguese, were put to sword by the victors. Many churches were destroyed; the Santa Cruz Cathedral was turned into a warehouse to store spices. The Library attached to Jesuit College, said to be the biggest religious library in Asia at that time, was burnt to cinders.

It is a matter of irony that arsoninist-in-chief of the library, Dutch Governor, Hendrik van Rheede, ideated and later decided to produce a twelve-volume book called Hortus Malabaricus (Garden of Malabar), about plant-varieties found in Malabar coast. Irony doesn’t end there; in this effort, Van Rheede sought the help of an Italian missionary, Father Matheus, a Catholic and a distinguished herbalist. Native wisdom came through Itty Achuthan, a Malayali doctor, and from his repository of palm-leaf books. Three other physicians from Cochin, Ranga Bhatt, Vinayak Pandit and Appu Bhatt, also generously dipped into their knowledge. With the publication of first volume of Hortus Malabaricus in 1678, Malayalam got into print for the first time, albeit as names of plants.

Garden of Malabar bloomed in a land, which at that time was stricken by sectarian violence, hatred and intolerance. An idea let in winds of good spirit and reconciliation. At Hortus art and literary festival, hosted by Malayala Manorama, we are inspired by that. With genre-defying verticals like Kochi Bienalle’s art pavilion to Korean kitchen and to “high- brow” to “popular” writers’ orations, we wish to celebrate diversity.

Once again welcome to Hortus by the sea.

BANDHU PRASAD ALEYAMMA
CURATORIAL NOTE

Hortus envisions itself as a convergence point where diverse ideas, concerns, expressions, memories and playfulness receive deeper contemplation in the company of fellow living beings. In a world where concerns of climate and coexistence are closer than we imagined, we must listen more attentively to one another. A human-centric approach in any sphere of life is revisited with clearer and more plural perspectives. Retrospection is necessary to understand the present in a nuanced and unbiased manner. While we navigate the present, introspection is crucial to identify the periphery of the spectacle. The urgency of care we express toward one another and our surroundings, the continuum of exercises to unlearn patriarchal lessons, imagining new ways of being together for common and shared causes and the duty to learn together with the younger generation are underlying themes of this year’s celebration at Hortus.

As an Art & Literature Festival, Manorama Hortus invited artists and arts organizations to contribute to the larger vision of Hortus. This includes the Kochi Biennale Foundation, known for their decade-long contribution to our cultural discourse, the collective that created shasn, the political board game, MUBI showcasing four films of contemporary masters and a group of sharp and fun tongued stand-up comedy performers. Our international writers and speakers are supported by Polish Institute, New Delhi, InKO Centre, Chennai, Arts Council Korea and Goethe Zentrum, Thiruvananthapuram.

Seaside Talks -a guided theatre act, movement art and writing workshops for kids and adults, culinary experiences with a Korean chef and beloved musicians on stage to enthral the crowd indicate the inclusivity of the programmes and activities at Hortus.

Malayala Manorama intends to take this festival around the state in the coming years and it underscores our efforts to ignite a cultural festival that functions as a platform where diverse expressions and imaginations are shared with love, compassion and care.

We invite you to experience Hortus together.